Parents and players-
What a week! I watched the film of both games with great pride and kept close tabs on the games and was sending messages to the coaches during the games, too. Region IV play is a GAUNTLET. Beating PG was no small feat and I'm so sad to have missed that game. And AF?? WOW! They got a game they did NOT expect. Their coach messaged me afterwards and said, "I love the heart of your LIONS. Your team has the desire and will. I wish I could steal some of that from you." High praise from the Head Coach from the #4 team in the State (soon to be #3). Keep that in mind, too. AF is the #4 team in the state and for good reason. And look at how our boys did!!! PHENOMENAL! We get them again and it'll be another dog fight. I'm extremely proud of the boys and how they played.
As a history teacher, I want to do a mini lesson on Westlake lacrosse. We were founded in 2013. About 10-15 years AFTER other region teams (excluding Skyridge). I took the helm of this program in 2017. It started out with just me. Then Coach Larsen and Coach Liljequist joined right away. We now have a staff of 11 coaches. That first year was a major GRIND. It was HARD. We took some severe beatings all year long but NO ONE QUIT. No one quit. Who we started with is who we finished with...plus 4 or 5 more. I can recall vividly some of those games I coached. They are etched into my memory. In shock and horror I looked at opposing teams fans chanting at us "LAAAAAAKKKKKEEEEE TRAAAAAASSSSSSHHHHH!!!" as we were getting whooped by over 16 goals. The staff and admin of the opposing team stopped it when they heard it, but the mental and emotional assault had happened. I was in another game as fans of an opposing team came down towards the track and began launching racist and very sexual slurs at the boys on the sidelines. I left the sidelines, got an admin, and those kids were removed. The administrator was, gratefully, humiliated and shocked by what those kids had been saying to us. He told me, very apologetically, "That is NOT what we are! At all!" I thanked him and told him, "I know that you're not. That's why I reported it." There have been other games where I've been the last one to leave and I've heard some of the ugliest of things said about Westlake. It's rough to hear it and I have made a conscious choice to redefine what it means to be "Westlake."
Since that first year, I have been a very busy bee building relationships with all of our lacrosse bruthas in other programs. When Riverton had a player die by suicide, we honored them prior to our game in Fall 3 years ago. That built a very necessary bridge between our two programs because the year before was a VERY HOSTILE game. Like, it was close to an all out brawl towards the end of the game. I don't understand why sports have to have that hostility. I've never quite understood it. I've taken many coaches of other programs out to lunch to pick their brains. I tell them up front that I want them to teach me and help me be a better coach so that I can have a program that will BEAT their team. They laugh and then spill the tea. They WANT us to be a very competitive team with them. They NEED us to be. They love that fire. And there are no secrets in this sacred game. We will battle with everyone on the field. Afterwards, we will unite with them as brothers. That is how we honor this sacred game.
There will be games, as there have been in my entire coaching career, where refs will make mistakes. It is inevitable. I have yet to find a way to get a ref to change a call. They are human. What you will often find me doing before a game, at a timeout, at the end of a quarter or at halftime is I call the refs in and I will ask them about a specific call so that I can then go teach the offending player what they did and why it was called. That's it. I am very clear about my motive when I talk to the refs, too, so that improvements can be made. That is my only purpose: To get clarity. I will then thank them and ask them to keep making the calls as we're committing the fouls and ensure it gets called both ways. They will laugh and they always thank me. It's almost always very cordial. One of the few times it didn't go this way was this year when we played a Spanish Fork and the ref referred to me as a choice word when I was simply trying to get clarity. At that moment I focused my attention on the boys and spoke to the same ref at a later time when his emotions were checked and got clarity. This simple practice has built a trust between the refs and I and my staff. We won't get every call. Me talking to them is not saying that I even agree with a call. It's simply to get understanding so we can be more mindful about what we're doing so as not to commit the perceived foul again. The refs WILL make mistakes. They know this. I know this. We all know this. We must give them grace. We have a very severe referee shortage across the nation. Their job is a hard one. Please join my staff and I in rising up to ensure we are thanking them for their time and to cheer the boys on in battle. That is my greatest ask: Cheer the boys. When I'm frustrated with a call, I choose to channel my frustration to the boys. I get hype for them. I try to inspire them. I will get the sideline hype, too, and try to get momentum to go on behalf of those in battle. This simple strategy has proven itself time and time again to be highly effective. This is controlling the controllable. I cannot control how a ref sees a game or a call they make. I can choose my response to it, however. I have learned that when I yell at them, they make more calls against us. It simply draws more unnecessary attention against our team. Again, I will always get clarity at a timeout or at the end of the quarter. Trust us to do that with the refs. Morale drops when we have goals getting scored bc of the influence of a coach not disciplining or controlling their emotions. I've made this mistake a few times in my coaching career and it is something I have had to own. That's not an easy task to take that ownership, but it is 100% necessary.
In the event we find ourselves in another dog fight and we only have 2 refs or even 3 refs who may not make every call (or make every single call there is both known and unknown), I ask that we keep ourselves checked in on the boys and be in the moment for the boys. Trust my staff and I to get clarity on the calls. We will. We always do. In the event it's getting what I would call out of hand, I will ask the refs for a meeting with the opposing team's head coach and allow us all to get things straight. This has happened twice this season and it has always brought about a correction that was needed.
I love all things Westlake. I am PROUD to say I coach for Westlake. I don't want to coach for anyone but Westlake. There is so much to be proud of when I put on any and all Westlake swag. I'm proud of our branding, our school, our history, our values, our culture, our creed, our athletes, our parents, our fans and our community. I will NEVER own a label that has been given to us that is negative. I will NEVER accept a negative label, either. My kids ask me to read them a book by Max Lucado called "You Are Special" and that story hits a strong cord with me. Stars and dots don't stick on me. Not anymore. My commitment and the commitment culture in Westlake Lacrosse is to always get better. When a mistake is made, we say, "GOOD!" When a goal is scored against us, we say, "GOOD!" When we have a penalty called against us, we say, "GOOD!" Even in victory we will say, "GOOD!" That is part of our culture. Our culture is "GOOD!" And our culture is winning the hearts and respect of everyone in Utah. Whether we win or lose, we will always do it with class and I'm very mindful of that when controlling the Westlake Lacrosse instagram page. Win or lose, we will pay respect to our opponents and thank them. Always.
This week, we have two big tests: Lone Peak and Skyridge. Please come and cheer us all on with all the passionate, positive energy that can be mustered. Focus on channeling all the positive energy on the team. As coaches, we need it. More importantly, the boys need it. They ride those waves of positive, supportive energy with enthusiasm and it shows in their play. Join my staff and I in thanking our refs, the parents of opposing teams, the coaches of opposing teams and the athletes of opposing teams for great games, even if we don't like the outcome. This is something I am deliberate about doing after a game. On the field, we will battle. Off that field, we are a lacrosse family united behind a common cause to build the game, grow the sport and to honor it the right way. And that is something I am striving to build into the Utah Lacrosse culture in my capacity as head coach for Westlake. It's catching on with other programs as I see their social media posts after they win (or lose) and how they choose to respond. It's awesome to see a higher respect for the game, for opponents and a greater degree of class being displayed now than there ever has been in the past. I'm referring specifically to one of Juan Diego's recent posts on their instagram page and to a few posts or story shares by the #1 team in the State: Corner Canyon. Let's continue to show the State that Westlake has and is something phenomenal.
I am grateful to each of you and the unwavering support you continually give. We have a goal to finish in the top 16 this year OR win the Class B trophy (we currently sit at #15) and the next 3 weeks is our time to shine and elevate.
Coach Horne and the Westlake Boys Lacrosse Coaching Staff
What a week! I watched the film of both games with great pride and kept close tabs on the games and was sending messages to the coaches during the games, too. Region IV play is a GAUNTLET. Beating PG was no small feat and I'm so sad to have missed that game. And AF?? WOW! They got a game they did NOT expect. Their coach messaged me afterwards and said, "I love the heart of your LIONS. Your team has the desire and will. I wish I could steal some of that from you." High praise from the Head Coach from the #4 team in the State (soon to be #3). Keep that in mind, too. AF is the #4 team in the state and for good reason. And look at how our boys did!!! PHENOMENAL! We get them again and it'll be another dog fight. I'm extremely proud of the boys and how they played.
As a history teacher, I want to do a mini lesson on Westlake lacrosse. We were founded in 2013. About 10-15 years AFTER other region teams (excluding Skyridge). I took the helm of this program in 2017. It started out with just me. Then Coach Larsen and Coach Liljequist joined right away. We now have a staff of 11 coaches. That first year was a major GRIND. It was HARD. We took some severe beatings all year long but NO ONE QUIT. No one quit. Who we started with is who we finished with...plus 4 or 5 more. I can recall vividly some of those games I coached. They are etched into my memory. In shock and horror I looked at opposing teams fans chanting at us "LAAAAAAKKKKKEEEEE TRAAAAAASSSSSSHHHHH!!!" as we were getting whooped by over 16 goals. The staff and admin of the opposing team stopped it when they heard it, but the mental and emotional assault had happened. I was in another game as fans of an opposing team came down towards the track and began launching racist and very sexual slurs at the boys on the sidelines. I left the sidelines, got an admin, and those kids were removed. The administrator was, gratefully, humiliated and shocked by what those kids had been saying to us. He told me, very apologetically, "That is NOT what we are! At all!" I thanked him and told him, "I know that you're not. That's why I reported it." There have been other games where I've been the last one to leave and I've heard some of the ugliest of things said about Westlake. It's rough to hear it and I have made a conscious choice to redefine what it means to be "Westlake."
Since that first year, I have been a very busy bee building relationships with all of our lacrosse bruthas in other programs. When Riverton had a player die by suicide, we honored them prior to our game in Fall 3 years ago. That built a very necessary bridge between our two programs because the year before was a VERY HOSTILE game. Like, it was close to an all out brawl towards the end of the game. I don't understand why sports have to have that hostility. I've never quite understood it. I've taken many coaches of other programs out to lunch to pick their brains. I tell them up front that I want them to teach me and help me be a better coach so that I can have a program that will BEAT their team. They laugh and then spill the tea. They WANT us to be a very competitive team with them. They NEED us to be. They love that fire. And there are no secrets in this sacred game. We will battle with everyone on the field. Afterwards, we will unite with them as brothers. That is how we honor this sacred game.
There will be games, as there have been in my entire coaching career, where refs will make mistakes. It is inevitable. I have yet to find a way to get a ref to change a call. They are human. What you will often find me doing before a game, at a timeout, at the end of a quarter or at halftime is I call the refs in and I will ask them about a specific call so that I can then go teach the offending player what they did and why it was called. That's it. I am very clear about my motive when I talk to the refs, too, so that improvements can be made. That is my only purpose: To get clarity. I will then thank them and ask them to keep making the calls as we're committing the fouls and ensure it gets called both ways. They will laugh and they always thank me. It's almost always very cordial. One of the few times it didn't go this way was this year when we played a Spanish Fork and the ref referred to me as a choice word when I was simply trying to get clarity. At that moment I focused my attention on the boys and spoke to the same ref at a later time when his emotions were checked and got clarity. This simple practice has built a trust between the refs and I and my staff. We won't get every call. Me talking to them is not saying that I even agree with a call. It's simply to get understanding so we can be more mindful about what we're doing so as not to commit the perceived foul again. The refs WILL make mistakes. They know this. I know this. We all know this. We must give them grace. We have a very severe referee shortage across the nation. Their job is a hard one. Please join my staff and I in rising up to ensure we are thanking them for their time and to cheer the boys on in battle. That is my greatest ask: Cheer the boys. When I'm frustrated with a call, I choose to channel my frustration to the boys. I get hype for them. I try to inspire them. I will get the sideline hype, too, and try to get momentum to go on behalf of those in battle. This simple strategy has proven itself time and time again to be highly effective. This is controlling the controllable. I cannot control how a ref sees a game or a call they make. I can choose my response to it, however. I have learned that when I yell at them, they make more calls against us. It simply draws more unnecessary attention against our team. Again, I will always get clarity at a timeout or at the end of the quarter. Trust us to do that with the refs. Morale drops when we have goals getting scored bc of the influence of a coach not disciplining or controlling their emotions. I've made this mistake a few times in my coaching career and it is something I have had to own. That's not an easy task to take that ownership, but it is 100% necessary.
In the event we find ourselves in another dog fight and we only have 2 refs or even 3 refs who may not make every call (or make every single call there is both known and unknown), I ask that we keep ourselves checked in on the boys and be in the moment for the boys. Trust my staff and I to get clarity on the calls. We will. We always do. In the event it's getting what I would call out of hand, I will ask the refs for a meeting with the opposing team's head coach and allow us all to get things straight. This has happened twice this season and it has always brought about a correction that was needed.
I love all things Westlake. I am PROUD to say I coach for Westlake. I don't want to coach for anyone but Westlake. There is so much to be proud of when I put on any and all Westlake swag. I'm proud of our branding, our school, our history, our values, our culture, our creed, our athletes, our parents, our fans and our community. I will NEVER own a label that has been given to us that is negative. I will NEVER accept a negative label, either. My kids ask me to read them a book by Max Lucado called "You Are Special" and that story hits a strong cord with me. Stars and dots don't stick on me. Not anymore. My commitment and the commitment culture in Westlake Lacrosse is to always get better. When a mistake is made, we say, "GOOD!" When a goal is scored against us, we say, "GOOD!" When we have a penalty called against us, we say, "GOOD!" Even in victory we will say, "GOOD!" That is part of our culture. Our culture is "GOOD!" And our culture is winning the hearts and respect of everyone in Utah. Whether we win or lose, we will always do it with class and I'm very mindful of that when controlling the Westlake Lacrosse instagram page. Win or lose, we will pay respect to our opponents and thank them. Always.
This week, we have two big tests: Lone Peak and Skyridge. Please come and cheer us all on with all the passionate, positive energy that can be mustered. Focus on channeling all the positive energy on the team. As coaches, we need it. More importantly, the boys need it. They ride those waves of positive, supportive energy with enthusiasm and it shows in their play. Join my staff and I in thanking our refs, the parents of opposing teams, the coaches of opposing teams and the athletes of opposing teams for great games, even if we don't like the outcome. This is something I am deliberate about doing after a game. On the field, we will battle. Off that field, we are a lacrosse family united behind a common cause to build the game, grow the sport and to honor it the right way. And that is something I am striving to build into the Utah Lacrosse culture in my capacity as head coach for Westlake. It's catching on with other programs as I see their social media posts after they win (or lose) and how they choose to respond. It's awesome to see a higher respect for the game, for opponents and a greater degree of class being displayed now than there ever has been in the past. I'm referring specifically to one of Juan Diego's recent posts on their instagram page and to a few posts or story shares by the #1 team in the State: Corner Canyon. Let's continue to show the State that Westlake has and is something phenomenal.
I am grateful to each of you and the unwavering support you continually give. We have a goal to finish in the top 16 this year OR win the Class B trophy (we currently sit at #15) and the next 3 weeks is our time to shine and elevate.
Coach Horne and the Westlake Boys Lacrosse Coaching Staff
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