His hands couldn't quite grasp the stick. The ball coming toward him wasn't quite as big as his eyes.Kyle Klein was like any kid in his neighborhood. He grew up playing in a field with a stick in his hands trying to annihilate a ball being thrown toward him.
Now 21, not much is different for Klein. He's still playing in a field with a stick and a ball. But this time, the stick feels like an extension of his hands, and the ball is more like a friend.
Klein is a key player for one of the top NCAA Division I lacrosse programs in the country.
"I was playing baseball most of my life; when I first started playing lacrosse, I had no idea how to play the game," said Klein, a Scottsdale Desert Mountain graduate who is a junior defender at Robert Morris University in Pittsburgh. (His twin brother Konner plays lacrosse for Grand Canyon University's club team.) "But as soon as I had a (lacrosse) stick and a ball in my hands, I fell in love with it."
Klein is a product of the Arizona Lacrosse Foundation leagues, which is helping shepherd what some believe is the fastest-growing sport in the West at the youth, high school and college level.
Though college lacrosse in Arizona can trace its roots to 1960 when Arizona formed its club team, lacrosse is primarily considered an East Coast sport.
Arizona State club lacrosse coach Chris Malone, who also is the director of the elite youth lacrosse program Arizona Burn, said he has seen the growth.
"When I first got here (in September 2007), there were 75 kids in my youth program. Now there are 225," said Malone, who was an All-American at Maryland. "In my first season at ASU we averaged about 300-400 fans in the stands. This season we he had 5,050 in our first game, and we sold out our second game with 1,300 people. It's an attractive sport. Kids like it, and those who are playing are introducing the sport to their friends."
Nick Cavanez, a senior captain for the Scottsdale Chaparral club lacrosse team, began playing the game in the fifth grade.
"When I first got into high school there were 40 guys on the team; now there are at least 60," he said. "At (Phoenix Brophy Prep), they had 100 people come out for their team. It's definitely growing really fast."
There are 25 high school boys clubs in the Valley and 15 high school teams in the Arizona Girls Lacrosse Association.
The number of elite players from Arizona has grown as well. In 2004, Scott Hochstadt founded the Starz Lacrosse Organization, which is the largest elite club lacrosse organization in the country. The Burn are a member of the organization.
"The talent there (in Arizona) is stronger than any other area, believe it or not," Hochstadt said.
Along with Klein, there are a handful of players playing Division I lacrosse on the East Coast. Hunter Rodgers, a sophomore midfielder, and Pierce Bassett, a freshman goalie, are believed to be the first Arizona products to play for Johns Hopkins, which has won nine Division I titles and is considered the premier program in the nation.
Malone said his goal is to increase the number of elite players who are athletically and academically equipped to earn scholarships from big-time college programs every year.
Klein said it's only a matter of time.
"Kids are starting to play the sport when they're a lot younger now," Klein said. "By the time they get into high school, the sport will there will be bigger, and Arizona will be a hotbed for lacrosse."
by Odeen Domingo - Mar. 20, 2010 04:42 PM
The Arizona Republic
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/preps/articles/2010/03/20/20100320arizona-lacrosse-growing.html
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