Excuse Barrie Lakeshores forward Connor Chisholm if he’s a mite out of breath while speaking to the media.
You see, Connor and his mates from Hill Academy in Concord just returned from Washington, D.C., where they stunned the local favourites from Georgetown Prep School Tuesday night to win the first-ever GEICO High School National Lacrosse championship. The young men from the Hill – a dedicated sports school – toppled the Hoyas 12-6 to take the crown in the tournament final.
It’s at Hill Academy – to which Chisholm commutes from the home in Caledon he shares with his mom – that he enjoys playing his favourite sport while also focusing on his academics, heading to a university curriculum at Cornell in upstate New York when he graduates Hill in 2019!
“I’m going to take an extra year,” the 17-year-old tells BarrieToday, “to get bigger and stronger (before) going to Cornell,” adding that he’s seeking a degree in business marketing at the Ivy League school.
Comparing the field game he played in D.C. this week with the hockey-like box lacrosse he plays here is more a matter of the close quarters he encounters in the latter game, that there’s body contact in box lacrosse, and more tendency to set picks (that is, obstruct opponents) for his mates while they manoeuvre for a better scoring chance.
“Field lacrosse,” he adds, “features more dodging, plus the defenders can whack you to death,” with the longer sticks. Lots of Canadian players go down to the States having played the (tougher) game of box lacrosse.”
When school lets out in a few weeks, Connor Chisholm will find himself at the Wet ‘n’ Wild Waterpark in Brampton, for work isn’t something of which he’s afraid.
“I’ve been a farmhand around Caledon, doing chores, mulching, helping with the planting, harvesting.”
Mostly, though, summer is a time to wind down from the intense training and competition offered at Hill Academy. He and his friends have a cottage up in Wasaga and hang out together.
“(The game) has given me so much pride, and gets me through troubles in my daily life. I can forget the outside world when I step on the court, and play with my friends.”
Connor Chisholm and his Barrie Lakeshore friends next take to the court Friday night at 8 p.m. at the Innisfil Recreation Centre, 7315 Yonge Street, against the St. Catharines Athletics.
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