Canandaigua Wins “Season In The Balance” Lacrosse Video Contest!
Last season’s historic run to the state Class A semifinals is going to lead to some national exposure for the Canandaigua boys lacrosse program this season.
The Academy Athletic Department was informed Monday that an entry made by the lacrosse staff to the New Balance Web site has been selected as the winner of the “Season in the Balance” contest for 2009.
It means $65,000 worth of equipment for this year’s CA lacrosse team and a season-long “up close and personal” weekly video log in 2009.
“It’s a pretty neat thing”, said CA varsity coach Ed Mulheron.
“I have been on the phone all day with the New Balance, Brine and Warrior representatives to try and get a list of what we are getting. I was told that we are being suited head-to-toe as part of this. I don’t really know what that
means, but we were asked for shoe, jersey and short sizes. They sent me a catalog of potential uniforms and we are working on those designs right now.”
It all started with lacrosse staff member Deven York — after some heavy prodding from Lacrosse Booster Club President Dan Knapton — putting together a video of last year’s spectacular season and entering it in the “Season in the Balance” contest at www.seasoninthebalance.com
The athletic equipment company New Balance was seeking a high school lacrosse team to be featured this year all season long.
“Dan found it on line. He said we should do this, and more importantly he stayed on top of me to get it done,” York said with a laugh. “And he had to. The deadline to send the entry was midnight on Dec. 7, and it got sent at about 12:05 because Dan called me up to remind me. So he should get all the credit.”
The entry included a video and an essay that York wrote.
“It must have been the video that did it because the essay that I wrote was maybe three sentences long,” York said. “It was something like, ‘I grew up here. I went to school here. Went away to college and came back because I don’t think there is a better place to live and raise a family. And we have a great lacrosse team to boot.’”
York didn’t think the entry had much of a chance until two days later when he got a letter via FedEx saying it was a finalist.
“I was stunned,” he said. The three other finalists were Olympia High School in Orlando, Holly Springs High School in North Carolina and Christian Brothers Academy in Syracuse.
The video that York put together included very little game footage or player interviews as those of the other finalists. Instead, he had extensive footage of the community behind the team, including the youth clubs, the boosters and the parents.
“This award is just a reflection of the support the community has for this program,” Knapton said. “It’s amazing the community support not only for our lacrosse program but all of the other Canandaigua athletic programs. I think that’s why they picked us. What they saw was great kids and a great community.”
CA athletic director Jim Simmons agreed.
“Any success in any of our sports has always been heavily supported by our downtown businesses,” Simmons said. “That support comes out of the good work by our staff over the years. The lacrosse program has really grown thanks to guys like (former coach) John Johnson and Ed Mulheron.”
Said Mulheron: “Our kids and our program are extremely lucky to have people like Deven and Dan involved who think about the kids.”
Being selected as the spotlight team for the “Season in the Balance” means that the 2009 squad will be tailed all season long by a film crew from New York City, Tangerine Films.
“They are going to rent a house in the area and be here for the season to attend events, practices and games, from what I have been told,” Mulheron said. “They will be filming all of this for 10 Web episodes that will be posted over the season on their Web site.”
Justin Tomzak, one of the main cogs on last year’s Finger Lakes East, Section 5 and Western Regional championship team, was asked what he thought about last year’s accomplishments leading to this year’s rewards.
“It’s real nice to see the school get rewarded that much from the filming of our season and all the things that went on around it,” said Tomzak, who this spring will be playing for Johnson as a freshman at St. John Fisher College. “Watching that video, showing that it was more about the community than it was about the team, that’s the way it was. It feels great to have a hand in what is happening now for the team.”
Simmons said the shipment of equipment from the companies involved is expected to arrive the afternoon of Feb. 25.
Sometimes, Christmas does come twice a year.
