The History of Noblesville Lacrosse
The Noblesville Lacrosse Club began in the fall of 2002 when several young men approached Nancy Gehringer about forming a club to play Lacrosse. The enthusiasm of these players and their efforts in recruiting members and coaches was a key factor in obtaining additional adult support. The players realized that this program would have no school support and that all organization and funding would have to be done themselves. They recruited Rick Dinkins, Eric Hendrickson and Steve Mabe as coaches and Shelly Aff as team mom. They then proceeded with the necessary applications to the Indiana High School Lacrosse Association (IHSLA) and received probationary status in January 2003 in time for the 2003 season.
The first seasons’ team was comprised of 18 players. The first year team had a very exciting growth year. The IHSLA was supportive; however, they said that we should not expect to win any games during the first season. Much to the surprise of all, the team won three games, including a 2nd place trophy in the Concord Invitational. This success was key to recruiting future players and the move to a full varsity team.
The second season, 2004, the team grew to 40 players and four coaches. Thus, Noblesville was able to field full Varsity and JV teams. The Varsity team was now playing against very experienced programs, including past state champions. These established programs expected easy wins, which was far from the actual case. The Varsity team played very competitively and managed to win some games. The JV team now consisted of first year players. The JV team lead by Bill Asher also played very strong and managed to win 7 games in their first season.
The 2005 season started with several three year players and the addition of a Middle School Program. The roster expanded to over 50 High School players and over 20 Middle School players. In 2006, an additional Middle School team, and an Intermediate team were started with over 40 Middle School players total, and over 20 Intermediate players. The High School Varsity team finished with a winning record, 7-6, and went to the playoffs ranked tenth in the state.
