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Open Mike (Commentary): VanTine goes down in local lacrosse lore |
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Those in the local lacrosse community officially thanked Ed VanTine for his crucial contributions to the sport with a lifetime achievement award and ceremony for the former coach during a tournament in Hamburg on July 25. But it’s those in that same community, namely his former players who are now coaches and colleagues themselves, that truly show their gratitude and admiration by still following his teachings to this day. When VanTine first transplanted to Hamburg from the Syracuse region and introduced the game of lacrosse to the area, he didn’t do it to be called a lacrosse legend, as he is now referred to by so many. VanTine merely wanted to share his love for a sport he felt was very special and being overlooked at the time with the popularity of baseball. Little did he know, the lacrosse revolution was about to start in the Southtowns. Jerry Feuertstein was just a boy when VanTine created Hamburg Youth Lacrosse Inc. in 1975 but four years later, he’d be one of the original players on the first-ever high school team at Hamburg. Now, a coach himself for Hamburg Youth Lacrosse and father of three very successful sons playing the sport, Feuerstein pattens his philosophies around those used by VanTine. “Our young coaches up to the varsity level use his techniques that he instilled in the early years,” Feuerstein said. “Still to this day, it’s basically the same program that he taught us.” You can’t speak with a coach who once played under VanTine without them talking so highly of his influence. That influence was not only shared with Hamburg, but also St. Francis High, Canisius College and Buffalo State College, each program VanTine started. Chris Archabald, who played for VanTine when he finally took over the high school program in 1994 then held that post until 2005, many times has mentioned molding his already successful Eden program around what he learned from his former coach. VanTine has the same respect for those teaching the sport now because he knows how hard it is in the very beginning. In the 1970s, there were hardly any lacrosse teams or programs in the Buffalo-area. When VanTine first organized play, he couldn’t find more than a few athletes interested in giving it a try and the ones who did mainly came out for the game’s physicality. But VanTine stuck with it because he believed in the action and moral value lacrosse offered. “It’s funny that when you start something, you never know how far you’re going to go with it,” VanTine remembered. “Nobody even heard of lacrosse, much less played it. Nobody knew what the heck I was talking about...I’m just glad to see the kids have worked so hard to become successful and come such a long way.” And he’s just not talking about Section VI power Hamburg High School. There are now 32 high school varsity programs in Section VI and almost every town is playing the game year-round with youth programs. Van Tine’s influence is a big reason why. In receiving that lifetime achievement award, VanTine will not only be forever connected to Western New York lacrosse lore, but in Hamburg, he’ll be revered for laying the groundwork for a program that brings so much pride each day to its community. |
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