Cesar Millan has specific rules regarding the introduction of a new dog to a pack, one being minimizing the disruption of energy and balance. In the case of the Morgan Huskies and their girls' lacrosse team, Millan would be more than pleased with the introduction of their new pack leader as former assistant coach Lindsey Carroll steps into the role of the program's new alpha dog. Boasting a familiarity with the team and its members, Morgan hopes Lindsey will bring calm and assertive guidance that even Millan would reward with a treat.

Lindsey, a Madison resident, has taken the lead of the Morgan girls' lacrosse team this spring. Spending four seasons with program founder Kristy Simmons as an assistant coach, Lindsey now has the task of teaching some young dogs new tricks as the Huskies attempt to unleash their potential and compete with the Shoreline Conference's best.

"I have a pretty strong presence with the team already," Lindsey says. "I've been with them as an assistant coach and it definitely is nice to lay my groundwork with a younger team. The girls haven't seen a great deal of change and that is the nice part of having a young team."

With only seven seniors and three juniors on the Morgan roster, there is a litter of youth waiting to be molded by Lindsey. Involved as an assistant with the program since 2008, Lindsey brings a vast level of lacrosse playing experience as she played at Hand before graduating in 1997, after which she competed at Division I Towson University in Maryland.

"Lindsey approached me about helping with the team a few years ago," says Simmons. "She said she'd love to help the team with basic skills and at first all I could think was this is a DI player giving back to a school she was never a part of. She brought ideas to the club, enthusiasm, she had drills, experience, and a love for the game that brought us to a new level."

Now the Huskies are looking towards Lindsey to lead them to even greater heights. A season ago, Morgan qualified for the state tournament with a record of 8-8, and with Lindsey taking over, the transition between Simmons and the new lead dog should be as seamless as possible.

"I'm really going to work hard on the basic fundamentals," says Lindsey, whose team is 1-3 this spring. "Also, our conditioning needs to improve. I started that this year, starting a conditioning program in January, and already we are starting to see the results of that. We have a very young team, we have three freshmen starters, but in the next two years, we are going to be a pretty strong team."

Already, the Huskies have learned to respect their new leader, salivating over her knowledge of the game like dogs begging for table scraps.

"She played lacrosse in college and we all recognize her as a player and teacher," says Huskies' senior co-captain Lizzy Gordon. "She is so good at showing us her own skills and I think we all appreciate the fact she is willing to spend this much time on us."

Lindsey's most difficult challenge might be continuing to build local interest in the sport, understanding the town will need to breed numerous young Husky lacrosse players in order for Morgan to ascend up the ranks. Simmons laid the groundwork in Clinton by starting the youth lacrosse programs and Lindsey says she'll continue to work hand-in-hand with the younger teams, which ultimately feed her varsity lineup.

"You will probably not see it this year, but in the next year, two, or three, you are absolutely going to start to see the numbers going up as we are out there developing more options," she says. "Building the interest in the community [is key for this program] as we are making an effort to work with the youth programs. We also have the turf field this year that also brings a little more interest in wanting to see games. It is exciting to go to that turf field."

However, Lindsey realizes her first priority is with the high school team, and though she admits to having some nerves when she is on the sidelines, she is confident in the job that is set out before her.

"You are always nervous about how the community will embrace you," Lindsey says. "I know the sport well and I feel confident in what I can teach the girls and hopefully that will unveil itself."

And for Simmons, Morgan girls' lacrosse was her puppy as she raised it from birth, yet she understands that giving it up to Lindsey is in the best interest of everyone involved.

"Lindsey really stepped forward. She has respect for the game, respect for the girls, and when she is on the field she is a leader to them and they look up to her," Simmons says. "It will always be my girls and my program, but Lindsey will just do a great job keeping up the standards we started. She has great foresight and knows what she wants to do with program."