Lacking Support for Lax

By: Constantino Raya

Posted: 4/29/09

The lacrosse season was cut short this year. The most recent lacrosse trip to Pennsylvania and Virginia was cancelled due to lack of funding. The players were told a few days before they were set to leave that they had a 50/50 chance of going. The day before the trip they were told that trip was cancelled unless they could come with $10,000 to cover the cost.

Many players scrambled to ask their parents if they could make any donation whatsoever. But they were unable to come up with the money. At the beginning of the school year there was enough money to cover the cost of the trip, but after reviewing the athletic budget more recently, school officials found that they needed to cut back on spending. They decided to freeze spending on athletic recruitment, postage printing and supplies, and out of area travel.

Hernan Bucheli, vice president of admissions, took full responsibility for not letting the players know sooner so that there may have been a better opportunity to raise the money.

"I acknowledge that I did not do a good job of explaining this to the students affected when we were first considering the cancellation. It has been brought to my attention that perhaps if we had partnered with parents when the cancellation was first being considered, a couple of weeks ago, this trip could have been funded. That's on me; it's my fault."

Bucheli went on to say that the school will make sure the lacrosse team will be taken care of next year, and he sees no cancellations in the future.

"Yes, we are tightening our belts, but that does not mean that lacrosse will not be supported next year or that canceling is planned in the future. Athletics is important to NDNU, and the lacrosse team is a big part of our athletics program. I will strive to have better communication and collaboration in the future with our student athletes," said Bucheli.

The lacrosse team had big expectations this season, looking forward to finally getting the opportunity to go to the playoffs. Key players were missing from the Argo roster in New York, which lead to a loss and ruined hopes for getting to the playoffs.