A Short Team History

By Darren Zanon

Port Angeles lacrosse really started in Portland, Ore., in the fall of 1993. At Lewis & Clark College, Jason Zanon was recruited to play goalie, and he brought his gear back at the end of the year. With nothing better to do, his brothers, Nathan and Darren, along with some friends, went to K-mart and bought some miniature plastic sticks. Using a tennis ball, they began playing in the back yard; it didn't take long to see how entertaining the sport really was.


Over the summer, Nathan called then-athletic director Frank Prince, who helped us form a club, and convinced Dave Uranich to be advisor. A newspaper article prompted Brad Morse to volunteer as coach that fall. He helped us through the first couple months, but our team was too young and inexperienced to care; Morse discovered this and quit. For the players, lacrosse was more of an inside joke for a group of social misfits than a real sport. In the spring, the team faced and was defeated by Kitsap and Bainbridge B, but against fellow upstart Burien, it managed two firsts: first, the team scored a goal; and second, it won a game.


In the fall of 1995, the juniors became the core of the team under advisor John Henry. That year, after securing $3000 from a local organization to purchase equipment, the club was officially sanctioned to practice at Stevens, and the machine shop donated a pair of goals to the cause. Come spring, the Port Angeles lacrosse team was a member of the Washington Lacrosse League and managed wins over both Burien and Bainbridge B, but could not compete against the more established -- often coached -- teams.


The fall of 1996 saw Byron Weeks became team advisor. An effort to recruit underclassmen and a coach turned up Adam Kaufman and a 24-person roster. Although Kaufman missed about half the season due to work, he introduced drills and techniques new to the team. As well, his skill as a player and love for the sport were obvious. That spring, the squad stole a victory from Vashon in the first game of the year and made the playoffs for the first time.


When Kaufman went back to school for his teaching certificate, the team turned to the coach it has now, a football coach who was willing to learn everything he could about an unfamiliar sport and whose leadership has encouraged growth and development of the team in every area. The next step is a playoff victory, and maybe even a championship. At its current rate of advancement, in five years, Port Angeles will doubtless be an A-division competitor.

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