A cool breeze ruffles the turf on McLean’s main field. In less than a week, every square inch of that artificial grass will be covered in athletic students, eager to earn their varsity letter. 

Genevieve Deeken is a senior co-captain of the varsity girls lacrosse team. 

“I’m excited because at all of our offseason practices and Green Days, we’ve had a huge turnout with about 60 girls. A lot of the girls haven’t even played before. So it’s really exciting to get a lot of new players and young girls [who] are excited to learn how to play and build up a completely new team and program,” Deeken said. “Coach P’s doing a really good job of emphasizing how it’s one big program, not two separate teams. So I’m excited to be able to work together with all the girls; I’m just excited for a great season.”

Coach Priscilla Smith was McLean’s assistant varsity girls lacrosse coach in the 2017-18 season, and is the head varsity coach this year. She has previous experience coaching both high school and travel lacrosse. 

“She’s super enthusiastic about everything, and she’s super organized as well. [Coach P] has all these plans for conditioning and stick programs, and everything is really thought out. I’m really excited to get to try new drills and just work together as a team,” Deeken said.

“[Coach P is] also very knowledgeable about lacrosse. Everyone, even players that have been playing for a long time, can learn a lot from her. I’m really excited to learn more throughout the season so that our whole team can get better.”

Last season, the girls lacrosse team advanced to the regional finals, the furthest McLean’s team had been in over ten years. This year the team hopes to make it all the way to states.

“This year, we’re going to work on making sure that everybody’s really focused and excited to learn and to play. We’re going to start with the basics, like conditioning and stick skills, so that we can build off of that, and make sure that we don’t have any dropped balls this season. It makes the team a lot better as a whole. Overall, I think making sure that everyone’s excited to be there and willing to learn new things will go far this season,” Deeken said.

Deeken also offered up advice for players who are trying out for the first time, or players who may simply be suffering from nerves.

“Before tryouts, make sure [to] get on a wall and practice stick skills- [that], and making sure you’re in shape to run, [are] the most important things to have,” Deeken said.

Deeken’s advice is not all unique to lacrosse, however. 

“Even if [you’re] nervous, [you] should totally still try out. Everyone’s super welcoming and I would say it’s really worth it to try out. It’s okay to be nervous! A lot of people say you play better when you’re nervous, anyway. Everyone thinks it’s gonna be a lot worse than it actually is, and it’s really not that bad,” Deeken said.

The spring sports schedule starts Feb. 18 and is as follows:

Girls Lacrosse: Monday-Friday, 5:30-7:30, turf field

Boys Lacrosse: Monday-Wednesday, 7:30-9:30 turf field

Girls Soccer: Monday-Wednesday (varsity) through Thursday for JV. Monday 11-1. Contact coaches for more info.

Boys Soccer: Tuesday 2/19- Friday, 3:15- 5:30 at Lewinsville

Girls Tennis: Monday- Wednesday, 1-4 at McLean tennis courts.

Boys Tennis: Monday- Wednesday, 12-3 at Lewinsville

Softball: Monday- Wednesday, 12-3:30 at McLean softball field.

Baseball: All pitchers and catchers 11:00-1:00. 9th/10th graders: 1:30-4:30. 11th/12th graders: 3:30-6:00.

Spring Track: information session: Feb. 18 11:30-12 in lecture hall. Mandatory paperwork turn-in Feb 18 12-1 in lecture hall or Feb 19 6-7 in lecture hall. 

All times/locations are subject to change based on weather. Please check with the coach for additional try-out dates and times. Also, check announcements on TV and Twitter @mcleanathletics and McLean Activities website for updates.

Be sure to bring an Emergency Care card, and have a physical and concussion education (by both student and parent) on file or you will not be able to try out.

Good luck!