US Lacrosse Community Forum Forums MID-ATLANTIC LACROSSE MARYLAND FORUM Girls 2029 Grads - Mid Atlantic Region

They must be referencing the fact that Eagle Stix Gray won the B bracket championship and are not realizing that Eagle Stix Blue is their A team.

It’s an A and B level championship. That’s pretty evident by the way it’s structured. Not sure what the issue is… this tournament is always tough on the top bracket. 3 teams went 3-0 with only two coming out. It’s just the nature of the structure.

Heros. Coppermine and NXT were all deserving of coming out. Unfortunately NXT just missed out.

Are you on the right thread? This is 2029. Each division got 2 teams into playoffs. There was an “A” championship and a “B” championship.

The younger ages only had one team come out…

Exactly the point. Those 3 should be playing in a playoff. Not a B team in a really weak bracket advancing.

The set up accomplishes what a Fall Ball tournament is supposed to accomplish. It gives an indicator on which teams have gotten weaker and which have gotten stronger by matching up the top half of the A teams to compete and the bottom half of the A teams to compete. Some of the teams that would have made playoffs last year in top half pool fell to the bottom of their pool showing those teams have gotten much weaker. Some other teams that people would have expected to be at the bottom of that pool rose up against an overall #2 ranked team last year. This is all helpful to evaluate prior to spring season which is the whole point of fall ball.

Maybe the issue is you don’t realize that Heros White is not a “B” team? They play in the NGLL A division.

This is ridiculous! So you would rather a previously ranked #3, for example, play a previously ranked # 40 in the initial round? How would those results be helpful for either team? The brackets in this tournament are set up to provide helpful feedback for the teams about where they stand against their last year‘s competition, after adding and gaining players from tryouts. If a previously ranked high team falls in the bottom of their pool they don’t deserve to go to the championship.

There... wasn't a really weak team advancing in the A bracket. They went to their own playoff separate from the A bracket. You act like only the top A teams deserve to win things. Sometimes you miss out, life happens and nearly every team deals with disappointment sometimes.

You really should complain to the tournament director since you seem so passionate about it. Or your own club director.

By your logic, only the A division of IAAM should have a championship.

This is a great first tournament. Well run and several top teams from around the country. With the amount of day light this time of year, there really isn't enough time to play several 4 team championships. Having and A and B bracket makes sense. Congratulations to Heros on another strong showing. Coppermine gave them all they could handle, they looked very strong as well.

...and by your logic the MIAA playoffs would consist of the top teams in the A, B & C. Truth is there should be separate playoffs for the A and the B divisions.

Exactly. The top 2 team in each division don’t make one miaa championship bracket.

Right! Funny this is I have a first kid. It’s a game. Once we all get that we can all have fun together.

🙌👏👏

The one adjustment this tournament can make is have the top seed in the A bracket play the second seed in the second “A” bracket. Number 2 seed in top A bracket plays the 1 seed in the second “A” bracket. That way Heros and Coppermine would have faced off in the championship instead of semis. The semis was essentially the championship game.

Three good teams were 3-0 and 2 didn’t make it while a B/C level
Team in a weak bracket moves on.

This is such a dense conversation about a fall ball tourney. The only team with a legitimate gripe should be NXT, who played through a MUCH tougher pool draw than Coppermine and didn’t get a shot at Hero’s.

This is ridiculous! So you would rather a previously ranked #3, for example, play a previously ranked # 40 in the initial round? How would those results be helpful for either team? The brackets in this tournament are set up to provide helpful feedback for the teams about where they stand against their last year‘s competition, after adding and gaining players from tryouts. If a previously ranked high team falls in the bottom of their pool they don’t deserve to go to the championship.[/quote]

Three good teams were 3-0 and 2 didn’t make it while a B/C level
Team in a weak bracket moves on.[/quote]

Was this a surprise? It has been this way for years, meaning the format. Happens every year... plus seems like you're an NXT parent complaining on the Mid Atlantic board... NXT played a great weekend. Coppermine and Heros were just as deserving. Maybe let your club director know you don't want to play in this tournament next year.

Now that everyone has a couple of games under their belts, how is it looking? According to W-L record, Hero’s looks like the top of the class but how are the new additions helping?
Anybody else looking good?

Congratulations to Heros. They looked very strong. The Heros vs. M&D game during pool play was the best 29 game of the weekend. High level lacrosse. Very tight well played game on both sides. Not sure how everyone stacks up but Heros is the team to beat going into spring

It is Hero’s alone at the top by a good margin. It is a jumble after that. Maybe Coppermine and M&D, with a bunch hot on their heels for a spot in the top 3? Would include Integrity, BLC, MDU, Next Level in that group.

Don't know Hero's parent...you tell us.

Not sure what games you’ve been watching all Fall but we can guess they weren’t high level competition the way that most people view it. This was not the best 29 game of the weekend. Heros is agreeably the team to beat but this championship game was not tough competition for them. M&D got lucky in this last tournament, this game was not tight and given regulation time M&D would have been blown away. Keep dreaming M&D dad.

Not sure what games you’ve been watching all Fall but we can guess they weren’t high level competition the way that most people view it. This was not the best 29 game of the weekend. Heros is agreeably the team to beat but this championship game was not tough competition for them. M&D got lucky in this last tournament, this game was not tight and given regulation time M&D would have been blown away. Keep dreaming M&D dad.

Just fine thank you… no real competition all fall outside of M&D who improved but still came up short

Not an M&D parent. Never mentioned the championship game as I didn’t see it. The full regulation “pool play” game was 5-4 final? What did I miss?

As a parent on a lower level ‘29 team, I will say this was an interesting reaction to someone complementing well played 7th grade lacrosse.

Good article for you Heros dad… your girls are super talented. Don’t ruin it for them…although I’m going to go out on a limb and suggest this isn’t even a heros parent. This is someone trying to stir the pot and get M&D parents all worked up. Won’t work… But either way below would is a good read.

https://wiinworldwide.com/2017/02/07/champions-win-with-humility-and-lose-with-dignity/

“HOW” you win and lose makes all the difference in the world! When you win with an arrogant or entitled attitude, people will resent your success, but when you lose with dignity and respect, people will root for you and cheer you on.

The person above says it best, keep dreaming M&D dad. It often looks like this whole forum is purely M&D parents trying to create their own narrative. What is the point of reading this anymore? Everyone else knows that M&D did not improve at all. The chatter is about how much they fell even just from last year so the only people who could be writing these comments are M&D parents about themselves, trying to make it look like conversations between competitors to cover up their shortcomings. Let’s all hope that the 2029 M&D team can one day live up to the club’s reputation but so far we haven’t seen it and if you consider their performance at recent tournaments it seems to be slipping further and further from their grasp.

That said, there are other teams hot on the heels of Heros and Coppermine gaurentering an exciting spring season.

Yet you keep reading and commenting... over and over and over again. No one else cares as much as you do. The rest of us are enjoying our girls journey, my friend. Congrats to Heros. They look great!

Fall or not, I could never imagine a coach tolerating an incomplete roster for this level of competition. That's a thing?

Most clubs appreciate and welcome multi sport athletes. They put less stock in fall tournaments, which is great. More and more college coaches want well rounded multi sport athletes. The days of focusing on one sport are fading quickly. If there were no fall club rankings most parents would be less concerned as well.

Hey Hero's Dad, I think it is just your coaches that wouldn't tolerate. The rest of the coaches seem to value the girls at their age 12/13 and aren't screaming and cursing at them on the sideline.

Funny you mention that because the coach that tended to his player laying on the field holding her leg by walking over to her repeatedly saying “get up” , “get up”, “get up” and then lifting her to a standing position without even checking her injury to push her off the far sideline so the game could restart was surely not one of the hero’s coaches.

You two should just take your fight offline. It actually used to be a little enjoyable to come here and see the friendly banter. Now it seems every time Heros and M&D play the two of you show up here and try to pick a fight. It’s really getting embarrassing. All over middle school lacrosse. Grow up or at least leave so the rest of us adults can have adult conversations.

Agree… maybe they can start a new thread? Or maybe BoC will eventually shut this one down like they had to do to several others in years past.

Are any of the MD clubs committed to playing in the USCL “National” championship? Even with the new dates I can’t see how it works out.

It won't.

Can't do a tournament by birth year when the rest of the season/tournaments are by grad year. It works on the boys side because they already changed the rule and most tournaments use some form of birth year as opposed to grad year. I don't see any of the big 4 (Heros, Coppermine, M&D, MDU) who should be in the top 16 by end of summer participating in this event. Could be wrong...

If you Maryland teams actually had to play by birth year you’d lose 75% of your rosters. You guys have 14 year olds on the 2029 teams. It’s pathetic

Nobody is 14.... yet. You're a month or two early on that comment.

Is anyone surprised by the new rankings?

Fall… not enough games to really say if they are accurate or not. Wait till summer. They tend to change a good amount as last year was a good representation of that. Only thing we know is Heros is the top of the class. Don’t need rankings for that…. But I’m sure there will be opinions from the few vocal ones on here. Rest of us take them with a grain of salt this early.