True top high school teams ( G.C., 'set, W.M., F-dale Wantaugh) do not need to, nor do they bring up 8th graders (except the very rare occasion, then they are not "impact players).Only border line teams that need to fill gaps, and weak teams have 8th graders play up and become impact layers. Even then they are impacting only there team and not high school lacrosse in general. A stand out 8th grade impact player at W.F. or P.M. isn't even considered at a top high school mentioned above, and against those teams are exposed for the youth they are. As far as saying a 8th or 9th or 10th grade Y.J. team could compete with any of the above mentioned team is the cool-ade drunken ramblings of a fanatical mind.
I am not an original poster, but wanted to give someone else's perspective. I agree that these younger kids cannot compete with the above mentioned top schools. But the original poster stated "many schools." They are not of the fanatical mind that you state as they never mentioned hanging with the top schools. My daughter is a junior on a Suffolk County middle of the road lacrosse high school. She would love to see some of the 7th and 8th graders get a chance. Although these girls may not match up physically, they blow away many on her team talent wise. Mainly because many of the older girls only pick up the stick from March to May. The point is, on many of these teams the younger girl doesn't have to be an "impact player", she just has to be better than the girls already out there. And they are. Some by leaps and bounds. But our district set limits on the number of girls eligible to be brought up because of parents with power who feel their daughter is "entitled" to be on the team because of their age and not because of their talent and/or athletism.
And if you truly don't think that the 2017 or 2018 blue teams cannot beat 75% of the High School Varsity teams on Long Island, YOU are of the fanatical mind.
