MCLAFan.com is proud to introduce Growing The Program, a summer content series presented by Maverik Lacrosse.

As we all know, the MCLA is growing and gaining more and more exposure each year. To help fuel the momentum, MCLAFan.com is conducting interviews with each and every coach in the MCLA about growing their program. We hope to create a valuable resource for current MCLA teams, new programs and potential recruits. We’re proud to have Maverik Lacrosse and Bigfoot Lacrosse on board to support this movement.
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Next we head to Orange, California to check in with Coach Rick Sheinin and the Chapman men’s lacrosse program.

MCLA Fan: What are your goals for program growth this off-season? What are you doing to reach them?

Coach Sheinin: I have always been really impressed by how much lacrosse our guys end up playing each summer.  Men’s tournaments, local leagues, many work camps, etc.  The staff has spoken with many of the players individually about summer goals for them in particular, and I know that many are working hard to make sure they come into fall ball ready to rock.  Before we actually have the team on the field for fall ball, all we can hope for is that each of them has decided that they don’t like the way we ended things last year, and that there was more that they could do to push us through to the last game.  I certainly know the staff feels the same way in how we are going about planning our strategy for the new season.  I hope they all have a chip on their shoulders.

Where do you see your program in 5 years? How will it get there?

This will be my 6th year as a coach at Chapman, and it is hard for me to believe how far we have come since my first day.  Before 2008, we had only been in the national tournament once as a program in 20 years.  I think in another five years, as long as the program keeps up its high level of recruiting and play,  I am confident that we will continue to be a top program in the MCLA.

What are some key steps you’ve taken to promote your team on campus and create relationships with administration?

We have a unique situation at Chapman for an MCLA team in that we are part of the Athletic Department.  It certainly has its advantages and disadvantages (mainly we do not get the monetary support of the varsity programs), but overall is big driving force behind our success.  Having access to the stadium for practices and games, locker rooms, trainers, use of the athletes weight room, all of those things help ensure our players can properly prepare for success, just like any other athlete at the school.  For our overall relationship at the school, our guys to a great job to advertise games.  There is nothing better than playing in front of a full house of screaming students.  When you are a Div III school, our other teams play many small schools that many people (like myself before I moved here) have never heard of.  We get to play Michigan, Colorado, Oregon, etc.  The student body really gets into that opportunity for a small school to compete with the big boys.
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Contact: Drew Adams, Maverik Lacrosse

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What has been the most important part of your program’s success so far? Do you have any advice for other coaches (or team presidents) who are working to build a better program?

I think it was two major things over the last 5 years: Recruiting and a dedicated staff (both on and off the field).  Before, the program really found their kids after they were already attending the school (with some exceptions).  The staff was often a couple of coaches, all with great intentions, but none that truly were able to dedicate themselves full time.  Now, we recruit in just about every state in the country.  Our coaches are at recruiting tournaments, local games, etc.  We have built a great base of top schools that we now feed from (ie: Lakeridge HS in Oregon, Bellevue HS in Washington, Summit HS in NJ, La Costa Canyon in CA, etc).  Bring in dedicated kids and the program will be successful.  We also currently have a staff of 6 committed coaches.  Each of us brings different experiences to the table, but all of us work together to ensure that the game plan is sound.  It is a two way street between the dedication of the players and the coaches.

For advice for other programs, if you have not reached out to your athletics department, club sports office, fundraising office, admissions office, etc, DO IT RIGHT AWAY.  Despite not having varsity status, when you carry a squad of 40-50 players, that is a great deal of tuition money for the university.  It is ultimately in their interest (especially at smaller schools) to work with the lacrosse program, but the team must prove that they are organized, driven and actively working towards becoming contributing members to athletics and the university as a whole.

Out of conference (OOC) games are always an integral part of making it to the National Tournament in Denver. What do you look for in OOC opponents when scheduling?

About 5 years ago, we started really bringing in high quality recruiting classes.  Our starters were young, as was the overall make up of the team for a few seasons that followed.  We knew that the only way to build a top notch team was to play a challenging schedule.  We knew that this might not mean winning them all, but we had give our players confidence in big game situations.  We now have a great rivalry with BYU, who we swap home and away games with each year.  We look forward to playing Michigan and Oregon at Chapman this year, along with a number of other top 10 MCLA teams.  We want the most challenging schedule possible so that when it comes to tournament time, we are ready to kick it up a notch.  In addition to OOC games, it is a great benefit to have such a strong conference in the SLC.  Each league game can prove to be a real challenge.

When recruiting, what do you tell potential recruits about your program and university? What do you have to offer?

I strongly believe that honesty is the best policy when it comes to recruiting.  I can talk about our facilities and how great the team is, but college needs to be a lot more than lacrosse.  We are lucky enough to have played on national television 7 times in the last three years, so many players we speak to have already had the opportunity to see the team in action.  I ask each kid to think about what would happen if they had an injury the first day of fall ball (heaven forbid), and they were out all year.  Would Chapman still be a place that they want to be for the academics, the location, etc.  This is one reason why campus visits are so important.  We highly encourage players to come for a few days, do the tours, stay with one of our players, come to practice, etc.  No school is the right fit for everybody, but when it comes to strong academics, a prime location, state of the art facilities, and of course, a very competitive lacrosse team, I do think Chapman has a lot to offer students looking for place to spend their college years.  Or if you are from back east, a place where you can wear sandals all winter.

Thanks for the great interview Coach, good luck this season. To find out more about the Panthers’ lax program, head over to their team website here.
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If you’re interested in learning more or contributing, please feel free to contact us at info@lacrosseallstars.com.