the only thing that can stop the trend is the varsity coaches and that is if they even want to. by trying to emulate WI or WM they can sell the kids on whats better for the High School team is better for everybody and also the cost savings - right now kids are predominately still being recruited through the HS coach although they are being seen with their summer teams, the HS coach still has huge input and there for leverage.
To prove just how wrong this observation is, let me ask you a couple of questions. First, do you think that collegiate lacrosse coaches are taking off from their daily Spring season training to go and see a Long Island High School Varsity game? Second, do you think that that unevenness of Long Island Varsity competition is the proving ground on which any coach would actually make a roster decision for their college team?
this is the difference between Lax and basketball, hockey and soccer where the recruiting is all through the club or AAU teams. there are good arguments to both sides, playing on club teams gives you the opportunity to play with different coaches, different types of offenses and defenses and it is better to play with kids on the same playing level A/B or C. on the other hand staying with your high school team will make the team better and the program better and that in turn should help everybody. at the end of the day try to make the best decision for your own kid for what is best for them. personally I think play on your town team and get an SAT tutor with all the money you saved on not playing travel.
BOTC certainly agrees that the academic profile of the player will be as or more important in the long run acceptance process at any university.
We disagree that the town team approach in order to bolster a High School program is the right approach. Fifteen years back, soccer was managed in that manner. With premier teams emerging, soccer migrated away from town team approaches to premier play. BOTC has observed that lacrosse is about ten years behind soccer in this youth sports evolution, but evolving it is and perhaps more rapidly than soccer with the rate of increase in private education tuition.
