Starting this fall, Drake University students can join men’s lacrosse, Drake’s newest premier club sport.
The club sport stemmed from Drake’s continued commitment to expanding club and recreational opportunities. Vice President and Dean of Students Jerry Parker and Ryan Parriott, assistant director of recreational services and sport club director, announced the club in an email to students on Feb. 16.
The newly hired head coach, Chris Nickell, is a Drake graduate from the Waukee area. Nickell has four years of coaching experience at the youth level and has worked extensively in player development. He is also one of only three coaches in Iowa who holds a USA Lacrosse Gold Coaching Certification — the second-highest level of training available through USA Lacrosse, which distinguishes coaches with an abundance of knowledge and expertise in the sport.
“What I’m most looking forward to is building a program from the ground up at my alma mater,” Nickell said in an email interview. “There’s something meaningful about helping create an opportunity for students at Drake that didn’t previously exist, and laying a foundation that can last well beyond the first season.”
Lacrosse is continuing to grow nationally and locally, with Des Moines-area high schools building programs.
“The creation of Drake Men’s Club Lacrosse really came from student interest and an opportunity. There are students on campus who have played lacrosse at the high school level and were looking for a way to continue competing while pursuing their academics,” Parriott said in an email interview.
The main season for collegiate lacrosse is the spring. The fall season, fall ball, is a developmental time for the players and team to practice and play low-pressure scrimmages.
The current plan for the coming fall at Drake is to practice two to three times a week, most likely at the Drake Stadium. There is also a plan to scrimmage nearby colleges and universities during this time as well.
In the spring competition season, Nickell hopes to limit travel for students as much as possible by playing teams like Iowa State University, the University of Iowa, Creighton University, Drury University and the University of Missouri.
“I’m especially excited about creating something that is both competitive and inclusive — a team where students of different backgrounds, life experiences, and skill sets can come together, improve, and be part of something bigger than themselves,” Nickell said. “We want to compete and win, but we also want to build community, develop leaders and create an environment where students feel connected to Drake through the sport.”
The program won’t start until the fall, but interested students can reach out to Nickell at [email protected] to learn more.
