Senior Jason Oh gets the ball in the defensive half of the field, he looks up and sees green grass ahead, he keeps moving closer to the goal waiting for the perfect opportunity to score. Finally, the opportunity arises and he shoots and scores, Oh has just put the Bulldogs up against the opponent and is rewarded with praise from all his teammates after the stellar shot.

Oh has been playing lacrosse, nearly as long as he could walk, making him one of the few veteran players on the team.

“I started playing in kindergarten,” Oh said. “I joined a lacrosse clinic with Bowie when I was younger and never stopped playing after that.”

Despite the growing popularity of lacrosse, many middle schools don’t offer a team. Oh has had to find alternative ways to play it growing up.

“Bowie has a youth program,” Oh said. “So there’s Junior Bulldog teams from first through eighth grade. So, I did that and then I also did a couple years of a travel club team.”

Oh’s experience has helped him in more ways than he could imagine making a crucial difference in his lacrosse ability.

“I’ve been playing the longest on my team,” Oh said. “You can definitely tell when someone’s been playing a while because they have really good fundamentals passing, catching up consistently, and understanding the game because newer players will be confused about the rules.”

As a senior, Oh has a lot of responsibility. He mentors the new player, as well as making sure that the team stays on the same page and moving forward.

“Among the other veterans, sometimes they smack talk to each other or don’t pay attention to the coach,” Oh said. “So I also have to hold them accountable. Then with the newer players, I try to be constructive and offer them advice on the side instead of just yelling at them in front of everyone.”

One of the players being mentored by Oh, freshman Ethan Kimball has been playing since elementary school and has learned a lot from Oh. 

“I started playing when I was in 3rd grade and haven’t stopped ever since,” Kimball said.

Being the new kid on the block, Kimball  has to fight for a spot on the team. This can lead to some nervous thinking from Kimball as he doesn’t know how good the rest of the team is.

“For the first few weeks lacrosse, was a little overwhelming but now it feels normal and getting to know my teammates makes it feel like a brotherhood,” Kimball said.

Kimball also has many mentors on the lacrosse team who have helped him become the lacrosse player he is today.

“Having Jason on the team has helped so much,” Kimball said. “Having an experienced player to help and give you tips as a freshman has made me a way better player.”

Being a freshman lacrosse player brings room for growth.  One of Kimball’s fellow freshmen, Cole Wong, is ready to become a star by the end of his career as a Bulldog.

“I think I’m going to improve a lot by the end of the season,” Wong said. “We’re also going to grow as a team and as a brotherhood.”

Having a mentor has helped Wong tremendously as Wong believes that he is getting better by the day.

“Having a mentor for the team has helped me become better because I’ve learned to keep my head up and reflect on what I did wrong to fix it on the next rep,” Wong said.

According to Oh, being on the team for a long time has given him the opportunity to see many talented players come and go. Due to a history of lackluster coaches, the team has struggled to harness these talented players on the team.

“I think compared to my earlier years, we had a coach that wasn’t that good,” Oh said. “So we had some really skilled players but not much of a team. But our new coach came in when I was a sophomore and he’s really changed the culture.”

Lacrosse isn’t the only sport Oh plays, he also currently plays golf and used to play basketball. Both of these have helped him in lacrosse

“Golf has a pretty similar movement,” Oh said. “Shooting versus a golf club. Especially if you shoot underhand that helps you focus on things like lower body rotation. And then basketball. I’d say it’s pretty similar because a lot of the plays involve picking and spacing and just moves like that.”

With the start of the season on the horizon, Oh has big aspirations after a good preseason showing.

“I think we can definitely hang with every team in the district and that’s the goal,” Oh said. “I think we did lose a lot of skill last year, but we’re really gelling as a unit this year. 

Being his last season on the team, Oh has made it his mission to help coach and positively impact the younger players.

“I think we’re really trying to pass down a strong attitude and commitment to lacrosse to those freshmen,” Oh said.

As a first year player on Bowie, Kimball  has pretty hefty goals for himself in his first year.

“My goal is to definitely be an all-district attack-man and for the team I think we are gonna make the state playoffs,” Kimball said.