CHAPEL HILL – Dan and Jenny Levy, both former lacrosse players, play important roles in the growth of lacrosse across the state.  As former lacrosse players, both Dan and Jenny helped lead their teams to national championships in 1991, Dan for UNC and Jenny for Virginia.

Currently both Dan and Jenny are lacrosse coaches, although the ages differ.  Jenny coaches the UNC women’s lacrosse after starting in 1996.  Dan is a coach for the Carolina Cannons, a youth league for children under 11.

Having been involved with lacrosse for most of their lives, it’s no surprise that the Levys have been successful in spreading lacrosse through youth programs and successful teams.

Jenny started in 1996 as coach of the first women’s lacrosse team at UNC after being an assistant coach at Georgetown.  At the time there were no women’s lacrosse programs in high schools, but now there are more 70.

Dan and Jenny have started several youth lacrosse programs in the area to spread love of the sport.  They let kids borrow equipment and have even altered old equipment they own and given out sticks to kids who could not afford them.

Lacrosse has certainly grown in the area since 1996, but in an interview with the News and Observer, the Levys say they still hope it continues to grow in the state.

“Even though the numbers continue to grow, it (North Carolina) is still not saturated with numbers and number of good players,” Jenny says “I think there’s a lot of interest in the sport and that’s great to see.”

The Levys say they hope that with teams like UNC’s women’s lacrosse and Duke’s men’s lacrosse winning national championships that lacrosse will continue to expand in the area.