Heated Lacrosse Stick Could Be Game Changer For Teams From Cooler Climes

CHAPPAQUA, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A teenage lacrosse player in New York has invented a warm-up that could be a game changer on the field.

If only all lacrosse games could be played on days so picture perfect that no long sleeves or gloves are required -- in reality, it can become freezing cold on the field.

"Your hands just get so cold, numb -- they feel like they are turning into icicles," Samantha Wolfe told CBS2's Vanessa Murdock.

Wolfe, 17, was just 11-years-old when she found herself fed up with frozen digits during lacrosse games.

"I felt I wasn't playing to my full potential, that made me angry and frustrated," she said.

She had an idea, a potentially brilliant one.

"I said to my parents, 'heated lacrosse stick,' my parents said, 'no no Sammy,' I'm 11-years-old, they don't believe anything I saw," she said.

It charges just like a cellphone using a USB port, and takes 10 minutes to heat up to 70 degrees. The charge lasts 2 hours -- the typical length of a lacrosse game.

"I think in the end it will help with your game, and help girls play to their full potential," Wolfe said.

Julia Arrese and Rachel Sandor both plan to play in college -- they agreed that gloves just don't provide the same grip on the stick, so they usually just brave it.

Arrese thinks heating up the shaft is a great idea, and said she'd use it.

"100 percent," she said.

Wonderful news for one young entrepreneur.

"Started this like three years ago, very naive -- thought it would take a month and be done. Three years later, I finally have a prototype, but it's still not ready for the market," Wolfe said.

She's optimistic that the 'Fingerfire' stick will be in the hands of lacrosse players soon.

Samantha said she designed the stick to ensure it fits within U.S. lacrosse guidelines. It weighs just a few grams more than a typical stick.

Exact pricing hasn't been set, but it will cost more than the unheated version.