March Coaches of the Month

 

Boys Coach: Dan O’Brien | Girls Coach: Alex O’Reilly

 

Boys Coach: Dan O’Brien – HGR 2021 Green

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  1. What is your favorite HGR Lacrosse Coaching Moment? Winning Trilogy tourney at Brown last year
  2. What is your favorite thing about lacrosse? The pace, intensity and skill combination
  3. Who is/was your favorite coach/mentor? Rick Mazzei was my first coach and inspired me to become a coach and teacher
  4. Other than HGR, where else do you coach? Burlington HS (Ma.)
  5. What is your favorite piece of coaching gear? Lightweight quarter zip Under Armor
  6. What is your favorite inspirational quote? I haven’t failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work. T. Edison. “Try again, Fail again, Fail better.” Samuel Beckett
  7. Any pregame coaching routines? I walk the perimeter of the field for home games with my headphones on and put out the cones. Listen to a very specific playlist
  8. Practice Snack GoTo (choose one): Bubble gum during practice
  9. Game Snack GoTo (choose one): Milky way and a large Fiji water
  10. If you could coach any sports team, pro or amateur, in any sport from any era, which team would it be? 2001 New England Patriots
  11. What was your favorite team to play on at any level, and why? Junior year at Norwich University. Great group of guys, had success but had even more fun.
  12. If you could meet any famous leader, dead or alive, who would it be? Franklin D. Roosevelt
  13. Coaching advice for lax players heading into their 2016 seasons? Take advantage of every opportunity you have each time you cross the lines onto the field, and give the best effort on each and every play, because you never know which one will have the greatest impact.
  14. From Coach Ken Blaszka HGR 2019 Green What other sports did you play? Hockey & Football
  15. Pose a question for the next HGR COTM: If you could swap with any athlete for a day who would it be? Why?

 

Girls Coach: Alex O’Reilly – HGR Girls Elite Coach

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  1. What is your favorite HGR Lacrosse Coaching Moment? Getting the job! HGR is such an awesome place to grow as both players and coaches. Everyone is always learning and I am so happy to be a part of that.
  2. What is your favorite thing about lacrosse? Taking the draw.
  3. Who is/was your favorite coach/mentor? My dad – Gerry O’Reilly.
  4. Other than HGR, where else do you coach? Shawsheen Tech girls’ Lax and Haverhill High HPNA girls’ hockey.
  5. What is your favorite piece of coaching gear? My pink clipboard.
  6. What is your favorite inspirational quote? Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.
  7. Any pre-game coaching routines? Two words: SPF 30…I’ve put sunscreen on my face before every game since I was in youth. Nothing worse than sunburns man.
  8. Practice Snack Go-To (choose one): Trail Mix.
  9. Game Snack Go-To (choose one):
  10. If you could coach any sports team, pro or amateur, in any sport from any era, which team would it be? 2004 Red Sox team. Reverse the curse baby!
  11. What was your favorite team to play on at any level, and why? HS winter league at Raptors Lacrosse back in ’08 and ‘09. Those teammates were some of my best friends at the time and we had a blast playing together as we got ready for the upcoming season.
  12. If you could meet any famous leader, dead or alive, who would it be? Herb Brooks. I admire him for being the last player cut from the Olympic team, returning to the team as a coach years later, and proving all those people who didn’t believe in him wrong by leading his athletes to victory over the Soviets. Never stop working for something you are passionate about!
  13. Coaching advice for lax players heading into their 2016 seasons? A great lacrosse player needs to have intensity, finesse, precision, commitment, and passion. I think it speaks great volume about your character when you can display each of these traits on the field. Speed, plays, and positioning can be coached but those 5 qualities need to come from inside you.
  14. From Coach Liz Richards HGR Girls Asst. Director & Elite Coach – Do you think that you have to have been a star player to be a good coach? I don’t think it is necessary to have been a star player; you need to have been a star teammate. If you were the person on your team who always looked out for everyone, cared about the team’s success rather than individual success, competed with passion and integrity, and gave 100% effort at everything you did, you can become a strong leader and a great coach.
  15. Pose a question for the next HGR COTM: What is the story behind your favorite moment as a coach?