By
Jeff Lund
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Mellow Laxcats quietly confident about season
"Get some water," UA head-coach Mickey-Miles Felton tells his players. "It's hotter than you think."
It's a bright Saturday afternoon in Tucson, just about a week until the season opener for the UA lacrosse team.
Players scatter in search of their water bottles and rush to the water fountain at the 'Laxcat Coliseum,' located at 15th Street and Tucson Boulevard.
A few injured Laxcats sit and crack sunflower seeds as they observe and cheer on their teammates.
Among those sitting out are Jeff Kinsella and Tom Christian, who are already handicapping the team's chances.
The Laxcats will open their season this Saturday at 1 p.m. against Chapman University at home.
"I guess (the team's) pretty good," Kinsella says. "It's a lot better than past years."
Christian agrees.
"Yeah, we have some transfers and new guys coming in," he adds.
The rest of the team is ready as well.
"I'm ready to get my 'Lax' on," says junior transfer Jay Spatafora as he heads out to help in a red/blue scrimmage to end practice.
Don't mistake the Laxcats' relaxed attitude for a lack of discipline.
After finishing the 2000 season with an 11-7 record en route to a No. 11 overall ranking, the Laxcats have the talent to live up their preseason No. 15 record.
Powered by a strong group of seniors , Felton says he is confident about this season and said his team is eyeing the nation championships.
"We have an outstanding nucleus," Felton says. "We have a lot of seniors focused on the ultimate goal. Last year, we thought we should have been invited to the National Championships. I mean, we were ranked No. 11, and 12 teams were invited. So you kind of wonder."
Junior team captain Greg Parkington said being snubbed from the championship tournament was hard to come to terms with.
"It really ticked a lot of us off," Parkington says. "We thought we had worked really hard, but we had a couple of losses that hurt us."
The junior said that this year, UA won't be shut out again.
"I'm really excited about this season," he says. "We have a really good attitude as a team and share common personalities. We should go very far this season, probably to the championships."
The Laxcats have added an important part to their coaching staff as well. Adam Hopkins - a graduate of the New York Institute of Technology - was a captain and two-time All-American defenseman for his college lacrosse team.
Felton said Hopkins will help the players gain the swagger of an East Coast squad. Lacrosse is far more popular on the East Coast than in Arizona.
"Adam has brought East Coast mentality and attitude to the team," Felton says. "He has improved the work ethic of the team and really gets after the guys."
Hopkins is excited about the upcoming season and the beginning of the collegiate coaching career.
"I'm having a blast out here," Hopkins says. "Last year, being a captain, I was the on-field coach. Now I have to make sure that all the little things are in place and get used to being a coach and not a player."
As for the team's opener, Felton said the team is looking forward to playing someone not wearing a red or blue jersey.
"I am really looking forward to starting the season," Felton says. "We are ready to start playing someone else. This is a game we should really dominate. I don't know a lot about Chapman, but we are confident our defense will shut them down."
