MPC PREVIEW - Interview with Coach Steve Kidder

In anticipation of Thursday's Mid Penn Championship game we reached out to Coach Steve Kidder to do an interview with us. Coach Kidder was kind enough to respond and offers some great insight on his team, his experiences coaching, and what we can expect from both squads Thursday night.

Mid Penn Championship Game Interview

When did you first get involved with the sport of lacrosse (player or coach)?

I began playing as a cadet at West Point in the early 70’s.  I continued to play everywhere I was assigned around the country as an Army officer. 

When did you first start coaching? Where and what was your position?

I first coached as an assistant on Arizona State’s club team 1983-85, while I was pursuing a Masters degree there.  I didn't coach at the high school level until I got to Carlisle in 2000.  I spent my first 7 seasons as an assistant for Dave Breschi, and the last eight as Carlisle’s head coach.

If you could summarize your coaching philosophy in a few sentences what would it be?

Teach the fundamentals first – stick handling, positioning, spacing, footwork, etc.  Then build with small group collective drills, and finish with full team drills last.  We spend half our practice time drilling fundamentals.  I believe that only through repetition the concepts get taught.  Without the reps, concepts won’t get embedded and therefore won’t endure.

What do you believe has been the key to your sustained success over such a long period?

Get kids playing experience as much as possible.  We rarely go into a season at each position without a player with returning experience.  Once the game is in hand, empty the bench.  All you need to win by is one point.

What are some of the major challenges you currently face or have faced in the past?

How can we get our youth program to provide players that can sustain the high school program?  That’s the number one challenge any team faces.  Besides that, building a winning attitude where all your players buy into the program is always difficult.

Looking at this years team, what have been some of the major achievements you and your players have been able to accomplish?

We’re getting balanced scoring on offense, so we’re hard to shut down.  If you take away one player, another steps up to take up the slack.  Our offense is sharing the ball extremely well right now.  Defensively, we’re also playing well as a team, and our goal tending has been fabulous.

What do you believe your teams strongest areas are?

I think they work well with each other.  Our team chemistry is such that I never expect a complete let down or implosion.  Our players don’t fight with each other, so it’s been easy to correct problems and move ahead.

What are some, if any, areas of concern for your squad?

I would like to have greater team speed on defense.  But having said that, our players are making up for it with good teamwork.

What do you believe will make your opponent a challenge on May 8^th?

Hershey is tremendously talented across their entire roster.  They have great skills, they play disciplined, and they are relentless competitors.  They’ll put pressure on us in every phase of the game.

Any game plans for the game you care to share with us?

Play hard and play smart or we’ll get quickly left behind.  Getting off to a great start is the key to beating Hershey.

Any closing thoughts on the sport of Lacrosse here in Central PA?

I've been very encouraged by the growth of LAX in central PA.  When I first started coaching at Carlisle in 2000, there were 8 programs playing.  14 years later we've got 58.  And, the teams are so much better in terms of skill.  That’s a credit to the quality of the youth programs that are teaching those fundamentals that I mentioned earlier.