Coach Mahuta of the Arrowhead Junior Varsity Lacrosse Team is the best coach a team could ask for. Practically the shortest one on the team, she is known for her eccentric personality, contagious smile, and large floppy hat she wears, even when it’s cloudy.
One of the most important qualities of Deb Mahuta’s spirit sustains through every practice, and that is youthfulness. Frankly, it is rather disheartening to see she can hold up a better defense than I can, but needless to say, I have learned by example.
I could swear she is the only person who could spike any form of thrill into an average lacrosse practice day. All drills are to be altered and transformed each practice. She adamantly avoids repetition and is a productivity genius. It is not until halfway through a drill that you realize you have not stopped running since it began. The small distinctions of these drills are what keep it interesting. Whether it is another cone to run around, another pass to receive, or another goal to score, Coach Mahuta has found a way to keep practice interesting.
She transcends the boundaries of a typical practice by stories that teach more than how to handle a stick and catch a ball. Preceding our first week of workouts (in which I had underestimated) Mahuta sat us down and pulled out a story. This ritual was a far cry from the usual practice endings, which normally concluded with a group huddle and chanting, “Go Hawks!” or “Team Red!” But this time, she enthralled us in Aesop’s fable of “The Crow and the Pitcher” which taught the importance of persistence and determination in life. Through the rest of the week and into the year, I discovered myself looking back at her lessons even more than her coaching.

Off the field, she works as a Physical Therapist —sometimes she even runs into practice still wearing her scrubs. Never have I seen a woman so devoted to her work, and willing to put every ounce of herself into it. Even through all of her time put into the hospital, she is always at practice, and she always finds time for everyone and everything.



My lacrosse experience has been changed for the better thanks to this amazing coach. From the first day of meeting the woman in the floppy hat, to the final game of the season, Deb Mahuta has an aura of love, compassion, and joy.