BOTC - US Lacrosse Community Forum Forums MID-ATLANTIC LACROSSE MARYLAND FORUM Girls 2027 Grads - Mid Atlantic Region

Won’t be shocked if some of the girls who went M&D come
Back or go elsewhere. Don’t see them on field a lot this fall

Looks like I was about 100%. You're welcome

You were spot on! Aces is fun to watch, especially when they start doing their Syracuse 3 girl weave. By far the most skilled team out there. Surprised M&D and a couple others have beaten them.

Why would you be surprised?

Have you not watched high level 27 lacrosse before? The reason that M&D, Hero's, Aces and YJ and a few others trade wins is because they are all really good. Aces has top level talent. So do 5 or 6 others.

That's what makes this 27 year (and other years) great is when talent is spread out.

BLC beat Eaglestix. Hero's beat M&D. M&D beat Aces and Eaglestix 2x each. Aces beat BLC.

All this in the last 3 weeks.

Any given weekend

Eaglestix is the weakest out of that bunch.

Maybe. But they have a monster draw girl. And they play really good defense and they're well coached.

You're always going to play a tough game with those girls

It's all about the matchups. All of these teams are capable of beating each other. Throw Yellow Jackets and Jesters Black into that group as well.

The draw advantage evens out more and more every year. Pride also has a tall/strong girl who does draw but by 10th grade everyone catches up

Regarding the 3 man weave w aces, always surprised a team doesn’t jump it and put a stick on em. Same thing with low feeder on a stack play, apply pressure and don’t let the offense dictate

Stack play went out of style in 1997 grannie.

They lost 9-4 to Eagle Stix at Fall Draw and it wasn't really that close. FLG just doesn't have defensive discipline to play with patient well disciplined offenses. They are very good on the circle which that will keep them in games but they are aways from being an elite team like M&D, Heros, BLC, ES, Aces, YJ

agreed they are the best offensively, but their D, especially low defenders are vulnerable.

Skywalkers complaining about another team headhunting? too funny

you will see some teams deny their star #2 the ball and force the other girls to beat them. That is really the best strategy

Draws really change the game, it keeps good teams from getting rolled if they can even out the draws, likewise, good teams that lose the draw, their D gets worn out and a make it take it scenerio can really lead to blowouts regardless of the talent on O or in the goal.

To me, Aces can take over games with their draw. #2 is very good at drawing to open space and using her speed to run down the ball.

with are you talking about, I have 2 high school club LAXers and see it all the time

Yes, 2 sends her wingers one direction and draws it the other way so it’s her in a foot race 1 v 1 with the other draw girl. There is no intention to flick it to a teammate which seems to be a more common strategy. She’s very good.

The NEMS middle school teams (27,28,29) combined for a 2-13-1 record this Fall! The two wins were the 28 team beating rec+ teams. I don't foresee any Harford County top players returning to NEMS for the high school years. They are already imbedded in top clubs around the area. Where is the cavalry going to come from? The previous Director of this club really tarnished the NEMS brand by only focusing on her daughter's 2024 team! Perhaps they can focus on the 30 and below teams with new leadership and direction to get back to relevancy.

Some good draw girls from here in this class, but for my money #2 for Aces and #25 for Eagle Stix are the best. They get extra possessions every game. Eagle Stix girl is so strong and uses her wings very well. You’re right about #2 Aces. She’s all about “want to.” Just rip it far and sprint. Pretty impressive considering she almost never comes off the field.

Perhaps. Not a great fall record. But there’s not much competition in that market. Anecdotally speaking, Coppermine and Skywalkers youth teams seem to have reputations as a “backup” team- a place where kids who don’t have options, can try to play. That’s not bringing in any elite kids either. Hopefully Harford kids can get some better options.

Harford has NEMS, Coppermine North, Fallston Lacrosse Club, and newly created Tidewater Lacrosse Club.

I think Aces #2 may be the best player in the country at this age group, but don't think that she is close to the top as a draw taker. She excels against a typical tall, slow draw taker. But if you put a smaller quicker girls, she will win 50% at best. Good coaches see this and adjust

Maybe their B teams.

Skywalkers has an amazing national reputation, just look at their recruiting over the years

Coppermine is up and coming and has solid middle school team that if they stay together can be special

Skywalkers 8th in the rankings and staying there. They will have a really good chance to win the NGLL (or be close). They picked up some great talent!!! Go SW27!

They lost 5-4 to Team 180 this weekend so I’d hold off on NGLL Championship predictions for now.

SW has improved but not a contender for NGLL. Green, M&D, BLC are all much better. Next tier Pride, Coppermine, MDU, Integrity, M&D shore? are where any team can win and where SW will be competitive.

Continual self promotion of SW makes your comments less relevant.

SW27 has definitely improved and likely a true top 20 team but 8 was a bit aggressive. Saw them play a few times this fall, the D is the biggest upgrade

B Division of NGLL ?

No need to be a jackhole when referring to 13 year old girls

They aren’t a top 10 team, the rankings were based off fall.

Probably closer to 20 but they improved a lot and much deeper.

Can we be honest? Rankings this early are meaningless. Hero's didn't even have the 6 games played to qualify. Big shakeups coming after the next two tournament results get entered in.

Aces should be #1 based on the results so far. As one person said, its about matchups. If you can negate their DC and slow down the game, you can beat them, as I'm sure the 5-3 M&D victory over them shows. M&D likes to slow the pace, didn't work against Hero's but perfect for a team like Aces who wants to run and gun and set up their quick offense.

Has anyone else noticed more cards for leading with the helmet this year? I have already seen 4 so far this year and I had seen maybe 1 in the past 5 years.

Not sure if it is just something random, a new point of emphasis in the game or just more girls wearing helmets.

Let's save everyone some time about rankings. There are only 4 teams that can finish on top.

M&D
Hero's
Aces
YJ

BLC has the talent. But they don't play enough tournaments in the spring. They play about half as many games as Hero's and M&D. That hurts

Eagle Stix also a top contender. But they have already started a bit slowly. Lot's of ground to make up.

Madskilz doesn't leave the state except for the NGLL playoffs.

After that, Jesters is a nice team. Need to see a bit more. But they are intriguing.

8-20 is a mix of good teams. But not challenging for a top spot.

Agreed those are the clear best teams. I would argue Steps CA and Alliance have a chance for the top spot as well. They are nowhere near the quality of the other teams, but they will play enough games and their schedule "games" the algorithim very well.

They should be top 3 when the new ratings come out this week.

Alliance is a national team and play what 10-12 games a year? It’s a joke they are even being discussed.

We aren't discussing the best team. We are discussing teams with a chance to end up towards the top of the rankings. Two very different discussions.

Steps CA is better than Alliance so should be ranked higher and will play more tourneys (probably about 5 in their age group).

Steps Cali. I give them credit. They came East and played in a couple of tough tournaments. But they didn't beat anyone of note. Beat some of the more mid-level teams. Good for them. They are solid. Def not top 3

Alliance, somehow played their way into the top 10 with only 10 games and beat 9 low level teams and a tight loss to YJ. Again, solid team. But would need to see way more out of them to be considered even a top 10 team right now.

Nothing is gonna change after the next round of rankings for about 4 months.

Let the banter begin. And hopefully everyone comes through the holiday seasons safe and healthy.

Let's remember the rankings are a hammerhead to drive traffic to a website, not necessarily determine who the best team in. Let's take them with a grain of salt and enjoy the entertainment they provide.

Any of your clubs using one of the sideline cameras to record? Curious to hear which brand people like the most for lacrosse. I’ve heard mixed reviews with some of them.

My iPhone works great!
DO NOT rely on the video people for your film. You can use them as a backup but don’t rely on them. Lots of poor quality video, backlit etc.

Get a newer iPhone. Just invest in a decent editing app for $10

Less believable, but not less relevant.

I actually appreciate the obvious advocating over the farce of objectivity when someone either has an axe to grind or has a daughter on a specific team.

These ranking, and much of the great feedback on them, helps me see what teams to be on the look out for that may not have been on my radar.

To that end, I thought the overall play this weekend (I watched 4 games) was barely average for all of the teams. It's too early...