S2 E37. The Trials and Triumphs Of PLL & NLL All Star, Zed Williams; A True Success Story, Part I

In this episode of Get the Lax Scoop, host Jay “The Jaybird” McMahon interviews PLL and NLL All Star, Zed Williams. The discussion covers Zed's remarkable path from growing up the second youngest of seven children on the Cattaraugus Reservation, his record-breaking high school career, and his notable accomplishments in collegiate and professional lacrosse. Zed reflects on the support from his community and four brothers, the influence of his high school coach, and the pivotal role of Coach Dom Starsia in his recruitment to UVA. The episode explores his strategies on the field and chemistry with PLL teammates like Matt Rambo and TJ Malone, as well as the importance of self-belief and continuous learning. Also featured are insights into mastering lacrosse skills, the role of  in-game adjustments, and versatile play, with an emphasis on community and support, plus special offers for viewers.

00:00 Introduction to Lax Scoop Podcast
00:23 Meet the Hosts: Big Dog and Jaybird
01:02 Solo Interview Announcement
01:21 Introducing Zed Williams
03:27 Zed's Early Lacrosse Journey
06:42 High School Achievements and Recruitment
08:52 College Lacrosse Experience
12:43 Professional Career and PLL Success
17:37 Mastering the Little Things in Lacrosse
18:14 The Importance of Chemistry and Belief
19:30 Film Study and Self-Improvement
21:40 The JML Courses: Elevate Your Game
25:12 In-Game Adjustments and Confidence
31:37 Adapting to Different Roles
34:20 Mystery Guest Appearance
35:18 Conclusion and Sign-Off

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Link to Video of the Week:
Master The 5 Best Dodges From the Wing!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_7LDOcQQ6Q&t=88s

Blazing Shots... on the Run!
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Transcript

Jay: 0:00

It's time for get the La Scoop, a podcast bringing you all the people and stuff you should know. In the game of lacrosse, we take LAX seriously, but ourselves, not so much. Join hosts, big Dog and Jaybird, and the biggest names in the game. Brought to you by Jay McMahon lacrosse. That's J M L Skills, mindset, and LAX IQ training. Ron Doish, the big dog, was a collegiate football and lacrosse player at Brown. He was also an assistant lacrosse coach and the executive director of the sports found. and Jay McMahon, the Jaybird, a three time All-American Midfielder Brown. He was a captain of the US Junior National team and is the founder of J M L. And joining us in the studio, Steve gfi, who's collegiate lacrosse career statistics equals one goal against Dartmouth. Brought to you by Jay McMahon lacrosse. That's J M L Skills, mindset, and LAX IQ training. Helping the next generation cross players. Get to the next level.

MacBook Pro Microphone: 0:59

hello everyone. And welcome back to the show. Unfortunately, my co-hosts Ron and Steve were both out of pocket during the recording of this next interview. So I did soldier on and flew solo, but next time my two wing men will be with me. You will hear this interview in progress.

1:19

Well, hello, everyone. And welcome back to the show. We're very excited to have a brand new guest on, and I'm going to run through his intro, and we'll get this next session of Get the Lac Scoop started. Our next guest attended Silver Creek High School, where he broke Hall of Famer Casey Powell's record for total points in New York State, and became one of the top four college lacrosse recruits in the nation. He went on to the University of Virginia, where he had a stellar career playing for Dom Storgia, and received U. S. ILA and Inside Lacrosse All American honors. Additionally, he was All ACC and on the Tourton Trophy Watchlist. Following graduation in 2017, he was drafted into the National Lacrosse League, also known as the Professional Indoor Lacrosse League, by the Georgia Swarm, where he played, for three years. Next, he entered the PLL, that is the Field Lacrosse Professional League, by the 2020 Entry Draft and took the league by storm. At the 2020 Championship Series, he emerged as a key attackman for the champion Whipsnakes, finishing as the tournament's leading scorer. His dominant performance led him to be named to the All Tournament Team and take home the prestigious Jim Brown MVP Award. Additionally, he was named the McEnany Attackman of the Championship Series for his performances. He's been named a P. L. L. All Star three times after his high profile trade to Colorado for the 2022 season in the N. L. L. He led the Mammoth to a championship while averaging an eye popping six points per game in the playoffs of the professional indoor league. During his professional career, he's also been a leader. A multiple medal winning Haudenosaunee national teams, both in the field version of lacrosse and with the indoor box game. He's originally from Irving, New York and grew up the youngest of seven siblings as a member of the Seneca Tribe, which is part of the Iroquois Confederacy that is located just south of Buffalo, New York. Please welcome the one, the only, Zed Williams. Thank you, Jay. You're welcome. Welcome to the show, Zed. We're we're excited to. Hear all about your lacrosse life. Yeah, no, thanks for having me. So we love starting off at the very beginning of our guest lacrosse journey and like to kind of get into their introduction to the game. So please tell us when you first received the lacrosse stick. And when you first started playing and who were some influential people that you worked with back in those early days? Yeah, I think so I grew up on the Cattaraugus Reservation. I was the second youngest. So my, my so I have four, four brothers. Okay. Two full sisters and then three half brothers. Okay. So my three half brothers are a lot older than me, so I never lived with them, but the rest of us, we were all in the same household. We're all two years apart growing up. So sorry. So my bro, my mom and dad my dad never played lacrosse. So when people ask me, like, you know, how I got started and stuff like this. So on my reservation. Lacrosse is a big deal, but so is football. Football is a big deal on my reservation too. And so I like, I never got to stick in a cradle or anything like that. My dad didn't grow up. My dad wasn't traditional. He had mixed religions, you know, but at the same time, like we didn't go to long house. So so like we always, from the time I can remember from when I can walk, like I love everything was about football. But we played everything. We played basketball. We did hockey in the driveway. We did wrestling. We did everything. We did lacrosse. Well, lacrosse wasn't like, Zed, you need to play lacrosse or you play lacrosse, here's your stick. So lacrosse just kind of got handed to us from our community. And so, like, I remember my brothers played, but we weren't always, we were always big and strong. And like, obviously not always like the great, greatest lacrosse players. When I look back on my childhood, you know, I remember a lot of childhood friends. their dads played so they taught them the game. Right, right. And my dad didn't really know the game until, you know, he knew the game, but like he knew it in a different mindset. He knew about hitting toughness, you know, in there to faster the ball. But like, we didn't know like, you know, the six skills and everything like that. How, How to move the lacrosse player until later on in life. I gotcha. Yeah. So anyways, a long story. But if I were to say, you know, my brothers definitely played lacrosse before I did. But they played every single sport. So like I was in every single sport and I just remember being in the yard with them is really where it started was our yard and how we just kind of, you know, started messing around with a stick, obviously we're very poor, but like we shared stakes or get, get whatever you want. Get like my dad, never, my parents never took me to the store and bought me a new stick. It was always, I couldn't even tell you where the couple sticks came from when I was young. So obviously we shared, but I gotcha. Yeah. So lacrosse was kind of, you know, always around. Lacrosse was always around my community, but we were never, we were, I would say we were never like as a family, like driven to be like lacrosse players. We were always driven. I gotcha. Right. Okay. And then when did you really get into it? Was it in high school? Or before that? So I grew up playing box lacrosse for a couple of years, probably when I was like five, six, seven. And I remember we took a break because my brothers, my older brothers were good at baseball. And they played ball and for the high school. So there was like a three year break, read and play lacrosse. I played baseball only. And then, so we made the switch from lacrosse to baseball. And then something happened with my older brothers with the high school coach or the baseball team. So they went back to lacrosse. When he was a junior. So I was, I was like fourth grade. So I probably started out when I was five, six, seven break until like fourth, fifth grade. So, so that was like a three year window where we just played baseball. And then we came back and played lacrosse again for our community. And yeah, then I played lacrosse and baseball until, until eighth grade. And then, but field lacrosse, I didn't start playing field lacrosse until the seventh grade. It wasn't my first time playing field lacrosse. And then A2 lacrosse came and I moved up to varsity for field lacrosse and it just kind of came like you got to make a choice, you know, play baseball. I couldn't make both work anymore. So I decided to do lacrosse. Right. That's great. And then looking at the statistics there at silver Creek high school, that's where you got that New York state points record. And now was that in your junior year or was that in your senior year? That was my junior year at the end of my last year. Yeah. I remember it was kind of a big deal. That's amazing. Yeah. Holy cow. So that, that's incredible. So then were you super dialed in at that point? For field lacrosse? Yeah. At that point into my junior year, that's when like I was getting recruited heavily. So yes, I would say. Like looking back on it, it's kind of weird because like I didn't know what I was getting myself into. Obviously going to college playing college lacrosse was never a dream because I really didn't know, you know, anybody. But so like when When I was college coaches recall like I just kind of like didn't really know what was going on. Huh. Were you still playing football at that point? Yeah, I played football. It's my senior year high school. So I played football, basketball, lacrosse all through high school. Gotcha. So had that multi sport background. That's great. So then I guess once you broke that record as a junior, then you got a lot of notoriety and a lot of, a lot of coaches came knocking at that point. And like, who was it? Who was an influence on you then? Was your high school coach a strong influence or your older brothers? Or yeah, I would say both my high school coach, my older brothers, because they were so talented, like my, my brothers were so talented. My older brother, John was like, so gifted, way better lacrosse player than I ever was. He just, you know there's just like a lot of things that went wrong, whether, I don't know, I couldn't, I can't even say wrong. Cause his life turned out great and he's doing great stuff. So it's like, I think everyone has their own path, you know what I mean? Right. So like with my older brothers being so good at sports and, you know, my parents obviously never went to college or anything like that. So they didn't know anything about their career process or anything like that. So when it came, when it was their time to take school serious or, you know, how, how, how to get recruited or what do you do when you get recruited? How did you, how do you talk to these college coaches, everything like that? Make a good decision for, you know, our, the kids, but my parents just didn't know. And so there was a lot of trial and error. So by the time I came up there to second youngest. We kind of been through, you know, what it was like. So and then it also helps out a lot when you got a guy like coach stars, you're recruiting you. He's great. So that's what I needed. I needed someone to take care of me and that's what I did. Gotcha. So how did coach storage just stand out from all the other college lacrosse coaches? I typically I think even at a young age, I have a good feeling of, you know people who are not BS in me and also like people who you can see like, oh, this dude's a good dude or this dude really cares about, you know, me. And so I could just get that right away. It was not all across with him. It was all like family life. How am I going to survive school? How am I going to survive in Charlottesville coming from where I'm coming from? But like I could just read it and I could just feel it too. So stars are definitely stood out. And to be honest, like, that's what I needed. Like I needed, I needed that pampering my freshman year going into college. I needed that. Right. That's great. What other schools were you looking at back then? I was getting recruited by Ohio State. Syracuse, Albany. There's a couple others. But yeah. And Dom was kind of a father figure, so to speak. And it was the same for me back in the day. Yeah. Yeah. For sure. Did he, you know, back when he was recruiting myself and, and some of the other guys I do the show with, he would, you know, there was no phones, there was no email actually either. So he, everything was like handwritten and he would, your mailbox would just be full of stuff from coach Storja. He was the volume kind of guy. Yeah. Was, was he a lot of contact for you back then too? Yeah, him and coach Van Arzel write a lot of letters. I remember and that always that always, that always meant a lot. And and then he always, you know, he drove up a couple of times too. And it was never, he was, you could always like tell he was so like he was so intrigued by, you know, I think me and my community and stuff. And like, you can really see it. Tell even like a funny story. Like when he came to visit me, I was actually driving to go get gas in my dad's truck and I seen him just driving by, he didn't notice me, but he was just driving by looking around. Oh, yeah, that's funny. It was getting a feel for the place. Yeah. He was checking out the rats. He was going on. Yeah. All right. That's funny. That's great. Well, now jumping ahead, you know, you've had, you know, Such an exceptional pale ale career, and it's been exciting to watch you know, over the years here. And I, I had seen you play in college a number of times, you know, living here in Richmond. I would just go to a bunch of the games. So then seeing you really emerge as such a superstar that 2020 season, just coming out of nowhere, and and earning the MVP honors. And that was a repeat for the Whipsnakes. And then and then of course you got to the finals in 21. I was actually at that game, and I was written for Andy Towers. I got to admit, I played with him at Brown, but that was another great season you guys had. And then this year you guys had a slow start and then I think it was six wins in a row. You get to the finals again. So what is it about the PLL you think that really suits your style of play? You know, your first year you go in there and you just pair it up and you've had a lot of great years since. Yeah. I just think it became like a focus for me. Like I, like going back to college, like I, Was so dedicated to trying to try and graduate and you know, I didn't really put a lot of time into my game the way I did after I graduated and obviously like I didn't know as much either about the game. So obviously I played many of my first three years and I played attack with coach Tiffany my senior year. Right. And I never played attack before, but you know, obviously my body translated very well to it. And I had to learn how to dodge like an attackman. And so, so like, it's just a lot of trial and error. You know, you go through things and you figure things out. Someone's like pushing me, not letting me to my spot. All right, you know, I got to get a little bit stronger. Same thing like, all right, I'm in a good spot, but how can I get this shot off accurately and hard? All right, I got to change my stick up. To something that has a little bit more whippiness to it. So it was just kind of, yeah, I figured that stuff out after college. So like college, I was using whatever stick my friend strung up from me. I was like, yeah, I'll use this. I can use whatever I can use. Whatever I did. I didn't know. About else, you know, at that, at that point, I was just trying to focus on the school and just make sure I graduated because it was such a grind for me academically. Right. I was just, I was graduating from school to be honest with you. Right. I gotcha. Yeah. Cause then by 2020, you definitely had figured it out. I mean, you were really systematic. You were able to turn the corner so well. And then if you weren't, you were either inside rolling or, or doing some sort of counter move, but That, you know, seemed like you're shooting with that right hand coming up that the hash, essentially, you had so many goals like that. It was, it was really great. I actually do a lot of skills training, so I've got a lot of clips of you to show players. All right, you know, this is, this is how you, you come up the hash on that right side. This is how you turn the corner. You know, and you got a lot of, you know, A lot of variations on your, your dodging there. So that's great. And then, you know, as a follow up on the PLL, you've had some great chemistry with your teammates there, like Matt Rambo, and then you had T. J. Malone come in the mix as a rookie. And It was a little bit of a different look where he seemed to be kind of playing at X and then you and Matt were playing on the wing and then sometimes you'd be on the crease. But tell us about that, you know, working that chemistry with, three great players. Matt Rambo was an MVP as well. We know TJ Malone's a very good player. Excellent. I think it was the rookie of the year this year, which I think it was. So tell us, tell us about that. Yeah. And sorry. And how it kind of developed because I know during the season at first you guys weren't doing great and they were changing the lineup and then they kind of got you three guys on there on attack and it seemed to really take off. Yeah, I just think I think that's what's so great about lacrosse is like you, you bring guys together and it's such a like, how does it work? It's such a chemistry driven league. Like This guy's a great player. You know, does he work well with this guy? Does he work well with this guy? So you see a lot of that through the league. And the same thing with us, like like TJ was new obviously, but he brings so much to the game and bring so much to the attack lineup. Like you gotta, you know, you, since he's such a young guy too, it's like, man, let this guy thrive, let's get this guy, the ball, let's play to his game. And I'm always going to believe in my stuff and myself that I can play any style the team like, I really believe that, like, I really believe I can do anything. If you give me, like, give me a little bit of time, I know I can do it. So when it comes to like grant TJ, Matt and I, like I was playing midi to start the year with the whips and then I went to attack, I was planning to kind of off and on, and then, you know, I went to full time attack, but it's the same thing with everything. Like the better chemistry you have as a group, the better you're going to succeed as a whole, like there's a lot of little things, like instead of like X's and O's like, all right, you're on here, you're here, you're here on paper. It's. Things like the way guy moves, timing of how people move. All right. I know TJ is going to do this. So TJ is such a great passer every time I would get a little bit higher and, and kind of allow my, my defender to sleep and then, and then cut like quickly, you know what I mean? And if there, then I knew, all right, that's not fair. I know TJ is going to do this or Matt's going to do this. I'm going to get to this spot because if I get it now, I'm in a great spot to, to attack full head of steam. So it's a lot of little things like that instead of like. All right, let's watch this guy dodge. I don't know what he's going to do. I'm going to sit here and then, okay, he, that didn't work out. I'm gonna try to pop out here and make something happen. So chemistry is a big, big, big super big and professional across. Yeah, I did see it working more off ball and he could hit you on the crease. You had a couple catching it shooting high, dropping her hands, low, shooting high. So it was great, you know, that you were dodging and then Also getting the ball off ball. So getting a lot of shots off ball. So that was great. Now, you know, and also one of the things you mentioned too, is just believing in yourself. And we've got a lot of parents and players who are on this, listening to this podcast. And that's one of the things we try to emphasize is like, all right, what is it that's making these great players great? And you just brought up, you know, Probably the most important intangible and that is believing in yourself and believing that all right I'm gonna give myself some time then I'm gonna develop the skills. I'm gonna develop the knowledge I'm gonna believe in myself and let myself just get better Like it sounds like you kind of felt your way there a bit with TJ Malone to figure out All right, you know, how can we make this team better? Not just me dodging not Matt just dodging on his own Let's start working off ball and and using his feeding ability and things like that So that's great to hear. Yeah, I think just like to go on that when you think about like, so when parents are like, oh, okay, how can I believe in myself, but how do I get better? I think that's where like after college came like, I figured out the game a lot more indoor and outdoor to where like, Instead of just watching film and watching yourself, I'm starting to figure everything out. So now I, I got to a point where like, I can actually watch film and I could see everyone and see everything. And I'm like, okay, the defense of this, I can do this, or this guy just has to do this and you know, you're going to get something, you're going to get a better opportunity. I know that's hard for young kids and maybe parents to see because I've been watching so much film and been around lacrosse, high level across for the past since 2014, so 10 years. Film on a consistent basis every week. And then obviously, obviously being with some like great minds of lacrosse. So you learn a lot, but yeah, I'm just at a point now where like. When I watch myself during a game or, or someone, I already know what I did wrong. Like just by one, all right, I know what I did wrong. I gotta go work on that. Cause sometimes it's easier said than done. You know what I mean? Like do that, but can you do that when someone's pushing on you or the slides two steps faster, are you going to get the same situation or same opportunity? So and if that happens, do you have an answer for it? Do you have a counter? So I just think it comes down to that. Like, and at the same time, like when I'm not on or something or, or like, I know I can do something, but I just, I didn't do that game, but like, give me another opportunity. I know I can do it. I do the same thing. Like when I go, when I was a kid, I just go to my backyard and just rep it out. Even 50 percent speed to create muscle memory, things like that. So yeah, I think one of the best quotes I've ever got was from coach Tiffany, when I was a senior, it was just kinda, he challenged our team to bring that inner kid in us. And that always stuck with me because even now at a professional level, I play so much across year round one season to another, and it is a job. But at the same time, like I always try to remind myself that I like play with the inner kid. And I always, I always find myself playing better when I remind myself of that. Right. That's great. Probably just increases your awareness, your excitement level. Yeah. Playfulness can create lead to more creativity and things like that.

Jay: 21:40

How about if we transition to. J m l and let's do that.

21:45

Folks, what

MacBook Pro Microphone-2: 21:46

PLL and NLL all-star Zed Williams has just described.

21:51

Is exactly why myself and Coaches Lars Tiffany and Kip Turner created the JML Courses. Because so many players out there, so many that I have coached, that coaches Tiffany and Turner, have come into contact with, are so close to getting what they need, but are not close enough. Players do need to play for a competitive club team and a high school, but that's not all. As highly successful coaches said, Players also need the skills, mindset, and lax IQ training that's going to elevate their game and take them to the next level.

MacBook Pro Microphone-1: 22:26

And as ed Williams just said, it took him years to figure out just what he needed to become successful. We've taken all that we have learned over the past 30 plus years and honed it down. Into manageable training sessions. So you can literally compress time

22:42

so I urge all parents and players out there to invest in themselves. You're putting a lot of money into these clubs. Take a real small fraction of that and put it towards these skills, mindset, and lax IQ training that we have to offer. There's live coaching support on the platform along with the pre recorded sessions. And we have a community of like minded individuals who are taking the journey with you and who can help you be accountable and get the most out of the process. You can do the training at any time you'd like. We do advise though, that you follow the weekly workouts and then repeat that three to four times per week. This is for attackmen, long poles and goalies. Now you'll hear a little more about our offer. Big additions to the JML course catalog. Now we have a defenseman's course taught by none other than UVA head coach, Lars, Tiffany, and a goalie course taught by former two-time All-American and UVA assistant coach kept Turner. The best time of year to improve your game. And that's why we are making this special offer. So jump on it now because it won't last for long. Simply download the free version of the Jane McMahon lacrosse app. Or just follow the link that's listed in the show notes. And you will see the coupon code noted for each different course. Speaking of no guardrails that so many of our listeners describe the college lacrosse recruiting trail. So we've responded by putting excerpts of our 10 best interviews with legendary coaches, such as bill Tierney, Lars, Tiffany and Andy towers. Into a book that you can access for free on our JML app. Simply download the J McMahon lacrosse app at the apple app store or at Google play for Android and check it out. And for those. Who would like a book in their hands? Or on their Kindle, it is available on Amazon, under the title inside the recruiting game insights from college lacrosse coaches. And due to popular demand, we have put together a Patrion page for the show. This will allow those interested in supporting our efforts to do just that and to get exclusive access to unedited interviews. Big discounts on the JML online courses and merchandise from our new online store go ahead and check out the links in today's show notes. We're excited to get back to our interview and you will find that interview

MacBook Pro Microphone-3: 25:09

Picking up right where we just left off.

25:12

And then what you were saying right there too is one of the things we'll, we'll talk to players about is, all right, you've got a plan. It sounded like you're getting out there to the field and then you execute that plan. And then you got to kind of analyze and be like, Oh, okay. I thought if I came this high, I'd have a shot. But now I realized if I come this high, if I get that defender to overcommit, he might've stopped me the first time with my right hand, but he overcommits. Now what's my counter, right? You were talking about counters. So that kind of in game adjustment. And then even after the game, thinking about what happened, as you said, doing things, maybe 50 percent speed building up. Getting the reps, getting the muscle memory so that when things happen in the game, you don't really even need to think about it. It just is going to be a reaction and that muscle memory takes over. So yeah, that's another great point. Yeah. Just trying to keep added to it. Cause like at the same time, like in the professional level, guys are super smart too. They're doing the same exact thing I'm doing. And they're. Justin, when they go against me again, you know what I mean? Or the goalies adjusted too. So it's just a lot of things is confidence is huge and believing in yourself is huge. There's been times where my confidence went through the roof and that's when I played my best ball and there's confidence that sometimes we're like, all right, did I overthink this time to where. You know, like, all right, I dipped and dunked on the goalie this time. This time, you know, I'm just going to, I'm just going to go five hole and it didn't work. So it's like, all right, I just outsmarted myself because I thought he was going to react to what I just did before. You know what I mean on him? Right. Right. He didn't react. So I was like, all right, I just, so like now it's like, all right, your confidence starts to fade and stuff like that. So confidence is huge in lacrosse. Yeah. And once you get a great play, get a goal, you get that momentum, you know, that's where things tend to roll for you. So as we mentioned in the opening there, you were drafted in 2017 by the Georgia swarm. And you know, for most people at these highest levels, it, you know, may not happen immediately. So it took a couple of years for you to really seem to excel in that indoor game because you look at that 2022 season, you go to the Colorado mammoth and it was really almost like within a year. Your stats like tripled and then the next year you had this really high level stats too. So what about the indoor game as far as things changing and maybe the game slowing down for you? Like what was the key for you going into colorado and leading them to a championship? Yeah, I think with the colorado situation, I think those are some of those are smartest coaches I've ever had. And All around, whether it's, you know, motivation, X's and O's the relationship part everything. So like those, those coaches are awesome there and well playing for them, obviously, but like they, they just know how to kind of get to me. And at the same time though I feel like I'm, I've never, especially in the box game, I'm not a big stats guy. I think I'm always in a position where, like, I do everything well. So I play a lot of off ball, set a lot of picks, you know, play ball team, do, do a lot of that stuff. But I can also shoot. I can also get hot shooting, you know I can also handle the ball and dodge and go one on one. So I just think I do a lot of things well to where, like, I'm kind of like all over, therefore, like, I'm not a big, I don't think I'm ever going to be like a big, oh, Zed, Zed to the, like, Zed was top five in stats. Like, I'm never going to be that. But yeah, and yet I've seen you in certain games when things are going well, you know, I think some of those PLL games, you might have had 6 or 7 goals. It's like, you don't slow yourself down. Like, sometimes you'll see players. They're doing so well in the 1st half, let's say, and then they only have a goal in the 2nd. Like, when things are clicking for you, I've seen you, you just stay in the flow and just. Just let it go. So like you said, you're not that into the stats every single game, but when, when you're hot and the momentum is going your way, I've seen you certainly take advantage of every situation given to you. Yeah. But obviously like offense, you got to be the defender, you got to be the slide, you got to be other things. And then, you know, you got to beat the goalie. So it's like, there's a lot of things going on as an offensive player, right it could be like, you beat the defender and the slide, and then the goalie makes a save. And it's like, yeah, You didn't really beat him. So, you know what I mean? So, yeah. So offensively, I just think things, things are so, there's a lot going on. So Well, especially thinking back to that 2020 championship again, being friends with Andy Towers, I'm like, oh, wow, they're winning. I think they were beating you guys six to three or something. And then, I mean, you guys blew them out in the fourth quarter. It was crazy, right? Yeah. When you, yeah, when you think about the game too, it was like, I had a couple of opportunities where I think Blaze stuffed me. I had some great. But at the same time, like, every time, like, someone gets the better of me, like, I'm like, all right, what did he do there? All right, you got a piece of that. All right, now I can do this. So sometimes I have the opportunity. Sometimes I don't have the opportunity, but like, let me, I'm sorry, let me cut you off right there. Cause for players listening, like, listen to what Zed just said. It's like, okay, Blaze Reardon, best goalie in the world. He got me there. Now, what could I do next time? Like maybe I, I put my hands high, I shot low. He, he got that. All right. Next time I'm going to do the same thing, but maybe I'm going to shoot high. Right. Was it those kind of adjustments? Yeah. But then like, now I know I'm like, all right, just give me another opportunity. Just give me another opportunity. Sometimes you get those opportunities. Sometimes you don't. And just fortunate enough for that game, our defense held it down. Well, and our Kyle Burnler played so well that like, I just got, like, if they didn't play that well, I would have never got those opportunities in that game. If that makes sense. Right. Yeah, well, that's, that's good. I remember Burnlord did play great. It's definitely great to recognize your teammates there for giving you the opportunity. But but that in game adjustment, I think, is huge. And and like you said, during the game, you're, you're learning things, right? You're learning tendencies and you're adjusting. So I think that's a big thing for players out there. It's crazy, too, because it's like, obviously, these guys are all professional and, you know, they work on their craft every day, and a lot of it is like, in that game, it's like, you can't, you can watch them on film and do this stuff and prepare for them, but then in that game, it's like, alright, who's locked in? You know what I mean? Playing faster than others. Who's who's who's shooting harder than others? Who's who's in the zone? So it's the same thing with defenders and goalies and offensive guys. Like it's a game by game basis. Right, right. Absolutely. And then, you know, as we mentioned too, you've played for the Haudenosaunee national team multiple times and typically on offense, but then in San Diego you play defense. And I mean, I haven't seen too many players but there were you who are up against some of the best attackmen in the whole world playing defense and, you know, doing more than holding your own. You did rather well. So tell us and our listeners a little bit of what that was like, you know, to literally be on the other side of the ball and did maybe even be an attackman help you knowing some of the things that an attackman is going to try. But what was that all about? Switching a day and it worked out really well. Yeah. I was just talking to coach, Tiffany, and earlier on, like in the, in the trial process and like, when you look at our team, like we're so full of like dominant right handed offensive players in the indoor and outdoor game. Right. And like, to be honest, like I love lacrosse, but like I always played in football growing up. I played every position just because. So every year or whatever, whatever season came to us, like I needed to do something even in basketball, like sometimes I was point guard, sometimes I was the five, sometimes I was the four. So, you know, I always pride myself on like. I know I can do everything. You know what I mean? Not sound, you know, ridiculous or dramatic, but like, I actually like, believe that, especially if you, like, if something's challenging, like, if you give me a little bit of time, like I know I can do it. But that's just how I am. That's just how I was raised. And so when it came down to defense, like, like readies, offensive players that good. And there's only one ball out there. You know what I mean? We all play the same spot. So, right. Point of having, you know, this ready guy, this ready offensive guy on the sidelines. We can have help on a defensive end. So that was just kind of left out process. And, and also it was like, I play a lot of basketball now in men's leagues. And like I always take pride in defense and always take pride, like, all right, this guy's the best player on their team. Like whether it's a point guard or big, I was like, I can cover him. So it was just kind of that mindset I've always had. And so to challenge myself. As a defender and cover some of the best players in the world. Like obviously like everyone gets beat, but like, I always accept that challenge and I just have the mindset of like, all right, if I get beat, it's not going to happen again. Right. I think you were covering Matt Rambo a couple of times, weren't you? Yeah, yeah, Matt. Yeah, you were doing pretty well too. That that must have been something. Yeah. No, he's, he's, he's good man. He is actually like stronger than he looks. He's actually got a bird faster burst than he looks, so he's, he's awesome. He's awesome player. He is also a tough challenge. That's great. Oh, we got, sometimes we'll do a mystery guest. We got a mystery guest coming on for you here. Let's see who it is. Drum roll please. You gotta get a, get a chance to see Dom quicker than you thought. There he is. Hey, coach. How you doing? Oh, all the famer coming in here is our mystery guest. Here you go. Here we go. For me, you know, this is a very mixed thing here between Brown and Virginia, you know you know, I'll be, I'll be messing up those. I wore my Virginia shirt for the sake of the guest. There you go. I appreciate that. If need be said, I'm ready to go Brown with the hat. I can go both ways if I have to, you know, nice. Thanks. Yeah, it was just saying is like I need to talk to Dom. I owe him a phone call. So you do In a while. I talked to him sooner than you think Yeah Absolutely. Yeah, good to see you. Yeah, how you doing?

MacBook Pro Microphone-8: 35:12

And then said, said how you doing. And then, well, you know what. Why don't you come on back next week and listen in on this heartwarming conversation between player and coach. I know, you'll be glad you did.

Ron: 35:26

until we meet again, here to, hoping you find the twine. We're signing off here at the Get the LAX coop. Thanks again so much. We will see you the next time.