US Lacrosse Community Forum Forums NORTHEAST LACROSSE BOTC MAIN FORUM (LI, CT, WC) Long Island Yellow Jackets Lacrosse

Just my two cents!
I have a few daughters that have played this game PAL, High School and College.
Few problems
Early recruiting has ruined the whole experience for the girls to play a team sport and have fun . They are still learning the game and they are worried about being recruited in 8th ,9th and 10th grade REALLY. They should be playing school, Club and traveling and having fun playing the best girls their age and getting better and growing up! Now they are recruited in 9th and 10th grade and they are done no more travel meeting girls from all over the country and getting better most of all growing up. It's a shame it was fun when the made up their mind between 11th and 12th grade made friends and loved the game. Mom and Dad RELAX already and give the girls a break , tell them to study for SATs and ACTs do good in school and be a good lax player and life will work out TRUST ME, so many girls go to a school and don't go for the right reasons and come home after 4 years with nothing for the future WHAT A SHAME. Enjoy Life Pick a club and Push yourself on the field and in the Classroom. The jackets will do that if you want to work for it!!!

Every single girl who wants to play club can so why is it hard to believe there are some good players who don't.

There are some ok players. Just not the very good ones. It is true for every other sport as well. It is my experience that the girls who don't play "club" in a sport, whether it's AAU, Soccer, Club volleyball, or whatever, just aren't as good. I am sure (because I have kids that play some of these other sports) that the vast majority of the good players in those sports play club level. Same w swimming, hockey and really any other sport except football, where it doesn't exist.

So you can keep saying that there are good players not playing club in a sport, and I will agree that there a some decent players, but they are generally not good enough to be impact players. They can be decent roll players. A good defender in lax for instance, but not likely a very skilled attack. I dare you to show me a really dominant soccer, basketball, or volleyball player that doesn't play club. I say again, why is lax supposed to be different? The days are gone when lax was the sport where the good athlete would pick up the game as a sophomore in HS and become a great player.

If your daughter is really good enough to impact the team, she will get the ball. Chances are she just isn't and that is why the ball is not in her stick often. Not some club conspiracy. My daughter's HS team has a non-club player who has decent stick skills and she's a strong athlete. Captain in two other sports. She gets the ball and contributes quite a bit. No club conspiracy. If a girl is good enough, she will play and be an integral part of the team. If not, she can decide to play more and practice more or stop whining.

And nowhere did I say all club players are good. Just not many non-club players are good.

Some schools that only have half of their team in club are forced to sign up kids in gym class because the girls who could throw and catch have quit because they never got the ball. Hopefully some of the US Lacrosse changes coming forces these kids and coaches to pass the ball at the younger ages so more players develop and continue playing. Grow the sport.

You just can't let this go can you? Since you seem to be the authority please name the schools that dont have enough players?

Do I think the proposed US lax changes will help, maybe but it's still not going to turn mediocre athletes into stars. If a kid is only going to pick up a stick for a few months a year they probably won't become an impact player down the road. Look at soccer, they start out with small fields, fewer players but a huge number still drop out by 7/8 grade and the committed players continue on.

You seem to have this resentment towards club players? You probably have a good reason for why your daughter doesn't play travel, maybe financial, maybe she doesn't really love the game or maybe you don't want to give up half your summer. Whatever the reason, the fact is the world is changing. In addition to club most of these kids are all doing privates and training in the off season as well. You know it just might be time to stop blaming the travel players and making excuses why sweatie pie doesn't get the ballI? I'm sure you will now call me another travel elitist or one of the toxic parents ruining the sport but frankly I don't care.

You are correct that getting good at lacrosse is about good athletes getiing "touches". The part where you are wrong is that is not developed during games. So whether someone passes during a game (where I live our youth league requires 3 passes so the rules r in place) or not, is not how Little Suzie Who Never Touches The Ball, gets better. Little Suzie gets better by hitting a lax wall every day for 20-30 minutes on her own. By playing catch in her yard. By holding her stick and cradling while she's sitting around the house. At some point people need to realize that becoming good at something like lax is about passion, hard work and athleticism. Why is it always someone else's fault when our children fail? My daughter happens to be pretty good. And parents often ask me or my wife how she got so good. It always amazes me when we get this question. They seem to think there is some magic answer about some program or coach or something. The answer is simple. She has passion, works her tail off and was blessed with some innate athletic talent. BTW that is not some statement to say my daughter is somehow a better human being because she is good at a sport. I have other children who are not particularly athletic who succeed at other things because they are passionate about them and they work hard at. Seems like a pretty basic formula. So US Lacrosse rules are not going to be the magic bullet for you (although I support them). Passion and hard work is the solution. Try to instill that in them maybe?

Anyone know where to find this years Nassau divisions and playoff format?

Great post. Couldn't agree more.

Can I ask you what part of the island you are from? The reason I ask is you say grow the sport, not enough kids to field HS teams and from my bubble I see the complete opposite. There are more travel lax programs then ever before and you have Lax stores popping up every day.

Now I would also say the landscape has changed from 20 plus years ago when I went to school and kids who just want to play and have fun are getting boxed out. We witnessed it with our own kids. In years past you would have multiple teams in MS and even multiple JV teams so there was a place for those kids but now budgets dictate and there's less spots. The average players are getting turned off and it kinda stinks but it is what it is but its not some travel conspiracy!

So, I was doing a quick look around the college scoreboard today, and I can't seem to find much info on any YJ 2015's doing much at their chosen schools. Ortega at ND is doing well and Pirecca is playing okay at UF but has 9 goals and NO assists. Those two are definitely the exception. For a club that claims to only send their players to only THE BEST, and where all of their alumni are SUPERSTARS, the stats of last year's team is mighty thin.

I see that not much is being done at SB. What's the proble? I thought every YJ alum was a all-world superstar. They're definitely not living "up" to the world-class coaching they received at YJ. There's so many YJ players there they should change the mascot to the Yellow Jackets. Judging by the poor performances so far, I'm thinking a prospective player that wants to be a college superstar should choose a different club.

Guess your talking about players not the team? And if you are at 11:45 pm to post back to back about 18 year old girls is concerning. Also guessing your trying to justify your decision to choose Top Guns, poor guy. It is easier to say things than provide facts. Yj's are all over the tewaaraton list and to get back to your SB comment went and looked on website and The SB for goalie was player of the week. Mr top gun, let's rise above this nonsense, unless this is......

uh, the goalie at Notre Dame who starts and is a stud? Several others. Agenda maybe?

You YJ haters are hilarious , perhaps you had a little too much to drink last night ? Thats the best you got. Laughable. Maybe work off your hang over and head over to SB today to watch multiple former YJ players in a game between a couple top ten teams in the country . Got to watch my former YJ player compete (I say compete to be nice) against some former TG players down in Maryland yesterday. Even got to see some future D1 players as it seems YJ had a couple young teams at the game getting a tour from the MD coaches, seems they are being proactive with their recruiting.

Jack,
Is that rant all because your daughter doesn't get touches on her school team?
I shouldn't be answering such an ignorant statement nor have to defend any program from a comment like that. So I won't. My advice to you is go practice with your daughter and stay off back of the cage. You will be doing her a big favor and all of us as well.

Pissing money away and stroking parent egos would be the headline of the trip - any college coaches looking at 8th & 9th graders in the middle of the season? I don't think so...

LMAO... Sooooooooo true!!!

What makes it even funnier is they were 7 & 8 graders!

The trip was for the parents who feed the beast. Everyone of those parents whether their kid is good or not is telling stories at the water cooler this morning, "my kid was invited to Maryland this weekend to meet the coach and tour the facilities, they are looking at her" The YJ's are a marketing machine and things like this keep everyone on the bandwagon and paying into the system.

Again the funny thing is you TG people are too ignorant to understand the purpose of the trip to see multiple schools for these girls. Your TG club is a sinking ship with your captain SS at the helm, just look what happens to any college program when they recruit from the TG pool , nice job Hofstra. To say that college coaches don't recruit in season just shows how ignorant you are or just how difficult its becoming to get recruited while on the good ship TG.

If i'm not mistaken, when elevate did the trips, it was the best thing thing ever. Can't have it both ways. Don't know why you care so much. It's a trip for kids to see some schools and have fun with their friends.

Why the hate sounds like a good trip. My son's middle school takes college trips to expose students early to the college experience. I see nothing wrong with it.

You know what's even funnier, is a bunch of morons who think this was a recruiting trip!

Don't forget the 9k profit

Question for you ,do you not believe that 8th graders are being actively recruited? I am sure you will come up with one of your great retorts but sounds to me like you have no clue as to what is going on out there.

I have no doubt but are you that much of an idiot to think this weekend trip was anything more than a college road trip? It was an opportunity to expose these kids to some really great schools, see a game and have a heck of a lot of fun with their friends.

I'll bite, so there was one girl on the bus who has a shot as an 8th grader. What about the other 49. most haven't even picked their HS yet.

Any guess on the YJ profit was for this act of generosity?

Probably way more than you made this weekend but seriously who cares and why would that be of anyone's business? Act of generosity, more like providing a service, people paid, kids went. Nobody was forced to sign-up

My guess, the next time they will fill two buses.

Hopefully it was significant. I would like for it to still be around when it's my kids turn to get on the bus.

Ahh a kool aid drinker

Wouldn't go that far by why would we want to speculate on what she made off a buss trip? Let me know when you club starts offering up services for no cost/ low cost!

Blue kids were forced to go. It was mandatory

Only if you weren't committed which is why they filled the buss with 7/8 graders.

"I'll bite, so there was one girl on the bus who has a shot as an 8th grader. What about the other 49. most haven't even picked their HS yet."

Just tells me either your kid is not very good , or colleges do not want to deal with the club she plays for. Are there a lot of kids who could commit before they leave 8th grade , no, were there several on that bus trip that could if they wanted ,absolutely. Maryland is essentially done with their 2019 class and is moving on. That said who cares. Go ask the kids that went on the trip if they had fun and if they learned anything about schools they may have an interest in. Its sadly pathetic that this is what you come on here and complain about. Don't worry I hear TG is doing a bus tour of Hofstra this week so you will be fine, that is unless the new AD decides he wants a successful lax program.

Funny how its mandatory but not free. Did anyone see any university officials handing off a brown bag to any of the bus chaperones? Any backs being scratched?

hear, hear..silly subject to bash..

congrats to all the 2016 YJ that made the list for USA Today preseason best players . 7 or 8 YJ head the list. way to go girls.

And congratulations to all the girls the made the list

Paranoid parents, especially Blue, could never have missed any event that "top players" are attending because they all have a warped view of where their kids stand in the lax pecking order, its really kind of sad that they are essentially intimidated or dilluted into believing that they're not wasting time and money, but that's what makes the world go around