A few days ago, you'll remember we posted on this blog statements by Franklin Zirkle after his team, East Chapel Hill, defeated Cold Spring Harbor. He said the win was a "huge win for North Carolina lacrosse."
I wrote in response that I thought it was somewhat unfair for Cold Spring Harbor be known as the "Long Island team" that lost to a team in another state other than Maryland. Long Island teams automatically have a bulls' eye on their back when they travel and, perhaps unfairly, get criticized when they lose to a team not traditionally known for lacrosse. Carolina, like Denver, California and Texas are emerging with some great young programs, and East Chapel Hill is one of them.
This was Zirkle's response, which he gladly agreed to publish in this space:
Mr. Sands:
In response to your posting, I thought the following information might be helpful for your edification.
First, let me state my utmost respect for Long Island Lacrosse. As a former college assistant coach who spent many hours on the L.I.E. listening to Howard Stern and Don Imus (nearly crashing several times into the guard rails from laughter), I have always admired the way lacrosse is taught and played in Suffolk and Nassau counties.
Second, we will never know about the conjecture that you stated related to last year and this year. Here are the facts. Last season, East Chapel Hill took the nine hour bus ride to Princeton, New Jersey where we played the Hun School and Floral Park. We lost both games by one goal. As I remember from laxpower, Floral Park lost to Cold Spring Harbor last season by two goals. This season we played a Cold Spring Harbor team that flew down to North Carolina as part of a Spring Break. It was a real honor for us to play such a respected program.
Finally, we have had some success in our program over the last five years. We have a long way to go to compete day in and day out like the programs on Long Island. I do want to point out that if you look at the 2008 roster for the men's USA U-19 program you will note that there is an equal representation of Cold Spring Harbor alumni to East Chapel Hill alumni, as both Tony Mendes and Adam Ghitelman made the team.
Please let me know if a Long Island football team plays against a Texas team, if I can attend I will want to tailgate with the New Yorkers and I'll even provide the bar-b-que.....North Carolina style. I will want to sit on your sideline as well!
Thank you for your time,
Respectfully,
Franklin Zirkle
East Chapel Hill Lacrosse