VOORHEES, N.J. — “We don’t need lights – we’ll be the light.”
That was the message from U.S. women’s box head coach Ginny Capicchioni during Sunday’s player ID camp at the Philadelphia Wings Training Center, the second of three such events Capicchioni and her staff are conducting to help determine invites for the team’s September training camp in Utica, N.Y.
After an intense morning session, a power issue in the area momentarily knocked off the lights at the facility before they were partially restored. Capicchioni didn’t waste long figuring out what to do ahead of the afternoon session. She had told the team earlier to be ready to handle any unexpected circumstances that popped up. Limited lighting included.
She moved ahead with the planned afternoon scrimmages. No one complained. They’ve waited a long time for this opportunity.
This will be the first time the United States has fielded a women’s box team and the opportunity to be a pioneer to represent the USA in the 2024 World Lacrosse Box Championships holds tremendous allure.
Earlier this month at the USA Lacrosse Foundation Gala in New York City, Capicchioni was frequently seen talking with U.S. women’s national team players as they inquired about the box team. Capicchioni hasn’t had to do much recruiting, there’s tremendous interest.
“Having to opportunity to try and compete for a medal on the first women’s box team in the United States ever is unreal,” said Ally Kennedy, a gold medalist on the 2022 U.S. women’s field team.
“I think it’s huge for USA Lacrosse to be starting women’s box and it’s another great opportunity to put a stick in your hand and play,” said Taylor Moreno, a member of the training team for the 2022 U.S. women’s field squad. “I think that was immediately what drew me to it. Anytime you get to wear red, white and blue and represent your country it’s an awesome experience.”
Kennedy and Moreno are new to box lacrosse and that will be part of the process over the next year, getting players acclimated to a discipline of the sport not many women in the country are familiar with playing.
“It was a little bit of a short window because I had to get all my gear, get my stick strung and kind of figure it out,” Kennedy said. “I don’t really have many places where there are box goals available, so I just tried to get as used to my stick and playing with gloves as possible before I came here.”
Kennedy had played box lacrosse just once during some preseason training in college at Stony Brook. Her first training session was eye-opening.
“It’s way more tiring than I thought it was going to be,” Kennedy said. “As a midfielder playing field, I thought that was the most running and the most exhausted I’ll ever be playing lacrosse, but I was wrong. Box being so much more physical made it even more tiring than just running straight up and down.”