Aaron Thorpe’s journey with lacrosse

Joseph Lyle
Staff Writer

Business marketing major Aaron Thorpe loves nothing more than playing lacrosse out on the field with his teammates.

Thorpe started his sports career playing hockey. Thorpe later discovered another sport called box lacrosse. After playing box lacrosse for a short period of time, Thorpe realized, “[Regular lacrosse] is essentially hockey on the field.”

Thorpe continued explaining why he chose lacrosse. He started playing Lacrosse in 6th grade. Thorpe still plays hockey for a men’s league outside of Hudson Valley. Thorpe also skis.

Although the team has only had one scrimmage, Thorpe believes that the team is working well together and that this year will be successful for them. Thorpe is a veteran player and has played in 11 games for Hudson Valley.

Thorpe has scored an overall of 34 points, 26 goals and eight assists. Thorpe also scored two man-up goals. Thorpe’s shots on goal percentage is 57.8% percent with 37 shots.

In his free time, Thorpe likes to hang out with his friends and watch sports on television. Thorpe also lives on a lake, giving him easy access to activities such as fishing.

When describing his management of personal, athletic and academic responsibilities, Thorpe said, “It’s a big jungle.”

“If you have an organized plan and just stick to that plan, you get into a routine,” Thorpe continued. Thorpe admitted that staying on top of his academics is the biggest challenge.

Thorpe chose to attend Hudson Valley because it was close, convenient and he already had friends at the college. He hopes to continue with the sport and sign with a four-year school after graduation.

Thorpe chose business marketing due to his prior involvement in the business world. He’s has previous experience working with car dealerships. “[Business] comes naturally to me,” said Thorpe.

Thorpe recognizes that lacrosse is a full-contact sport and that there are risks. He mentioned that the sport is different from football because players don’t suffer many head injuries.

However, they may get hit with a “stick,” as he called it. This could lead to some bruising. Thorpe also mentioned that lacrosse is a fast-paced game in regards to there not being many whistles.

Thorpe also mentioned that this non-stop playing of the sport can leave players fatigued and exhausted. This has the potential to cause more injuries. “You’re looking side to side, then all of the sudden you get clipped from your blind side,” said Thorpe.

Thorpe discussed the origins of lacrosse. He explained that the sport started out as an Iroquois war sport. The players at that time did not have the protective gear players have today. Thorpe said, “It was meant to establish [the] men from [the boys].”