Jake Maddox - Lacrosse Attack

CHAPTER 1

It was Sunday afternoon. I was sitting on the edge of the comfy couch in the TV room of my house.

Id been flipping the remote at lightning speed. I was going back and forth between two channels that most people never even watch.

My friend Eddys head was hanging upside down next to me. Peter, she said. Really. Stop!

Yes, Eddy is a girl. Her real name is Meredith Parker, but she took the Ed from the middle of Meredith and made it into Eddy.

Eddy was sitting on the couch. Her feet were hanging over the back. Her head was where her legs should have been.

She rolled her eyes. Can you please stop changing the channel for, like, half a second? she said.

Eddy knows me pretty well. Weve been neighbors since we were babies. We grew up together. And she knows that I use the remote control faster and better than anyone.

Eddy, I replied, Georgetown is playing Johns Hopkins on channel 122, and Cornell is playing Duke on 183!

Id been switching between two big college lacrosse games pretty much nonstop since Eddy had come over an hour earlier. I guess it was making her kind of crazy.

Well, she said with a big sigh. Then she lifted her head and flipped around to lie on her side for a while. I guess I can forgive you if its lacrosse. I mean, you deserve to celebrate. And tomorrows the big day.

Eddy was right about that. I was celebrating. And thats because last week, Id become the first ninth grader at River City High School to make it onto the varsity lacrosse team.

Eddy is my biggest fan. When they announced the team on Friday, I thought she was more excited about it than I was.

I dont know why Eddy said tomorrow was the big day, though. I thought the big day was tryouts last week. Tomorrow was just the first day of practice.

What could be exciting about that?

CHAPTER 2

So, are you nervous? Curtis asked the next day.

He and I were sitting in the cafeteria at lunch, poking at the chicken-fried steak on our trays. Well, thats what the lunch lady called it, anyway. It was really a mushy pile of meat on top of a mushy pile of noodles.

It didnt look like steak to me. It looked more like dog food.

I shrugged my shoulders. A little, I guess, I replied. Mostly Im excited to get out there and play.

Lacrosse is my favorite sport by far. I also run track, but I dont love it like I love lacrosse.

Curtis is a lacrosse player too. He didnt make the varsity team, though. I guess he was pretty jealous. The good news for him was he would be the captain of the junior varsity team. That sounded pretty good to me. Besides, the JV captain always gets to start on the varsity team the next year. Everyone knows that.

Yeah, said Curtis. I know what you mean. I hope being captain isnt going to mean I cant have fun anymore.

I nodded. Thats what Im worried about too, I said.

I stabbed at the noodles on my plate, but they were all stuck together. When I tried to pick up just one, the whole clump came off the plate at the same time. I mean, what if being on varsity is tougher than I think it will be? I asked. What if I cant handle it?

Curtis shook his head. Youll be fine, he said. Hey. Theres Coach Tory. Curtis pointed to the lunch line.

I turned around. The coach was holding a tray, which was filled with steak, two dishes of Jell-O, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, three cartons of milk, a salad, a roll, and a huge piece of carrot cake with cream cheese frosting.

You should go and talk to him, Curtis said. Youre only a freshman. Youre going to have to push for field time.

I nodded. Yeah, youre probably right, I said.

I took one last look at the glob of noodles and dog food on my tray. Ill be right back, I told Curtis.

I walked over to Coach Tory. He was handing over his money to the cashier at the end of the line when I reached him.

Coach? I said. I was too quiet. He didnt hear me. Coach? I tried again, a little louder.

Huh? the coach said when he finally heard me. It startled him and his tray almost tipped over. Luckily, only one of the milk cartons fell off, and I caught it easily.

Oh! Coach said, looking down at me. Hes tall. Nice catch. Peter Stiles, right? he asked.

Thats right, I replied. Im the new freshman on the varsity team.

I remember, Coach said. What can I do for you?

Well, I said, I know Im a freshman, but I was hoping Id be able to get some real field time this season.

Coach raised his eyebrows at me. You think youre that good, Stiles? he asked.

I guess so, Coach, I said.

I looked at my shoes. I started to worry that it had been a bad idea to talk to him.

He looked down at me, squinted, and said, First practice is today, so well see how you do. But remember, Hurley Johnson is captain, and hes a senior. And hes also an attackman. He will be tough competition for you out there!

Then Coach Tory walked off. I went back to the table, where Curtis was still playing with his food. Howd it go? Curtis asked when I sat down.

I dont know, I replied. Hurley is going to be hard to beat for field time.

Yeah, Curtis said, nodding. But you cant expect to be the number-one man on offense. Just play good enough to start, and youll get plenty of time on the field.

I nodded. Just then, I felt a tap on my shoulder. It was Eddy.

Hi, guys, she said. Peter, you ready for history class?

Yes, I said, sighing. Another lunch hour, over too soon.

CHAPTER 3

The guys on the varsity lacrosse team were much bigger than I thought theyd be. Especially Hurley Johnson.

Hey, freshman! he said as I walked onto the field.

I was carrying my crosse in one hand, and my helmet in the other. It felt good to wear the varsity uniform, even just to practice.

That is, it felt good until Hurley started picking on me.

You sure that uniform isnt too big for you? Hurley teased.

He and another player were tossing a ball back and forth. The other player was as tall as Hurley, but much skinnier. And he threw the ball at Hurley really, really fast.

Hey, Nick, Hurley said. You think this freshman can handle varsity lacrosse?

The other boy laughed. Not a chance, Hurley! he said loudly.

That made me pretty mad, but I couldnt start anything with these two.

Dont worry about them, another player said, standing next to me. Youre Peter Stiles, right?

I nodded. Thats me, I said.

Im Stan Kim, the guy said. Good job making the team!

Thanks, I replied. At least someone was happy to have a freshman on the varsity team.

A sharp whistle blow snapped us all to attention.

Okay, guys, Coach said when wed all gathered around him. Were just going to run some drills today. Everyone, get in line for eagle-eye! Then he blew another sharp blast on his whistle.

Everyone started getting into groups of six. I looked around. Then I spotted a group of five guys to join.

I was excited. Eagle-eye is my favorite throwing drill.

Players line up, three on three, and toss balls in a pattern among themselves. Sometimes you do the drill with three, four, five, or even six balls to make it harder.