The Big Lake Hornet Boys Lacrosse team has 32 students registered for the program in grades 7-12. Brad Weber returns as head coach and his assistant coaches are Jason Snoddy and Kyle Fagen. Student Managers are Emma Kucher, Alexia Eastey and Tayler Choate.

“This is the season I most look forward to each year,” says Weber. “I enjoy the challenges of coaching a team that varies from very new to fairly experienced players, and finding ways to get each of them as far along their development curves as possible.” 

Weber says with the loss of the 2020 season, it was probably the biggest challenge he’s had to face in this program. 

“We had just finished our first varsity season and were starting to see improving recruiting trends in both the High School and youth programs, but that lost season resulted in a number of players going to other activities that were opened up earlier, and set us back a number of years in terms of numbers growth.”

For Weber, watching the day-to-day improvement in his athletes is the most rewarding. 

“In newer players, when you step back and review their progress from the season, it’s very clear in terms of stick skill improvement,” he says. “For the more experienced players, that growth usually occurs in terms of better decision making within the games.”

Weber says he has not yet finalized all of the captains for this season as he is now co-opping with Princeton, and they’re looking to add a captain from the Tiger’s team.

Weber says the team’s formal practice template changes throughout the year. 

“Early in the season, we plan to spend 75-80% on stick and other individual technical skills,” he says. “With the rest (of the time) introducing the team tactics we’ll use early in the season. As we start getting more into the game season, it will shift to a 50-50% split between individual technical skills and team tactics.” 

Weber says his team holds practice a little bit later after the end of the school day, and this allows players who can get there right away some time for speed and agility work.

Though season records, playoff pushes and trophy celebrations are ideal, Weber makes sure he instructs the kids properly on the sport while sharpening their skills. After that, it’s sending them out and hoping they soak it all in.

“For me, it’s finding the right balance between having fun while pushing player development,” he says. “Having fun keeps the kids interested, and making them better each practice will help us take care of the on-field game records (wins, playoffs, and state tournament).”

Weber credits the coaches he’s had through the years for helping him fine tune his coaching strategies.

“I often go back to the coaches I had throughout high school,” he says. “They all put the outcome of the events on us as players, and never blamed officiating for negative outcomes.” 

But one coach Weber had, seems to stand out in his mind over others.

“Most of all, my high school baseball coach (Jim Senske) always drilled the fundamentals, with the expectation that the other team was going to have to beat us, because we weren’t going to make many mistakes.”

Lacrosse has many players playing positions that have certain tasks and duties to ensure great offensive opportunities while limiting the opponents chances. One of the toughest positions is the goaltender, who has to face blistering shots from all angles while navigating the front of the goal and the players weaving through.

Weber sees that position as a priority this year.

“I find the hardest thing to work on is goal tending and making the time to get them the development work they need,” Weber says. “That is going to be a focus of ours this year.”

And how does Weber hope to get his team to be better competitors?

“If you compare the “elite” programs in boys lacrosse in the state to those that finish lower each year, the biggest difference is the strength and health of the youth programs supporting the high school programs,” Weber says. “For a varsity game, we can roster 24 players, and in each game, you can pretty accurately predict the winners based on the ages of the players in those 24. As the sport of lacrosse grows in greater Minnesota, these gaps will continue to close.”