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// TEAM OC spotlight
MARCY LEVATINO (2011, Laguna Hills HS)
// Levatino shares some of her challenges + gives great advice to others interested in the recruiting process!
MERRI ADAMICKI
COAST 2 COAST: COACH OF THE YEAR DIRECTS TEAM OC!(read more...)
Merri Adamicki is the fabulous, dynamic, awesome-schmossom Director of TEAM OC! After an undefeated 2009 season coaching Los Alamitos to a California Southern Section State Championship, Merri was named Coach of the Year by US Lacrosse Chapter of Orange County! WHAT UUPPPPPP, Merri!
Merri moved from Long Island (a lacrosse HUB) to California and combined her love of the game and her experience in it, when she took the Head Coaching position at Los Alamitos: “Heading into my fourth season [at Los Al], I have come to more fully understand what coaching is all about and I am loving it more and more each year,” she says about the quick turnaround from beginning program to #1 team.
Intending on making her lax imprint in California extends beyond Los Alamitos, Merri has taken on the job of helping to grow lacrosse in Orange County by working with TEAM OC. “The TEAM OC program has grown so much over the past three seasons, and I am excited to have a lot of new girls come out.”
Merri has proven she has what it takes to get it done! With such an impressive resume we cannot wait to see what is to come for Team OC. She plans on seeing change because she knows how far the girls can grow in a short amount of time.
Advice from Coach Merri: “Play wall ball for ten minutes a day! It can be so beneficial to your game. Just a little time is needed when you are completely focused and committed to the skills at hand.”
Crista on Merri: “Merri is an obvious score for the girls at TEAM OC because of her knowledge of the sport. At BOUNCE, she is particularly perfect because of her passion and commitment to the girls as they begin to discover what they want for their future. She is a professional, a teacher and a fantastic role model. All that and she knows lax – a perfect fit to lead a club team!”
Props to you Merri for all of your success and best of luck this season! Also, CONGRATS to her and her husband! They just had their first baby girl at the end of January!
Merri moved from Long Island (a lacrosse HUB) to California and combined her love of the game and her experience in it, when she took the Head Coaching position at Los Alamitos: “Heading into my fourth season [at Los Al], I have come to more fully understand what coaching is all about and I am loving it more and more each year,” she says about the quick turnaround from beginning program to #1 team.
Intending on making her lax imprint in California extends beyond Los Alamitos, Merri has taken on the job of helping to grow lacrosse in Orange County by working with TEAM OC. “The TEAM OC program has grown so much over the past three seasons, and I am excited to have a lot of new girls come out.”
Merri has proven she has what it takes to get it done! With such an impressive resume we cannot wait to see what is to come for Team OC. She plans on seeing change because she knows how far the girls can grow in a short amount of time.
Advice from Coach Merri: “Play wall ball for ten minutes a day! It can be so beneficial to your game. Just a little time is needed when you are completely focused and committed to the skills at hand.”
Crista on Merri: “Merri is an obvious score for the girls at TEAM OC because of her knowledge of the sport. At BOUNCE, she is particularly perfect because of her passion and commitment to the girls as they begin to discover what they want for their future. She is a professional, a teacher and a fantastic role model. All that and she knows lax – a perfect fit to lead a club team!”
Props to you Merri for all of your success and best of luck this season! Also, CONGRATS to her and her husband! They just had their first baby girl at the end of January!
Orange County, CA: A shorty-short 3 years ago, Los Alamitos midfielder Francie Crowell picked up a lacrosse stick. Los Al HS had just started a girl’s team and Francie showed up at practice to give it a go. FAST FORWARD 2 NOW: Francie Crowell is California’s Player of the Year and headed to Notre Dame in the fall as a one of 10 incoming recruits.
How does she credit her achievements? To the good (Irish) luck of timing, of course! “[When I began playing], everyone was starting from the beginning, creating a wonderfully cultivating and welcoming environment - making it easier to want more.”
Another critical ingredient was great coaching. “[My coach] moved out here from the East Coast to start the new team,” says Francie about Merri Adamicki, 2009 Coach of the Year, Director of TEAM OC and graduate of Towson University. “She loves the sport and had so much to offer us.”
In search of more playing opportunities outside of the spring season, Francie sought out a brand new club team forming in Orange County (TEAM OC!!) and became a part of its first class of 2009 graduates.
Team OC allowed her to “branch out and see more of what lacrosse had to offer. “Crista Samaras (US World Cup, Princeton) was so supportive; she would discuss all of my options, walk me through the whole recruiting process and give me insight to things I never thought were possible for me. Without Crista and Merri, I would not have considered being able to play lacrosse in college.”
Crista Samaras on Francie: “Francie is magical. When I first saw her play, I thought she had a lot to learn on the field. But, her hunger for getting better every time she stepped onto the field proved so insatiable that she, literally, built a sophisticated, skilled and experienced game in a year and a half. In my entire time coaching, I have never seen a kid get that good, that fast.”
The cumulative results of that effort landed Francie a spot on the Notre Dame roster – the first girl ever to represent the state of California.
“Getting into Notre Dame is great because it is definitely more competitive. So now it is all about what can happen when I do get exposed to that level.”
We can’t wait to find out!
How does she credit her achievements? To the good (Irish) luck of timing, of course! “[When I began playing], everyone was starting from the beginning, creating a wonderfully cultivating and welcoming environment - making it easier to want more.”
Another critical ingredient was great coaching. “[My coach] moved out here from the East Coast to start the new team,” says Francie about Merri Adamicki, 2009 Coach of the Year, Director of TEAM OC and graduate of Towson University. “She loves the sport and had so much to offer us.”
In search of more playing opportunities outside of the spring season, Francie sought out a brand new club team forming in Orange County (TEAM OC!!) and became a part of its first class of 2009 graduates.
Team OC allowed her to “branch out and see more of what lacrosse had to offer. “Crista Samaras (US World Cup, Princeton) was so supportive; she would discuss all of my options, walk me through the whole recruiting process and give me insight to things I never thought were possible for me. Without Crista and Merri, I would not have considered being able to play lacrosse in college.”
Crista Samaras on Francie: “Francie is magical. When I first saw her play, I thought she had a lot to learn on the field. But, her hunger for getting better every time she stepped onto the field proved so insatiable that she, literally, built a sophisticated, skilled and experienced game in a year and a half. In my entire time coaching, I have never seen a kid get that good, that fast.”
The cumulative results of that effort landed Francie a spot on the Notre Dame roster – the first girl ever to represent the state of California.
“Getting into Notre Dame is great because it is definitely more competitive. So now it is all about what can happen when I do get exposed to that level.”
We can’t wait to find out!
