Concord boys lacrosse hoping to take big step this season

NASHUA – The day was over for the Concord High School boys lacrosse team, but the Crimson Tide still sat in the stands at Stellos Stadium.

The Tide had just finished the last of their three scrimmages at Saturday’s preseason jamboree, but the coaches and players stuck around to watch the teams – Goffstown and Bishop Guertin – following them.

“We’re here watching because you can learn from these games,” Concord coach Jeff Smith said. “You’re going to have to push yourself to that next level. If you really want that win, you’re going to have to see it, learn it, and log the hours.”

After going 7-9 a year ago and making the Division I playoffs, Smith is hopeful that a roster loaded with more than a dozen seniors has the right combination of experience and skill to take the next step.

“It’s a senior-heavy group,” he said. “They were forced into that role as sophomore at varsity, so they kind of took their lumps. This is the year they’re hoping to turn that corner.

“It’s nice not to have to reteach and they’re good kids. They’re teaching the younger kids, too, so I’m not starting from scratch, which is good.”

The Tide have faced some of the same challenges many other teams in the state have this spring. Before Saturday, Concord’s only practices outside have come in the school parking lot, and Smith could see the effects of that in the scrimmages.

“We haven’t been on a lot of fields,” he said. “The weakness is field spacing and knowing where you belong. It’s been a rough winter, and kids had a chance to really pass a ball around.  It’s just getting the little things back. We’ve been in a gym or a parking lot with sand. People are slipping and sliding, so you can’t really go full speed. The pace of the game is a good wakeup call.

“These events are great, because you can kind of see where the holes are and what you can do to fix them, and which kids need to develop what skills. Overall, you’re not going to be a well-oiled machine. But the kids are here, they want to be here, and when you have that, good things are ahead.”