John Distler comes full circle with Joel Barlow in Connecticut high school boys lacrosse

REDDING, Conn. – John Distler's introduction to lacrosse came when he first saw the most traditional object associated with the sport that's now the fastest growing in the nation.

"Not unlike the kids today, I started playing because of the equipment," said Distler. "I saw an old wooden stick at my neighbor's house and thought that it was pretty cool."

Lacrosse quickly stuck with Distler, who went on to play at Mamaroneck (N.Y.) High and Cortland State before becoming the founding coach of Joel Barlow's varsity program, when it launched in 2001.

"I guess we went about it the right way, because we actually had a feeder program started before the high school program got going," he recalled. "We were a JV program in 2000, and our first year as a varsity program was 2001. 

"We won the Division II state championship in only our second year as a varsity program.  Two years later, we were in the Division I state semifinals, and two years later we did it again, both times losing to the eventual state champions."

In 2012, Distler was named US Lacrosse Connecticut Coach of the Year after leading the Falcons to an 18-3 season and the CIAC Class S title.

Distler became involved in coaching after his oldest son, Michael, played youth lacrosse for one year in nearby Wilton.

"We then decided to start our own program," he said. "We started the Redding Youth Lacrosse Association (now known as RELAX) in 1997."

Distler's own children benefitted from having a youth league of their own, not to mention burgeoning boys and girls teams at Barlow. Michael went on to play at Haverford College, another son Chris played at Gettysburg College, and daughter Lauren played at Ursinus College.

"I left Barlow after the 2006 season to watch both Mike and Chris play in college," Distler said. "Lauren was still in high school at the time. I did get to watch Lauren play for three years before I went back to coaching at Barlow in 2011. The 2011 schedule allowed me to watch all but two of her games her senior year."

Family ties are still very much a part of Distler's life as Chris is one of his assistant coaches, along with former Barlow standout Adam Lanehart, who was named the 2012 US Lacrosse Connecticut assistant coach of the year.

"I love coaching with my son, as well as Adam," Distler said. "When you have former players come back and coach, they know you and the system really well. They also add a new twist on things with what they have picked up playing at a higher level."

Distler hopes the Falcons benefit from that in the postseason. Joel Barlow finished the 2014 regular season at 10-6, with a 6-5 victory against rival Weston, the Falcons' final game before the SWC and state playoffs.

Barlow is coming off a memorable 2013 postseason in which it upset two-time FCIAC champion New Canaan, 5-4, in overtime in the Class M semifinals before losing to Wilton in the state final.

"This year has been a work in progress," Distler said. "We have had two big graduating classes (in 2012 and 2013) of 10 and 14 players, respectively, so to say this year is a rebuilding year is an understatement.
 
"Our goal all year has been to get better each and every game. Hopefully we're not done growing, and we can be competitive in both the SWC and state playoffs."

Joe Lombardi is media director and co-partner of LaxLessons.com, a color analyst for the Time Warner Sports Network, and the primary author of the most recent edition of "Lacrosse for Dummies." Follow Joe on Twitter @joe_lombardi