by Beth Wallach
As work crews were returning from lunch, Healey, the girls¹ lacrosse coach at South Side, was frantically calling village officials, trying to halt the ³in-fill² process so that girls¹ lacrosse lines could be sewn into the newly renovated field before it was too late. The urgency was due to the fact that once the in-fill process is set in motion, lines can no longer be sewn down, but must be painted on instead.
³If they spent all this money on lines to be sewn in for boys¹ lacrosse and soccer, why didn¹t they spend it on the girls¹ lacrosse lines?² asked Healey, who saw this as a Title IX issue. Title IX is the portion of the Education Amendments of 1972 that prohibits sex discrimination in educational institutions that receive federal funding. Soccer lines are gender-neutral, but girls¹ and boys¹ lacrosse require different sets of lines.
Mike Heller, the Rockville Centre district¹s director of athletics, phys. ed. and health, sees the problem as one of timeliness rather than as an attack on Title IX. ³This is not a Title IX issue if the village is going to give the girls lines,² said Heller. The girls were originally slated to be the first team to use the already completed south field nearly two weeks ago, but when Healey visited the field the day before the team¹s first game, she found that the lines that had been painted for the girls were incorrect ‹ something that has yet to be rectified.
According to Heller, the girls have a little more than three weeks to go in their season, and are beginning to wonder if and when they might ever get on the fields. ³I don¹t think anybody is looking to create a conflict with the village,² said Heller. ³Other districts are very envious that we have these two great fields equipped with lights. The girls would just like to see their lines put down as soon as possible so they can have access to the fields like the boys.²
Heller said that even though sewn lines would have been preferable, and there was a sense of disappointment among Healey, her athletes and their parents when they found out that the boys¹ lines were sewn in and the girls¹ lines were not, he doesn¹t think the hurt feelings will be long-lasting. ³Once everyone gets past the anger and resentment, it¹s really a matter of timeliness,² he said. ³If the lines are going to be put on, let them be put on.²
Ron Wasson, Rockville Centre¹s village administrator, said that the village never deviated from its original plan of sewing lines for just two sports, soccer and boys¹ lacrosse. ³This has been the plan since we started,² said Wasson of the $1.1 million renovation, whose cost was split between the village and Molloy College. ³We never planned on sewing down girls¹ lacrosse lines. They were always going to be painted in.²
The original cost of sewing in lines for two sports on both fields was $80,000, but LandTek, the company that did the work, struck a deal in which it would do both fields for half the price. If done now, sewn-in lines, which are maintenance-free and last about 20 years, would cost approximately $35,000. Painting the lines costs about $200 for the paint, and needs to be done, on average, once or twice a year, according to Wasson. ³If the girls have a championship game, then we will re-spray the lines for that, too,² said Wasson, who was shocked that the painting of lines for the girls had stirred controversy.
³The girls¹ lines will be installed under the same method as the New York Jets and Giants,² he explained. ³There will be absolutely no difference. The village¹s main concern is to have a game played safely. We¹re putting a million-dollar field under their feet, and there are not many municipalities who do that for their residents and kids.²
Sentiment was mixed among members of the girls¹ lacrosse team, who said they feel like targets among classmates who often question the legitimacy of their sport. Team member Jenna Lucchesi said the mistaken idea that there would be no lines at all for girls¹ lacrosse was what created the discord. ³If they have the money to do it, they should sew the lines down,² said the graduating senior. ³But I¹m glad they made the effort to spray-paint it.²
Vanessa Schiliro, another senior, said, ³Why do the boys get sewn-in lines and we don¹t? It¹s not fair.²
Junior Paige Kasschau doesn¹t agree with those who say there is no difference between sewn and painted lines. ³It¹s not as clear when it¹s painted,² she said. ³Why do certain teams get it and not the girls? The fact is, they didn¹t think about us, and that bothers me. Boys¹ lacrosse is more popular now, but girls¹ lacrosse is growing.²
Harry Herman, Molloy¹s athletic director, thinks people are losing sight of what¹s important. ³It¹s the playing surface that matters,² said Herman. ³Whether the lines are painted or sewn, it doesn¹t matter as long as the surface is done correctly.² And, he explained, by the sports world¹s standards, women¹s lacrosse is still in its infancy. ³Things are always changing in the NCAA,² Herman said. ³There isn¹t even a championship rule book for [women¹s lacrosse] yet.² Molloy currently has a men¹s team, but its women¹s team will play its debut season in spring 2006.
In addition to the girls¹ lines, coaches¹ boxes will be painted as well. Wasson and Herman agree that it¹s not just financial considerations that are taken into account when it comes to the painting or sewing of lines. If there are too many lines sewn in, reconfiguring the field becomes problematic. ³If there are too many lines sewn down, lines get very confusing ‹ they start running into each other. It¹s also a problem if the rules change,² said Herman.
The girls¹ lacrosse team has a potential ally in Deputy Mayor Wayne Lipton, who said that while there was ³no ill intent,² the village needs to be sensitive about anything that may be perceived as a slight to women¹s athletics. Although sewn lines were not part of the original agreement with LandTek, Lipton said that doesn¹t preclude the village from revisiting the issue at a later date. ³The village always has the option of sewing the lines in ‹ we¹re not opposed to that,² Lipton said. ³We want to do what¹s financially and ethically responsible.²
³The girls feel slighted, like they¹re second-class citizens,² said Healey. ³It¹s hard, because they really didn¹t understand why, and I didn¹t have the right answers.²
Village Trustee Greg Rinn, who has been a track and field official for 33 years, thinks the brouhaha started because of the painting error on the south field, sparking speculation that there would be no lines for girls¹ lacrosse at all. According to Rinn, new fields at Hewlett and Manhasset high schools also have painted lines for girls¹ lacrosse.
³The point of the lines is to assist in the refereeing and conduct of the event in a method that is fair and consistent for all players,² said Rinn. ³It¹s disputable whether sewing is better than painting.² Asked whether all the lines should have been painted, Rinn said that approach would have been roundly criticized as well.
³We always like to be a part of discussions to be helpful, but we don¹t have a say [in this matter],² said Dr. William Johnson, superintendent of Rockville Centre Schools. ³It¹s the responsibility of the village and Molloy. As a school district, we are field- and land-poor, and we have to be flexible, so the fields are open to the public for multiple uses. I suspect the village thinks along the same lines.²
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