Fifty talented lacrosse athletes. 20 coveted spots. One Seattle Starz High School Select team. The Seattle Starz lacrosse club is widely regarded as one of the elite lacrosse clubs of the Pacific Northwest, and after a fast-paced and stress-filled tryout, juniors Danica Dabasinskas and Haley Johnson made the cut.

Seattle Starz’ tryout was held on September 21 at Marymoor Park, where Dabasinskas and Johnson competed for a place on the club’s prestigious High School Select Team.

“The tryout process was very simple: we had a two hour practice where all the girls, from freshmen to seniors, did a series of drills and sprints, and we heard back from the coach that night,” Dabasinskas said. “It was very simple, very quick, and very fast, but very nerve-wracking too because there was only one shot – that’s it.”

Obviously, nerves didn’t get the best of them. After the tryout, Dabasinskas and Johnson both received phone calls from coach Lyndsey Gillis inviting them to join the team, and began to practice in the beginning of October. Dabasinskas looks forward to the benefits of playing for a high level team.

“The advantage of Seattle Starz is that it is a very big name in Seattle,” Dabasinskas said. “So when you are looked at by college recruiters and high school coaches, because you have played at Starz, you’re higher up on the list because you’ve been working with specific coaches that are well-known.”

Johnson, too, is excited about what her new club team has to offer.

“The coaches at Seattle Starz are pretty much experts, which is nice because it’s good to get different coaching from outside your club team,” Johnson said. “I’m trying to get myself prepared for the regular season, and it’s good to have an offseason team.”

Dabasinskas and Johnson will travel with Seattle Starz’ High School Select team to California in November and January for two national tournaments, the Bay Area Bonanza and the Sandstorm Lacrosse Tournament, respectively, where they hope to gain exposure to coaches from all over the nation.