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Cottonwood Heights Journal

Skyline Women’s Lacrosse: Finding Success As A Family

May 05, 2016 12:37PM ● By Sarah Almond

By Sarah Almond  | [email protected]

Holladay - As the Skyline girl’s lacrosse team wraps up a 12-game season, the players aren’t gauging their success by a record of wins and losses. Instead, they are gauging success by how they’ve come together as a team and developed into a family; and by this scorebook, they’re champions.  

“We’ve definitely been improving as the season grows and everyone is putting in lots of hard work,” said head coach Megan Chacosky. “We may not be winning a lot, but I feel like we’re having a pretty successful season as far as growth goes.” 

With 50 girls on the roster, this the most participants the Skyline lacrosse program has seen in more than four years. While about half of the incoming players started in the community’s junior youth lacrosse program, much of the team’s growth can be contributed to the returning players’ vigilant recruiting efforts throughout Skyline High School. 

“I’ve been really fortunate to have a great team dynamic,” head coach Megan Chacosky said. “We don’t really have clicks. Our game plan on the field and off the field is to be equal in sharing the responsibilities and wins that we have.” 

There are three seniors on varsity, meaning the Eagles are a predominately young group. Despite age difference or experience level though, Skyline makes it their goal to operate equally as a team and as a family. 

“We are a lacrosse family,” senior captain Tessa Braley said. “We have each other’s backs on and off the field. Whether or not we have success, the idea behind the Skyline lacrosse team this year is that we stick together.” 

When Chacosky took over the head coaching position at the start of last season, she had two main goals: to develop strong lacrosse players and strong young women, and to establish lacrosse as a reputable program in the Holladay area. 

“When we bring new girls into the program, we talk a lot about developing them not just as good athletes and lacrosse players, but developing them as good people,” Chacosky said. “We make sure that we continue to play clean games, that we thank the refs and the people who are working the scoring table. We try to make sure that we’re always respectful toward the game of lacrosse, towards ourselves, and towards other people.” 

Chacosky leans on the leadership of the team’s three seniors to encourage respectful behavior and to remind each player to take accountability for their actions and their contribution to the team as a whole. 

“Another one of our big things this year is creating a good reputation for ourselves and sticking up for each other,” Braley said. “ We work on making sure people know that we are a classy team.” 

Considering that lacrosse is still a relatively new sport in the state of Utah, programs like Skyline are likely to continue seeing growth in the coming years. However, until several programs have successfully developed across the Salt Lake valley, lacrosse at Skyline will remain an unsanctioned sport.

Nevertheless, Chacosky and her players are dedicated to establishing Skyline as a leading lacrosse program that encourages success through sportsmanship, leadership, and respect.  

“One of the points I really put emphasis on is winning and loosing as a team, and making it an environment where girls feel like it is a place they want to go after school, not just another thing that they are responsible for,” Chacosky said. “We really try to make it a place where they can come and feel like they are with their friends, but they get to do lacrosse at the same time.” 

The Eagles end their regular season with a match at Copper Hills High School on May 4 at 5 pm. To learn more about the Eagles’ lacrosse program or to follow them throughout their season, visit their website at skylinewomenslacrosse.org or “Like” their Facebook page, Skyline Women’s Lacrosse