Focus on Concussions in Youth Sports - The "Lystedt Law"

On July 26th, 2009 Washington State House Bill 1824 – also known as the Zackery Lystedt Law – went into effect. As a result youth sports organizations state-wide are focusing attention and educational resources on the risk of head injuries. This law directly affects Issaquah Youth Lacrosse, IYL head injury policies and our 2010 player registration processes.

All Washington lacrosse clubs and associations must now follow all steps outlined below to ensure they are compliant with the law. The two requirements that directly affect registration processes include:

1. Annually require all players and the parent(s)/guardian(s) of those players to sign and return an informed consent form relating to the nature and risk of concussion or head injury. This information sheet shall include the signs and symptoms of concussion/brain injury and will be provided at the time of registration.

2. Ensuring that all coaches (paid or volunteer) are educated in the nature and risk of concussion or head injury prior to the first practice/competition. This education shall include signs and symptoms of concussion/brain injury. Resources for this education are available in both English and Spanish in the Documents section on this site.

As an IYL parent or athlete, the information on head injuries we are providing on the IYL website [IYL>Documents] is important to review and understand. The new registration procedures are in effect for our 2010 season and are an important part of this effort. The risks of concussion or other brain injury have not suddenly increased but youth sports organizations, medical professionals and government policy-makers are making brain injury awareness and education a top priority for good reason. As parents we invest a lot into our young athletes and as athletes we invest a lot into our sports - knowing the symptoms of sports and recreation related brain injury is an important part of that investment.So dedicate 10 minutes to reviewing the Parents and Athletes Concussion Fact-sheets, print them out and tape on the fridge....

Hydration - Critical to Athletes Health

Summer is in full swing and so are your players. Summer should be full of open gym practices, tournament teams, and camps, but not emergency room trips for dehydration. Remember that in any given practice or game your players will loose between 4-8 pounds of sweat that will drain their bodies of vital fluids, nutrients, and energy. To maximize your players' performance, injury prevention, and health in the hot summer games and practices; remember to talk with them about hydration and best practices.

General guidelines for how much athletes should be drinking:

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  Drink 12-20 oz 2-3 hours before exercise.


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  During exercise, drink 6-12 oz every 15-20 minutes.


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  After exercise, drink 24 oz of fluid for every lb. of weight lost through sweat (this can be measured by weighing themselves before and after practice)

Summer Laxin at the Overlake Summer League

Regular season rivals Skyline HS and Issaquah HS met this evening at the Overlake Summer League games for some third-season lacrosse. The Overlake match-ups draw players from rising Freshmen to Seniors and provide an opportunity to keep skills sharp and for rising Freshmen, a chance to see what the next regular season holds in store.

No scores are kept; everyone wins...

Issy City Council Approves Second Turf Field @ Central Park

Great news for local sports organizations from the Issaquah City Council last evening - the Council approved the addition of a second all-weather turf field to Central Park Pad 3! Now two new turf fields with lights will come on line in early 2010 - perhaps in time for this coming season's play.

It took a lot of work to make this happen and no small part of the thanks goes to local community members who took the time to write the Council and attend meetings - BUT - our community owes a big thank you to the dedicated leadership of the Issaquah Soccer Club whose board members were very active in this effort and also donated $100,000 to support the construction of the second field.

You can read more about the Central Park fields in this weeks edition of the Issaquah Press - check it out!!

Action Requested for 2 All-Weather Turf Fields @ Highlands!

Immediate action requested for 2 All-Weather Turf fields in the Highlands.

Lacrosse is an all-weather sport!

Please Send an Email to the Issaquah City Council encouraging them to move forward with the 2nd turf field.

Detail of the situation are below, but here is the short story:

• Bids are in and they are ready to award Contracts!

• They are short approximately $166,000 for the 2nd field.

• They will be asking for the council to approve using monies from the Park Bond to make up the short fall. This is NOT the general fund. It is Park Bond money already set aside for parks

• Money for the 2nd Turf field comes from Grants and Donations, Including the Issaquah Soccer Club Pledge of $100,000 which will be presented on Monday night to council.

The Time is NOW, the opportunity is GREAT! Act Now!

City Council Meeting

Monday, July 20th at 7:30 p.m.

City Hall South Council Chambers (building across the street from the Police Station)

Located at 135 E. Sunset Way

More Info on this:

• Park Bond passed in 2005

• City Council Approved setting aside monies for the development of All Weather Sports Fields on Central Park Pad 3

• The original budgeting and planning came up with One artificial Turf Field and the ground work set for the second using Grants and donations

• The City Planned and put out to bid one artificial turf field with alternate pricing on the second field

• Bids were received and came in lower than expected putting us only $166,000 from a second Turf Field!!!

Mondays council meeting will be a chance for use to persuade the council into using additional monies for the 2005 Park Bond to cover this shortfallWe are so close to having 2 new fields in the city, and they are lighted turf that we can use year round! It is likely that prices will rise and the grant monies go away if we do not get this done NOW

You do not need to be a Issaquah resident to send this e-mail!!! The Issaquah School District has citizens involved in sports using fields in surrounding areas, these fields affect us all!

Please use this link Issaquah City Council and email the council now to let them know you support these fields.Pass this message onto your neighbors, Friends and fellow sports fanatics!

Your voice counts!! Thank you for your continued support of Issaquah & Sammamish Youth Sports!!!

Issy Reporter Covers IYL-WA Stealth Rabil Shooting Clinic

LAX super-star Paul Rabil autographs Josh Bean's Washington Stealth shirt sleeve during the Rabil shooting clinic hosted by Issaquah Youth Lacrosse this last Monday.

Issaquah Reporter editor Kevin Endejan covered the story - be sure to check out this week's edition on the stands now.

Prefer to click4news? Check out Endejan's coverage in the Reporter Online!

Washington U-15 Team Makes a Statement in Baltimore

"Has there ever been a more far-flug match-up of lacrosse All-Stars than in this US Lacrosse U-15 National Championship?" asks Lacrosse Magazine official blogger Matt DaSilva as he watched Washington's (The State!) U-15 team defeat Florida's Creeks Lacrosse all-stars 8-5.

By the end of the U-15 National Championship match most observers would agree - Team Washington came to play and proved that there is great lacrosse all over the country. Our U-15 entry had 3 Issy/Samm laxers on the squad - Goalie Brady Hahn, Defenseman Phoenix Abernathy and Midfielder Max Saffle. Together, with their WA teammates they powered through the pool play to be one of only two teams from west of the Appalachians to make the Championship bracket. Seeding then handed our team a challenge in the form of the #1 seeded team from Baltimore and the #2 seeded team from Virginia - while they lost to both top seeds they won the recognition of many that Washington state is the lax leader on the Left Coast.

Congratulations to all the players and coaches of Team Washington!!!

Paul Rabil Shooting Clinic

Paul Rabil drew a big crowd of laxers at Sammamish Community Field this evening and they were treated to a great evening with one of professional lacrosse's rising super-stars. Fans & players of all ages turned out to get a primer on shooting and a shot at Rabil autographs. The summary quote of everyone interviewed by the IYL webguy: Awesome!!

It has not taken long for the Washington Stealth professional lacrosse team to begin making a big impact on the Northwest lacrosse community and establishing themselves as a positive force supporting the nation's fastest growing sport in our region.

If you missed Paul Rabil @ Skyline you can catch him and his teammates in action at Comcast Arena in the upcomming NLL 2010 season. Check it out @ WA Stealth website!!

IYL Regular Season Photo Gallery is Live

The first sets of IYL regular season photography are now live on the Issaquah Youth Lacrosse Gallery. New photographs will be added to the gallery over the coming weeks. Check it out and check back!

All profits from the sale of PrintRoom products will go to support Issaquah Youth Lacrosse!

Battle of Bothell PrintRoom Gallery is Live

The IYL media team is digging out from a busy season and now has the Battle of Bothell 2009 Gallery live on Printroom. You can browse game action photos and order prints, photo products and file downloads.

All profits from the sale of PrintRoom products will go to support Issaquah Youth Lacrosse!

Check it out!

Issaquah-Sammamish Reporter Features the Sammamish Shoot-Out

Check out the great Sammamish Shoot-Out coverage by Reporter editor Kevin Endejan in this week's Issy-Samm Reporter! Catch ILC "Sonic" team member Jake Fritz going airborne and catching nothing but net on the Sonic's way to winning the boy's Grand Championship at this year's Shoot-Out.

Can't wait to get your copy? Click through to the Reporter's online edition for a quick preview before racing out to grab your own print edition suitable for framing.....

Netting the News - Issy Press Reporter Chris Huber

Issaquah Youth Lacrosse has received a lot of press this season. This has a lot to do with the incredible growth of the sport in the Northwest and especially in your IYL organization. It also has a lot to do with great reporting by local writers such as Kevin Endejan (Issy & Samm Reporter) and Christopher Huber ( Issy Press & Samm Review).

Your IYL webguy thought it would be interesting to interview the interviewers and take a peek behind the curtain and see what these journalists think about the explosion of LAX in their community and how they approach covering it.

I first caught up with Issy Press' Chris Huber at the Sammamish Shoot-Out where he was covering the Summers hottest cool LAX event - Chris was working the Boys HS Grand Championship match between the ILC's upperclassmen entry, the Issy2010, and underclassmen Sonic team. Check out the shot of Chris capturing the photo that became the lead image in Issaquah Press coverage alongside the featured shot (Photo courtesy of the Issaquah Press).

Chris has inked a lot of the local coverage of youth lacrosse this season and I asked him about increasing attention Issy Press is giving our favorite sport. Chris' response tells the story - "As a young sports reporter and photographer, I had not thought much about covering youth lacrosse as one of the mainstream sports, like football, baseball or track, but after making some connections within the local youth leagues, I began to appreciate the competitiveness, commitment and organization of lacrosse. " He goes on to comment on the explosive growth of lacrosse in the region - "As football and the other major school-sanctioned sports are something we've always covered and are such an integral part of the community, lacrosse quickly became one of the sports I payed more attention to, due to its increasing popularity here."

When asked about shooting lacrosse he responded, "As I learned more about the sport that helped me develop an eye for the action. I still have a tough time shooting lacrosse, partly because the IYL has reliable, more lacrosse-savvy photographers who provide the Review and Press with great images, and partly because it takes a lot of shooting to get good at such a fast-paced sport." Chris goes on to say "That's the fun of it, it poses a challenge that all sports photographers need and seek out: how to anticipate the next move, the decisive moment. Once I know lacrosse like football, I think it will be just as fun to shoot and report on."

Chris Huber concludes, " It's definitely a sport I and the papers I work for like to cover."

Music to our ears Chris!!!

You can see more of Christopher Huber's work on his personal website - check it out!

Issaquah Youth Lacrosse is hosting a **free** Washington Stealth Shooting Clinic featuring LAX super-star Paul Rabil with Stealth Transition stand-out Jason Bloom on Monday, 13th July at the Skyline Community Fields!

Paul Rabil Shooting Clinic

Monday, 13th July - 4:30 to 5:30 PM

Skyline Community Fields, Sammamish

Clinic Agenda: Rabil on shooting, shooting clinic, and autograph session

Bring: Stick, gloves, helmet and something you would like autographed

Who is Paul Rabil?

2010 USA National Team Top 40
2009 NLL All-Rookie Team
2008 NLL Entry Draft #2 overall selection
2008 MLL Collegiate Draft #1 overall selection
2008 and 2009 MLL All-Star
2008 John's Hopkins University Team Captain
2007 NCAA Midfielder of the Year
2006, 2007 and 2008 Tewaaraton Trophy Finalist
Four Time NCAA All American
Two Time NCAA National Champion
John's Hopkins University All-Time leader in goals, assists and points as Midfielder

Do not miss this opportunity to meet and learn from one of the rising super-stars of lacrosse!

This is also a great opportunity to welcome the Stealth to Washington, meet some of the Stealth organization management and the newest Stealth member - Jason Bloom, former Boston Blazer stand-out.

Sammamish Shoot-Out 2009 Featured in Issaquah Press

The 2009 edition of Summer's hottest cool event - the Sammamish Shoot-Out - is featured in a great article by reporter Christopher Huber in this weeks Issaquah Press and the Sammamish Review. Turn off the tube, run out, and get your copy - check out what SSO Grand Champion Sonics team member Tyler Lucas has to say about Jake Fritz' around-the-world shot and what it takes to win it all at the SSO!

Prefer to click for your news? Check out the Issaquah Press online edition!

Issy Press Online Features Battle of Bothell Web Gallery

Issaquah Press online is featuring a great Battle of Bothell 2009 web gallery -

Check it out!!