Conestoga Youth Lacrosse

A Brief History

Conestoga Youth Lacrosse got it’s start in the Spring of 1999.  At that time Sandy and Barb Herzlich, feeling that other lacrosse opportunities weren’t meeting the need of the community, decided to start a program based on the concepts of inclusion, competition through learning and playing for the enjoyment of the game.

CYL started modestly, originally only serving 1^st & 2^nd graders (along with two kindergartners – Greg Bacci & Jamie Ikeda - who will forever hold the record of the longest tenure in the program).  The group met on a small playing field at the Tredyffrin Library and the only requirement was that each kid bring a ball and that parents be willing to help out.  Each session started with a “Duck Run” as Sandy loosened the boys up by jogging around the field with the players following and quacking behind him.  The original goals that the players shot at were a picnic table and a trash can.  The Herzlich’s maintained the field by driving their riding mower the two blocks from their home to cut the fields grass.

By the Spring of 2000, Conestoga Youth Lacrosse was ready for prime time.  The organization expanded to offer programs for boys in four divisions – Under 9, Under 11, Under 13 and Under 15 and started to compete in the Chester County Lacrosse Association.  The U-9 program was a “house program” with teams playing other CYL teams.  The older divisions played games against teams from West Chester, Unionville, Great Valley and other area programs.  After a few years, CYL took advantage of its size and desire to help kids develop a solid skill base without getting consumed by competition too early by making the U-11 division a house program as well.  This was a move envied by other programs in the league but who simply didn’t have enough kids to do this themselves.

In its first full season in the Spring of 2000, CYL signed up over 400 boys to participate on 26 teams.  In somewhat of a surprise, there was so much demand from younger girls that CYL fielded a girls program for 1^st – 3^rd graders for two years until the existing girls program, Pioneer Quix Stix, absorbed it.

Conestoga Youth Lacrosse was founded with the intention of being bigger and lasting longer than its founders.  From it’s beginning there was an organizational structure in place designed to provide continuity for years to come.  In addition to the President (originally held by Sandy Herzlich) and Empress (held originally and solely by Barb Herzlich) CYL had a 7 member board of directors as well as division VP’s for each of the age groups.  This structure allowed for a leadership team that people could rotate in and out of as their children moved through and graduated from the program.  Since 2000, dozens of parents have served the program as board members and division VP’s while the President’s role as been ably filled by Tom Hanzsche, who succeeded Sandy and Mark Frisina, who succeeded Tom.  This basic structure has remained in place as the leadership team designs the direction of the program and coordinates the activities of the hundreds of volunteers who make CYL as special and well run a program as it is.

After 10 years CYL has not only survived but it’s thrived!  The program regularly serves 400 – 500 boys each spring.  Still completely volunteer run, literally hundreds of parents have helped the program through their efforts at coaching, field maintenance, administration and all the other tasks that need to be accomplished to provide an enjoyable learning and playing environment for our sons.  The program has enjoyed great on field success, regularly competing for league championships in the U13 and U15 divisions.  More importantly, the program measures its true success in the number of kids who have learned to play and enjoy the great game of lacrosse.  The number of players who so the enjoyment of their involvement in CYL by returning to play for so many years is the measure of success that the league was originally formed around.