SPRING 2019 BOYS LACROSSE: Brennen Klingensmith Canfield

Brennen Klingensmith had toiled in the realm of a number of different sports. Eventually, the Canfield High School athlete found his way onto a lacrosse field and it became home.

“I’m from North Carolina and I moved [to the area] the summer of eighth grade,” Klingensmith said. “I first started playing in the summer of sixth grade. I had tried every other sport. Lacrosse was the one that stuck out. Down there, it’s a big sport and all my friends played.”

Klingensmith resembles a linebacker in size at 6-foot-1, 210 pounds.

“I get the ball and run,” Klingensmith said. “I just drive, run right through the defense. I take them on.

“I like to play aggressive,” he said. “I’m very competitive. I try to play quarterback. I run through and take a shot. If I don’t get the shot, I get a double team. If I get the double, I look for the open guy.”

Next year, he’ll play for Walsh University.

Klingensmith netted a 3.7 grade-point average to garner some money toward his scholarship while notching 31 goals (55.6 shooting percentage), 11 assists and 69 ground balls, though he missed a handful of games after suffering a concussion.

“I play to win,” Klingensmith said. “I play hard and don’t stop. I do whatever I have to help the team come out on top. I like to play hard and do the best I can do.”

The lack of a script within an offensive system is what draws Klingensmith to lacrosse.

“It’s the most creative sport I’ve played,” Klingensmith said. “I played football, but the coach calls the plays. I have my stick, my own tool. I can [create] my own tricks. There are so many different styles to play.

“When I shoot, I can pick my spot. I can choose which corner to look for to get it in the back of the net. I like to do fun, behind-the-back passes.”

Klingensmith has traveled all over the Eastern seaboard in order to be the best player he could become while also playing on a travel team out of Pittsburgh.

“If it wasn’t for my family, there’s no way I’d be where I’m at,” Klingensmith said. “We’ve put thousands of miles on the car every summer and fall going to Maryland, places all along the East coast doing showcases and camps. The also provide tremendous support. They’ve had a tremendous affect on me.”

— Bob Ettinger, The Vindicator