BOTC is opening our Fall 2015 through Summer 2016 thread covering the Girls 2019-9th Grade age group.

I'll kick off the 2019 thread with a question.

Does anyone find it CRAZY that our daughters who have not started high school are being recruited for college?

Mine is likely not in the first wave of recruiting that has already started, but my guess is she will be getting offers next summer given what has happened with some her 2018 friends of similar ability.

With the early recruiting happening earlier and earlier, there is already a lot of pressure on girls and their families in the 2019 class. At our club there are already some with "offers" and we are being told that we need to be proactive now with our daughter.

I'm having trouble wrapping my head around it and think we are doing our daughters a disservice by allowing this process to get out of hand. We are going to try to wait as long as possible and also try to take as much pressure off of her as possible, but it's hard. What was supposed to be a sport played for the love of the game, feels like it is becoming a job at way too young an age.

Let your daughter set the pace - talk to her about colleges and in general schools that she realistically wants to go to and play for. Let her take ownership of as much of the process as possible - don't try to shelter her from it. Let her embrace it on her own - don't force it on her. Remember - they cannot contact you - if you are not interested in the recruiting thing just let it happen and don't do anything. You are still in control - people keep forgetting that. Don't let what you hear from the outside world about so and so getting a full ride to Syracuse, Northwestern or to whatever influence your actions. My daughter is not in that top tier of players either - but, she is all set and is locked and loaded to take this on when it comes. "Prepare your child for the road, not the road for your child."

Wow. What club?

Does anyone know which teams will be going to the Chesapeake Invitational in November?

Several ages from Integrity.

What is Integrity? Odd name for a travel lax program? Director must have a lot to live up to.

have fun with it go to the schools and check them out. Make fun weekends out of it. Enjoy the ride

I know that I will probably get slammed for this - but, yes, FUN. It's almost too easy to lose sight of that with this totally hypercompetitive "college scholarship" thing on most peoples' minds. I feel truly blessed that my daughter totally loves it and has fun every time she picks up her lacrosse stick. I cherish those times more and more now when she asks me to throw the ball around with her. I have flashbacks of the little tiny thing years ago - spending more time doing ground balls then catching. Now - I need to pay attention or she'll take my head off. Yes, make it fun!

The director has a resume' a mile long, from high school, summer club to Naval Academy club coach to NCAA coach at division 1 and 2. Integrity is a club team based in Anne Arundel county Maryland, near Annapolis. They're really good, and well known down here. Their 2019 teams and their 2020 team are VERY good. 202's lost one game all summer, in all A brackets (if there is such a thing at the 2020 level).

He or she is correct. They are the 4th or 5th best team in md. Good program.

Yeah but they are one of the clubs whose drop off from their A team to B team is dramatic.

Who did 2020 lose to this summer?

It would only have been funnier and ironic if a club like Elevate named their club Integrity. Elevate my ego, elevate my wallet.....

People are catching on to how Elevate is run and operated. I saw and spoke with many people that are fed up, mostly with the lack of ethics and respect Elevate displays towards their own families.

Better question - who did their 2020 team play last summer? Or where did they play last summer? I did not see them at Rock The Fields, Lax For The Cure, or G8. Besides - I thought this was the 2019 forum - how did their 2019 team do?

What is your opinion of New Jersey girls' lacrosse, 2019?

I had an AWESOME experience with Elevate for the past 3 years. I have no complaints. My daughter has fun every time she steps on the field and she learns a lot.

The 2019's and 2020's are VERY good teams. My daughter is a 2016 so I'm not intimately familiar with these two teams. But, at a couple of tournaments, I did sit and watch them play a few games and came away VERY impressed. The 2019's a BIG group, tall and fast. The 2020's are skilled for such a young group. They've played and beaten Top Guns Black, SJS Pink, Heros, etc.

Why is elevate no longer playing at cash??????????????

New Board of Education rules.

Yeah I just saw that elevate posted tryouts on here and not at cold spring. In addition to the failed CSH relationship, they are no longer welcome at the HUB I just found out. I think they will end up practicing in an abandoned parking lot at this point. Karma!

Thanks DK I am happy to hear your daughter had a great summer!

Absolutely untrue!

Tryouts are at cold spring?

sorry we don't allow for these type of attacks.

Integrity 2020 was 7-3-2 in the spring in MD. Getting crushed twice by M&D. Not sure what tournaments they played in this summer, but it certainly wasn't any that the other top clubs were at.

Anybody know how much the Elevate pre-tryout camp costs next week? The website doesn't say (or at least I couldn't find it) until you set up an account with all your info. Thanks

I will contact them for you.

Contact Dave dk@teamelevatelax.com

$240 for 2 days or $150 for single day

Wow! Thanks.

but you get a pinnie that you can keep forever!

2019 topic, didn't see any threads. What should we expect from a travel club regarding 2019 Girls. I'm pretty tuned into the boys side but my daughters team is a very good team from PA and it doesn't seem that her club is doing anything regarding exposure and college guidance. Does it just start later for girls? What are the best showcase events. Team or individual?

Please don't count on your club to be the best advocate for your kid! Put a list of schools together that she might be interested in and do 1-2 camps with them ,find out what tournaments they will be at in the summer and see if your club will be at any of them. You need to be very proactive for your daughter, clubs are not all that interested in your kid after the check clears, unless they're top of the line blue chip player that they can use to advertise on the website as an early recruit to a top 10 program. there's lots of information on this site and others regarding the recruitting process - good luck

2019 a very quiet thread.

Maybe that's a sign that this particular class, for whatever reason, has more sane parents.

don't let that fool you, plenty of crazy here...

What is going on with 2019? Many TG and YJ and [****] girls at Liberty tryouts last weekend. Will the top girls jump ship? Why?

Maybe many people are beginning to discover that some of these clubs are not as advertised and if your child is in the majority of players that actually will benefit from training and there is a lack of it then they move on. Going to practice once a week and not playing much in tournaments is NOT what travel lax is supposed to be.
Some clubs seem to favor the win at all costs and play the same few kids even if you travel out of state and foot the bill for it.
Some clubs are excellent at training and building an all around player. Some are all about getting D1 commits to put on their website.

Well said. In fact, M&D took their commits off the website and haven't updated championships in over a year

Some clubs are good at both. They aren't mutually exclusive.

This is why they make vanilla and chocolate ice cream. Different strokes for different folks.

Liberty 2019 Black has the best of the nassau players, many from the Long Island All American roster from this past summer, a great coaching staff and is looking real good going into the recruiting circuit this fall.

Um, congratulations?

Liberty you serious or being sarcastic I can't tell

my 2019 girls travel lacrosse team is better than yours....and we have better tents and more expensive swag too...

Are some 2019s already verbally committing or just being looked at?

There are already 2019 girls committing

Read that IWLCA is proposing to NCAA rules changes to eliminate early recruitment. No communication at all with athletes until Sep 1 of junior year. Athletes can be evaluated prior at tournaments or showcases but no contact until 11th grade.

Not sure when it would be imlpemented (needs to be voted and approved first by the NCAA) but at least it is a right step in the right direction to eliminate 9th graders worrying about college. It is being put forth by the college coaches themselves so hopefully it has some legs.

agree completely...boys and girls who have not even hit puberty in some cases should never have the pressure of a college decision at that age....sounds simple, but let them enjoy being a kid...plenty of life changing decisions await them w/out the bs of recruiting at that age....

I agree but how do they even implement it , do the verbal commitments that are in effect at the time for say a 10th grader get tossed out the window ?

I imagine that they would grandfather already recruited kids...

there is nothing to grandfather a verbal means nothing to the NCAA or the universities. Just a conversation between a coach and a student athlete

Grandfathered? Until you sign NLI for your sport its anyones spot, and I would bet there are 5+/- kids per position per recruiting cycle a coach is chasing. Everyone is replaceable.

A kid should only worry if he doesn't keep playing at the level he was recruited at. They need to keep working as hard or harder and things will most likely work out. It's the slackers that could be bumped. Only kids I know that are not actually going to their commitment are those who traded up, or did make grades and had to trade down.

The only losers that i can see from the proposal are the club directors who r lining their pockets w 9th grade recruiting camps etc.

It has legs but it isn't quite so clear cut ... It says no "direct communication" between coach and recruit. It seems to leave the loophole of indirect contact (thru club coach for example).

I know of one who committed to Northwestern. do you really know of others? If so, how many? I highly doubt there are many 2019 commits at this point.

It really seems like you guys don't know what you are talking about or haven't gone through the process with your kids yet. Other than for grades, getting in trouble for something reasonably serious, or career-ending injuries, coaches honor their verbal commitments and their is still a lot of honor in the game.

really? This would be better for the club directors. Longer to keep hold over the kids for the dream of committing somewhere. If a kid commits as a freshman or sophomore, harder to get them to show up to club events/camps in the older years.

What is the expected timing on the vote and/or approval by the NCAA of the IWLCA proposals regarding early recruiting rules and restrictions?

Does the contact affect the coaches talking to the kids when they show up at the camps? How is this rule going to be enforced? It's going to be the same loopholes.
And with Instagram, Snapchat and what ever else is out there - direct contact can easily be avoided.

question does anyone know any LI 2019's that have verbally committed already?

Know some outside of LI. The 2019s are in full swing a good 6-9 months ahead of here the 2018s were last year. It has not only not slowed down, it's accelerated again!

Hitting puberty? What are you talking about? There are some teams from Maryland that have girls on their 2019 teams who are already driving...
Hitting puberty is no longer an issue.

I know four 2019's that have offers all D1 but didn't commit yet all from Long island. No one saws you have to commit to your first offer unless its your dream.

What club do they play for?

please tell us a few of the schools who these 19 kids have committed to

Maryland, Northwestern, UNC, Ohio State just to name a few ... offers have been extended to many that have not committed yet as well.

It seems like a really big risk to be extending an offer to high school freshman before seeing what their first quarter/semester grades look like. This is lacrosse, I was always under the impression that coaches would wait to see how a player was doing academically before making any serious "moves". I am fully expecting the first wave of commits to happen about two weeks after the first quarter/semester grades come out. I think it was right around mid-November last year

There will be a very small percentage of girls committing this school year. This gets the parents all excited, but it's top D1 only. If your daughter is D2 or D3 caliber, the commits start happening junior and senior year, so don't worry, it's no rush for most of the girls.

Well unfortunately that is not true. And the process has accelerated 6+ months from last year for sure. I am not advocating it, just stating the facts. And yes it is just the first wave, which is top teams and top tier kids. But it is much quicker and more widespread this year than last.

I just heard about Maryland getting commitments from several 2019's. Is that just rumor?

No, a whole bunch of 2019 girls from MD committed this weekend.

Really to where???

Oh boy now the pressure is on !

Syracuse, Northwestern. Hofstra. Traditional Long Island strongholds.

MD is taking over.

Couple to Stony Brook too. Unreal.

Makes sense most of those players are already 16.

It was just a matter of time. You do realize that holdbacks are a boys lacrosse issue for the most part right? Girls don't switch schools to repeat 8th grade like the boys do. If a girl is older, it' because she went to prefirst which is a very, very small percentage of girls. Some of the girls that committed this week just turned 15 in the last month.

Maybe the coaches have seen the YJ 2019 Blue team and decided there is no one there worth offering yet.

I knew a girl who did just that, switched schools to reclassify. Not lacrosse, but it happens. And I thought from reading here that it happens more in MD where everyone goes to private schools. Maybe I'm misremembering.

How do you find this stuff out?

Because I have a 2019 son that is friends with them. They all post their commitments on Instagram. I know of at least 5 2019 M&D and Skywalkers girls that committed to MD this week.

What is "PREFIRST"? Sorry, I'm old school - isn't that normally kindergarten? I'm not surprised that it's mainly the private school girls doing it - that's an extra year of tuition that they are squeezing out of the parents. The public schools just seem to want to get people through the system and graduated.
Have any public school players from Maryland committed?

Yes. A couple of them were public school girls.

East Islip (Long Island for the out of towners) 2019 committed to UNC.

Prefirst is where some private schools put kids that have late spring or summer birthdays so that they are not so young entering first grade. Again, done more often with boys as they develop slower and may not be ready for 1st grade when they just turn 5.

Hope these parents know what they are doing. could be a long 4 years for a kid in the wrong place. Coaches have nothing to lose

That is sad on so many levels

In state tuition for Maryland kids is very cheap (probably 1/3 the cost of Northwestern or Notre Dame), so they don't have to eat up a lot of scholarship money on local players

This has been happening for a number of years, girls committing before ever playing varsity. I hope it works out for each of them no! need to be negative. If this isn't what works for you then go ahead and do what works best for you and your family

Good for her! Congratulations to the girl and her parents. I do not think it is sad at all in fact I think it's great!

Do you have any idea of how difficult it is to get into UNC? US News ranks UNC 30!
Do you have any idea of the caliber of athlete UNC recruits?

Why should she wait? What school should she hold out for? If something changes on either side (coach or player) she will have a ton of options. If UNC recruited her I can guarantee that just about every other coach would be happy to have her.

Great Job and I wish this young lady all the best and future success in all that
she does.

Congrats again

There's a good chance she has at least 1 (probably 2) years of varsity experience already. Girls on LI can play as early as 7th grade.

Congratulations to her! She is a good player on a below average HS team, so yes, she played varsity as a Middle schooler. According to MSG Varsity she had 19 goals and 12 assists as an 8th grader, however, it should be noted that 6 of those points (5Gs, 1A) were against a far inferior team from Moriches.

Where do you find this info?

Twitter

First off ,its sad in that everyone including the coaches involved and the parents know that this is too young. Go ahead ask the coaches. Its also sad in that you are going to get a lot of disappointed coaches and kids .Unless some kid is a freak athlete how do the coaches know what these kids will turn into.In this case I know that this early commitment has raised a lot of eye brows of those familiar with the player as UNC has in the recent past taken a pass on very athletic kids (AA caliber) who were highly regarded by both their peers and other coaches.So yes I think overall its sad that this process is so sped up. But yes congrats to this young lady and I hope it works out for her and her future coaches.

Why is it too young? Girls who are the best athletes in the 9th and 10th grade are most likely to be at the top in 11th and 12th grade as well. College coaches have been watching 8th, 9th, and 10th grade girls for a long time. They know that most of the girls who excel at that age are the ones who will excel in college.

There are no guarantees in life, first round NFL picks don't always work out. Some early commits will become college All Americans some will stop playing. There is no way to make sure that everything will be a good fit. There is no right time. If a college coach likes the player and the player and the parents feel that the school will be a good fit why should they not commit?

Lots of jealous parents out there.

I am very happy for the girl and the parents.

The only thing that is sad are the jealous parents.

High School Lacrosse is not important with regard to the recruiting process. Boys and girls are recruited through their club team. College coaches are able to watch the best players from all over the country compete against each other on the tournament circuit.

The process is SAD because they are way to young and this all consuming craziness to verbal robs kids their time of being kids.

I hope this new proposed ncaa guideline on no signings until 11th grade go through. This early signing crap continues to erode this great game. PAL sidelines are a mess at 2nd, 3rd 4th grade because everyone is already playing selfishly looking towards college recruitment. Sideline jealousy in lacrosse is second to none. No other sport has these toxic sidelines.

it's sad and wrong because the only one that can lose is the student. Do you think for one minute it matters to a coach if a player doesn't pan out ? Some of these teams have 45 roster spots, so if they miss ,no big deal. a 2019 is closer to being an elementary school student then she is to being a college freshman. If she is a can't miss type of player she probably will remain so, unless she grows, doesn't grow, loses interest, meets a boy, or God forbid gets injured.

I do congratulate this young lady and all the others that share this type of talent, but why rush such a big decision ?

I agree with you in hoping that the proposed NCCA guideline goes through. I have to wonder about it. The ones proposing it are the same ones doing the early recruiting. Kind of like having the fox guard the henhouse.

Engaging in early recruiting while advocating the newly proposed "September 1 of junior year" rule is not inconsistent at all.

These coaches are hired to win, and in this recruiting environment, if one of the top d1 schools were to hold back until the beginning of junior year on principle, it would suffer a significant competitive disadvantage.

The current reality is that most top recruits are not waiting until junior year to commit, certainly not in this environment, with the exception of the Ivies and a handful of others, and coaches know that.

The proposed rule would change the current situation for the better - a uniform date for all to be guided by. Until then, the overarching principle will be to recruit the best class possible - regardless of recruitment age.

Let's hope the proposal passes - it makes sense and hurts no one in the process. Apparently, 85% of college coaches support it. Every school gets to reach out at the same time, and the recruits will be that much more mature, both physically and emotionally.

I only hope that it becomes effective for a specific class year that has not begun the recruiting process, to avoid confusion.

In the meantime my 2020 YJ is trying to be the first one in her group. Doesn't matter that she is trick or treating tomorrow she is clearly mature enough to know what she wants to do for the rest of her life.

Please tell me again why it is bad for 9th or 10th grade boy or girl to accept an offer from:

North Carolina, Northwestern, Duke, Maryland, Hopkins, Penn State, USC, Notre Dame, Syracuse, Boston College, Virginia, Georgetown, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Penn, Cornell Etc...

Penn State and Syracuse might be great lax schools but not top academic schools

Agree. What child, because that's what she is, knows how to weigh her options and wisely choose? Face it, even the seniors who choose a college and major very often change their minds.

Plus, IME, a girl's body in 9th grade is not what her body will be in 12th grade. What you see at 13 or 14 is not what you get at 18. There's no guarantee that super-speedy player will have that speed and agility in four years.

I would say all of the schools listed are top academic schools .

You must be another one of the jealous haters that troll this site.

then do some homework and quit drinking your directors kool aid

Lots of bitterness, jealousy and hate on here.

system is totally broken and parents are nuts

Another success story from someone who left the top guns program

Or another poaching success by acquiring talent instead of developing it? A 5th grader could coach these girls. Roll out the balls and stay out of the way

No offense but kid was moved to second TG team so she left . 2019 YJ team may actually be more successful if coached by a 5th grader .

Verdict is in. Mnd 1. Heroes 2a. YJ 2b. Then the rest. Mnd dads win for most coaching during a game. Embarrassing.

Sorry, I would have to disagree with you about the MnD dads - TLC Red moms and dads have them beat hands down.

I believe you are mistaken on how that went down. She played up in age on the top team, when she was supposed to drop down to her own age group she left. She would have been one of the top girls on black in her own age but walked away. Just as many of the top girls from 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021 walked away. I have yet to see that happen going the other way . I find it so sad that I have to come on here to defend some little girl because people make sh@t up.

She played on TG 2019 black for one season and then felt the need to leave...

Or she was enticed to leave with an offer (aka stolen, aka poached aka hijacked)

I find it sad you feel the need to defend the truth with made up nonsense.

Early verbals and recruiting are terrible for the sport and hopefully it changes soon!

Congrats to this early signing but all it does is motivate the other crazy parents that share the sidelines to now hurry up and get their daughter verbaled asap.

One of the worst places on earth is a travel lacrosse sideline from 8th-11th grade. By end of 11th and 12th the girls are just back to playing for fun and all the college BS is forgotten.

I have taken to sitting by my lonesome at games--far away from the parents...just to get away from the selfishness and petty comments that are spewed all day long during the games..everyone's daughter is a D1 prospect and should get every goal during the games... are right though, no worse place to be ...

Looks like the weather is going to be nice this weekend. It should be a nice weekend for some top level lacrosse. Quite a few teams will be heading down the turnpike to MD. The girls should represent well.

How is TG black this fall?

Dope

Hard to tell this weekend. Too early to tell.

Went 2-2 at the Ches Invitational.

How did YJ Blue do against M&D Black on Saturday at the prime time?

Capital 2019 beat TG 2019 in a fairly close game on Saturday--good level of skill all around.

Who did they beat and who else did they lose to? Did they get to see MnD or Skywalkers?

Capital did not lose in 6 games over weekend--beat TG, TLC (very strong team) Phantastix out of Philly (always strong), Team 180 from CO and 2 others....

MnD, Heros, Sky Walkers or YJ? Any of those? What about MDU, or Integrity? That Capital/Stars 2019 team is good, just trying to get a gauge of where they are this year.

I would not refer to Capital as a "Stars" team since 2019 Capital has a number of players who did not play on Stars. They have beaten Sky Walkers twice this fall but have yet to play the others....best team thye have played to date is TLC.

How did MnD and Heros do this weekend? The Chesapeake Invitation has only some scores listed and the Prime Time didn't have any on their website.

Md United was NOT INVITED, at any age level, to the Chesapeake Invitational.

Both went 4-0

Thanks! Not a surprise, they both went undefeated as both are great teams.

Anyone know anything about Salt City? We are playing their 2019 this weekend.

they are pretty solid team from the Syracuse area.

How about Mass Elite 2019s ... Playing them at Lax for the Cure. They r in top bracket with us. Never played them. Assume they r from Massachusetts. Any good?

Another YJ 2019 committed today - Daddy will be bragging at the office tomorrow.

And your jealousy is shining through. Be happy for the girl, and her family. Dreams coming true...

What town is she from? Or, where can we find this info?

Daddy should be bragging good for him. That said wth is going on , these kids are way to young . Not this kid as I don't know who it is but I got to watch a prior 2019 recruit to arguably the most sort after school and it was comical . I get sometimes college coaches see things in a player that nobody else does but when you are recruiting 14 y. o. Kids one would think the kid would be arguably one of the better players on the field , athletic , or at least not argue w refs . Good luck w that one .

Three or four heros committed already. Top schools obviously.

Sorry Dad - way too young.

I'll second that! I would be bragging too, if I were pretty well done with the recruiting process. Definitely jealous, probably has not gotten a single sniff yet. Any info on which school the YJ girl has committed to?

Yet all the top college coaches disagree with you. All of them actively recruit the incoming 9th graders. I guess you know more than all the best coaches in the country? You should maybe quit your day job and take your armchair recruiting gig to the next level.

This commit scored 9 goals and had 3 assists as an 8th grader for Rocky Point last year.

the sport is broken and the sidelines are toxic

Parents hold the cards yet feel the need to rush its insane. I guess if you don't commit your child in 9th grade you have failed

And if Northwestern or whichever school is their top "dream school" comes calling? I also think 9th grade is young - but, I also don't know their situation. I also will not openly and loudly preach against early recruiting because I do not want to be labeled as a hypocrite on the off chance that certain schools do show up at our door. Frankly - how can you say that someone is making an uninformed decision if they choose a North Carolina or a Duke as their college?

Congratulations to the young lady and her parents.

It is unfortunate that there are so many jealous bitter people out there. It must be really tough on you when college coaches think that other players are better than your daughter.

To all of the parents who have unrealistic views of their kids abilities. Stop trying to come up with excuses as to why the offers are not rolling in. There is one reason a college coach does not make an offer. That reason is: "the coach does not think your daughter is better than the other players that the coach has watched". You can convince yourself that there are other reasons but there is only one. You can listen to the coach tell you "we have to wait", "we need to see her play again", "we need to see her grades and test scores", "we are taking our time" etc.. it is all BS. Coaches know what they like and when they see it and they will make an offer. The best coaches at the top programs are not afraid to pull the trigger if they like the player. Just be thankful the top players can only accept one offer. Also, there are great players who may not have the grades for every school that likes them. Keep the grades up and you will have more opportunities after the top tier kids are all committed. We are going through it now, mine is not a top tier player but we know that there will be more opportunity after the top kids commit.

Stop with the jealousy and hate. Be happy for the kids that have what it takes to be an early commit. Be hopeful and proud of your own. If they continue to work hard in the classroom and on the field things will work out.

Stop the hate and try to be as realistic as possible about your own kids ability.

Maryland

I think that makes it 3 for Maryland so far. One from MnD, Heros and YJ.

That is your experience and too bad for you and others that have had similar experiences. This however could not be any further from the experience I have had with my girls, all good stuff, and I know many others who feel the same as I do. Misery finds misery.

My daughter is a junior recruited by a mid-ranked D1 program with a very good academic reputation. She experienced some highs and lows in the recruiting process, but in the end is very happy with where she is going, the opportunity she will have there and the athletic money she's receiving. We've also met some really great people and made some good friends through lacrosse. We also met a bad apple or two, but were able to not let that get in the way of her love for playing lacrosse. I have to say that although lacrosse is a team sport, unlike almost every other team sport, it has some aspects that really breed a "me first" mentality which is reflected by the behavior on the sidelines. Notice I didn't say on the field - because that's not where the problem is.

Enjoy the next few years because they really do go by much too quickly.

Well said and congratulations. Anyone who objectively doesn't say there is a me first attitude in the sport isn't paying attention.

I'll second that! I would be bragging too, if I were pretty well done with the recruiting process. Definitely jealous, probably has not gotten a single sniff yet. Any info on which school the YJ girl has committed to? [/quote]

the sport is broken and the sidelines are toxic [/quote]

That is your experience and too bad for you and others that have had similar experiences. This however could not be any further from the experience I have had with my girls, all good stuff, and I know many others who feel the same as I do. Misery finds misery.[/quote]

My daughter is a junior recruited by a mid-ranked D1 program with a very good academic reputation. She experienced some highs and lows in the recruiting process, but in the end is very happy with where she is going, the opportunity she will have there and the athletic money she's receiving. We've also met some really great people and made some good friends through lacrosse. We also met a bad apple or two, but were able to not let that get in the way of her love for playing lacrosse. I have to say that although lacrosse is a team sport, unlike almost every other team sport, it has some aspects that really breed a "me first" mentality which is reflected by the behavior on the sidelines. Notice I didn't say on the field - because that's not where the problem is.

Enjoy the next few years because they really do go by much too quickly. [/quote]

Well said and congratulations. Anyone who objectively doesn't say there is a me first attitude in the sport isn't paying attention. [/quote]

I feel that I am closer to my daughter than I would have been had it not been for the countless trips up and down the turnpike. I would not have met some "lifetime" friends after the various nights of bonding at the hotel bars. And let's not forget the future friends that we will be running into at our daughter's future colleges with a simple introduction of - "Hey, you look familiar - didn't your daughter play for (club name) at Lax For the Cure, Lax Inception or where ever." Those are just two of the positives that I am embracing and bringing up. There are a lot of positives, why focus only on the negatives.

the sport is broken and the sidelines are toxic [/quote]

That is your experience and too bad for you and others that have had similar experiences. This however could not be any further from the experience I have had with my girls, all good stuff, and I know many others who feel the same as I do. Misery finds misery.[/quote]

My daughter is a junior recruited by a mid-ranked D1 program with a very good academic reputation. She experienced some highs and lows in the recruiting process, but in the end is very happy with where she is going, the opportunity she will have there and the athletic money she's receiving. We've also met some really great people and made some good friends through lacrosse. We also met a bad apple or two, but were able to not let that get in the way of her love for playing lacrosse. I have to say that although lacrosse is a team sport, unlike almost every other team sport, it has some aspects that really breed a "me first" mentality which is reflected by the behavior on the sidelines. Notice I didn't say on the field - because that's not where the problem is.

Enjoy the next few years because they really do go by much too quickly. [/quote]

Well said and congratulations. Anyone who objectively doesn't say there is a me first attitude in the sport isn't paying attention. [/quote]

I feel that I am closer to my daughter than I would have been had it not been for the countless trips up and down the turnpike. I would not have met some "lifetime" friends after the various nights of bonding at the hotel bars. And let's not forget the future friends that we will be running into at our daughter's future colleges with a simple introduction of - "Hey, you look familiar - didn't your daughter play for (club name) at Lax For the Cure, Lax Inception or where ever." Those are just two of the positives that I am embracing and bringing up. There are a lot of positives, why focus only on the negatives. [/quote]

I couldn't agree with you more! We've made memories that will last forever. Another thing I love is when my daughter walks off the field at a tournament chatting with an opposing player - who she met at a camp or a clinic. She's met literally befriended a hundred or more girls she wouldn't have know otherwise.

Heros 9. Mnd 6

How did YJ 2019s do at Lax For the Cure yesterday?

Got the sideline report from several parents. They are living up to their reputation of being the worst YJ top team and the worst coached.Team has now become the worst sort of ball hogs with some of their so called top players picking up charges left and right. The good news is I hear they have a new player coach who tells the kids what position they can play and who is allowed on the draw circle .My guess is that team will not make it past this upcoming summer season as soon as kids commit they will abandon ship unless of course you are a coaches kid.

This sounds like a parent w a daughter on the team who must not be very good. Stop whining. They seemed to hold their own at the G8 this summer.

Is this the YJ team from last summer? Did they lose any players? There is a lot of chatter about TG losing players - where did they end up? There is a lot of talk about no MD teams at Lax4Cure - is that really true? I was not paying attention.

Steps 2019 Blue beat YJ 2019 Blue and TG Black today at the Fall Face Off.

That is surprising, because we played Steps yesterday and didn't think they were very good. Their parents thought they were, and weren't very happy that they didn't win all their games. Funny.

I didn't need a report as I was at the games. It appears as if your jealousy is getting the better of you ( oh that's right it was a sideline report from other parents) I would suggest you take ownership of your friend, relative, sibling or daughter and pass the message along that coaches don't care who your Father,Mother Sister or Brother is they want players not spectators. You see College coaches make their living based upon players performance. So time to pull on your big girl panties and show up. Enough excuses !

Does that mean that they got beat on as a team, but some girls impressed the coaches watching?

What???

Wow. Easy there coach...

this sounds spot on they looked lifeless. there we no college coaches scouting this game. were the top players there or playing soccer / basketball???

And STEPS lost to T3 earlier..

Actually this seems to prove my point YJ top teams in the past were really not content to "hold their own". I guess they can now change the mantra from fear the bee to "we hold our own".

Trying to decipher exactly what you are trying to say, the only thing I get out of it is you have a lot of big girl panties( my guess size xxxl) around the house. On a serious note you are just ignorant. Not all coaches are looking for the same type player, yes some want the ball hog kid who takes it to goal everytime and gets 3 goals , 3 turnovers and 2 charges. Some want the kid who keeps her head up and plays the right way. What most of you fail to realize is that most if not all of these kids will end up at a good school so all of you need to relax, that includes the ball hog kids parents telling them go to goal every time and the parents complaining about ball hog kid.

but to someone's point earlier YJ blue smoked these girls last summer at G8 by double digit goals. what has happened in the space of a few months? cant start losing to 2nd and 3rd tier teams and keep the same reputation and brand people are paying for right??

You do realize it's fall right? Not a full team.

Well, easy there - they did not exactly "smoke" everybody. They were 3-2, losing to MnD and Heros. The only ones who did any "smoking" was MnD. The closest they got to double digits was against Steps and that's not really much to brag about. So, in reality - the drop off has not been as big as people are making it out to be after all.
If they can stick to playing just the LI and NJ teams - maybe they can build up their brand again.

that's what I was wondering. I have a 2023 so I am pretty green with all this stuff. I wanted to get a look at the 19's(and the UNC commit in particular) and was stunned to see them playing like that. so they were missing some muscle from the summer team? that's a relief.

Then why bother showing up? Why spend the money on tolls, gas and hotels? If it's not a full team, why do some get a pass and others don't? Has anyone asked those questions? Why does it seem like all the MD teams are at full strength and bringing "it"?

Be careful. The Maryland folks don't like to hear that.

This is silly- was at the steps/yj blue game. Yj did not play well and lost by 1 to steps. Congrats to steps. Yj finished strong, beating a very good T3 elite team by a whole bunch after that team beat steps by 3 earlier in the day. Congrats to all the girls- the great majority of them will do fine if they want to play at the next level.

all 3 of their committed players were on there..it was a full team.

don't hit the panic button okay. there were at least 3 top girls that weren't there for the 19's. I know it seems bizarre to lose to a NJ team but next summer they will be right back under the thumb of YJ blue. bet the mortgage on it.

Two out of the 3 "commits" were there (UNC and MD) ... the YJ bench was full and had at least 2 full lines ... No excuses. They lost the game. There is a lot more parity in the "A" bracket ... anything can happen on any given day. Yesterday, Steps prevailed and good for them.

^^ regarding the banter posted above in the last day or so, don't forget as these girls enter the "recruiting age" these tournaments become less and less about wins and more about showcasing talent.. Everyone should be getting equal playing time, goalies switching at half etc.. Regardless of score.
As someone who has gone through it once and now on my second trip through, no one but the parents care who wins and loses. At some showcases there isn’t even a scoreboard.. But the parents are keeping score.
Hopefully everyone had an opportunity to showcase their individual talent and left the field injury free.. And maybe an email will get forwarded to you from the club telling you a college coach reached out..

here we go w this nonsense again ... they had their top players there ... Maryland commit UNC commit etc. Stop it.

I posted it and I am a MD parent. People get too wrapped up in winning and losing these games. Once you get to high school, there aren't even playoffs in most tournaments so who cares who wins. The point is to be seen by college coaches. It's a shame that lacrosse ceases to be really fun for the girls after 8th grade, but in the current landscape, that's the truth. Thankful that my daughter is a 2021 and still have a couple years left before the insanity starts. Hopefully the rule is changed before then.

Healthy girls, Great weather, fun couple of weekends

There were plenty of college coaches at the Cure on Saturday. UNC, Maryland, Northwestern, Penn State, Dartmouth, Harvard, Vanderbilt, USC and on and on. All of those mentioned, plus others, watched the top 2019 bracket all day. YJ, Mass Elite, Steps etc. I'm sure all were missing a player or two but generally I think they had a majority of their better players. I know our team had a couple varsity soccer players that could not attend. The results indicate a lot of parity w these teams. And yes there are a couple Maryland teams at this age group that are a couple goals better on average. So what. The vast majority of the girls on these teams will be playing D1 if they want(or choose D2, D3). The games were competitive and seemed like fun, and the college coaches watched some really good players do their thing. Seemed all good to me.

I guess I better enjoy the next few seasons when teamwork, competition, and games that mean something are still the deal. is it still any fun to watch when all the players / parents care about is trying to get noticed by the people with the clipboards?? thanks for the warning..

Say what you want but those committed kids are not the top of the food chain on this YJ team,I am sure they are good players and all and have no idea if there best players were there but to assume that they are the best players on that team because they committed early is wrong

Wait. So you know who are the best players and who are not. You actually don't know if the committed players are good but think they must be. You don't actually know who was at the games and who wasn't. But somehow you feel like you can comment on this? Lets just assume that each team was missing one or two players that would have made some difference. Therefore the outcomes/competition was about what it would be. And it was pretty even. Rather than worry that it somehow makes YJ look bad, lets celebrate that girl's lax is becoming competitive across a broader region and that bodes well for the sport.

And to the post saying that winning and losing doesn't matter and only the parents care about that, I disagree. The girls care quite a bit, or at least the competitive ones do. But that doesn't mean shortening benches etc. Winning with your whole team playing is even more satisfying. I love watching these young women compete and work together for a common goal. The best teams let that happen. So if this 2019 YJ plays everyone equally, that is to be commended, not ridiculed.

Agreed...You hope games are evenly matched so all the girls (A,M,D, G) are all getting touches and getting looks by the coaches. Winning is fun but playing in competitive games is a lot better for all involved

"And to the post saying that winning and losing doesn't matter and only the parents care about that, I disagree. The girls care quite a bit, or at least the competitive ones do."

In the moment the girls want to do their best and win.. ask them 5 minutes later and they probably won't remember the score.

As this recruiting train rolls on, you'll see girls from different states hugging it out on the field before and after games as they become friends with other players at College camps, clinics, prospect days, Under Armor Brine etc.
M&D, YJ, Stars, Steps all start to lose meaning as college allegiances build.

Don't disagree with any of that except they know who won and lost. And while they move on from it, as they should, they still care. I will agree that they don't care in the same way the wacko parents do, but in the way any competitors do. To say otherwise is to not give them enough credit. In a way, it's almost sexist. Because I doubt you would say that about the boys. The girls just show it differently. You see NFL players "hugging it out" on the field before and after games. I doubt you would say they are uncompetitive or don't care about the outcome. I think you are mixing several things up. But ultimately, if they are all having fun and reaching their personal goals, it's all good.

I've been involved with the lax recruiting craziness for several years but my little laxer just signed her NLI last week so hopefully I'm done. But, I will offer a little perspective if you will allow me.
For my daughter's club team, I was the person that gave out the flyers to the college coaches. I've done it since the fall of 2013, and I've met and talked to over 100 coaches. I've asked about 100 of them if they knew the score of the game they were watching, because with my duties I couldn't keep track or see the little scores across the field. 99.99% did not know the score. 99.99% of the parents did. The coaches are there to watch the girls they are recruiting, not really the game as a whole. I'm sure they get a "feel" for the score or who is ahead, but it's mostly irrelevant to them. For the most part, parents "get it", and know that the important thing is how the girls play and perform. There are some club's parents out there that seem to live and die with the team's successes or failures (YJ), like it's the superbowl. Everyone wants to win, but as the girls get into the recruiting zone, winning and losing becomes a LOT less important and on-field performance takes precedent (except to YJ).

Spoken as a true loser

Doesn't even sound like sports. Sounds like a talent show or a body building contest. But if your daughter is enjoying that's what counts ultimately.

You are once again mixing issues up. The fact that college coaches don't care what the score is is irrelelavent. That is true in all sports. They r recruiting individuals, not teams. So what? Therefore the players shouldn't care about the outcome? That's ridiculous. And quite frankly, women's lax is a little immature in its evaluation technique btw. I would advise coaches to think a little bit about the situations in games. Because ultimately they will make better recruiting decisions on kids if they are in the competitive context of a game. Which girl wants to take the game winning shot for example? Who makes the key plays in the key moments? It's what everyone missed w Tom Brady for example. Maybe they should start caring about the context of the game? Another discussion I guess.

I'm sure college coaches appreciate your recommendation on what they should be looking for.

So you disagree w the statement? Typical jackass non response. Do you believe that the context of the game can reveal something about a player or not? I do. How about you, jackass?

And do you really think that women's college lacrosse coaches are the pinnacle of coaching, and that there are not things that they can do better? If it is true that they care nothing about the context of games and how players play under different situations, then they have a lot to learn.

The colleges flock to the teams that they know are in the top of their class. I.e. Won the most games. Winning is importantant but maybe not in that particular game that they come to watch.

Another 2019 YJ commit, must be contagious. This time Navy, though I thought there was much more to the admissions process at the academy's - not sure how it works for athletes. Congrats to her.

I wonder if that 14 yr old girl truly understands the dedication and commitment it takes to not only be a Cadet but a naval officer for 7 yrs. Hope so. Good luck to her

True. Looks to be the model that MnD follows - win in middle school. Have the "brand" - coaches will come. Repeat.

Then send kids to college for basket weaving.

Why basket weaving? And MRS major is more lucrative.

that's lunacy! parents should be brought up on negligence charges. conscripting a 14 year old?? absurd

Another umd commit from heros

What's that, two?
Wow. Coach Reese will be done with her 2019 class by spring. I wonder when the other programs will start going into "panic mode" and start pressuring.

If the IWLCA proposals don't get adopted by the NCAA, will their tournaments start having 9th grade divisions? There are so many committed girls playing in even the fall sophomore tournaments. Seems like the race to the bottom will continue and these tournaments will follow.

colleges may move quickly on 2019s before the impending IWCLA proposals may pass so the best players can be locked down and grandfathered if the rules go in effect

The "grandfathering" notion is interesting. It would be strange to have committed girls unable to communicate on campus w coaches. Wonder what the proposal is for that.

Any one have any knowledge, as opposed to speculation, as to the earliest time that the new proposal will actually be considered?

Earliest will be 2017

There will be no "grandfathering" as neither the NCAA or the institutions recognize verbals as anything more than a conversation with a coach

If it's the fall of 2017 - the 2019's don't have to worry about it. In fact it should be a non-issue for the 2019's.

The more rules you put in place the more rules will be broken. Wake up people. There should be no restrictions on contacts. If parents and coaches want to communicate let it be. If a kid commits early so be it. There are plenty of spots in college womens lacrosse. Putting rules on it closes the curtain and causes all the rumor nonsense going on currently. Do you really think there will be no contact because some rule says so???

If this new rule is voted on and put in place it will start right away and there will not be any grandfathering period. All verbals will be just what they are a conversation that doesn't mean anything anymore. The process will start all over when the NCAA says it can .

Um, that makes no sense. All the "verbals" will remain what they r, a handshake agreement. The process will not start all over when the NCAA says it can. The NCAA doesn't recognize the verbals now and they generally hold. Nothing will change for the already committed kids, other than they will not be allowed drect communication w coaches until junior year.

Absolutely right. The NCAA needs to put some accountability where it belongs , on the coaches make the early verbal binding and limit the amount for each class.Do away with 50 player rosters this way when an early doesn't work out it is felt by the program. In this current recruiting climate a coach can scoop up all the "9th grade talent" without any care as to how the student athlete will develop over the next 3. Yrs. Their philosophy to bring in 12 - 15 recruits a class and hope 4 or 5 pan out because they have 50 player rosters may end if the NCAA can figure a way to limit the amount of recruits. Under the current trend the only ones that can lose are the girls.

These proposals change nothing if accepted. You will have more closed window communication for juniors for a 2 week period in August and a couple days around holidays. Tournaments and recruiting events will still run the same. And the direct communication Sept 1st is basically the same as it is. Only change is the coaches will not want clubs to list verbal's, which are nothing anyway, and will now just be withheld from public posting.

Explain to us how the girls can lose.

Please stop spewing crap when you don't really know the answer. The coaches are very clear that the verbals will stick if this proposal goes through, except for normal issues like grades or something bad a kid does. Those provisions have nothing to do with this proposal. My daughter is committed and the coaches have been crystal clear about this when asked, including the coach at Penn who co-chairs the committee for this proposal. Facts not B.S. or speculation please.

All 50 girl rosters does is water down everyones award and protect the coach on bad recruits

Yes the verbal will stand between coach and player but the will still have to abide by the no contact rule as proposed. Fact

Explain ? Really ?

Agree, no one is debating this.

Yes, really.

Has anyone heard of any 2019 goalie commits?

Just SkyWalkers blue goalie to Maryland.

2019 commits keep coming. Several top teams have filled half their classes already. Congrats to the girls.

I call BS on that.

Second

1/2 way sounds about right. northwestern just got a 2019 commit from my daughters club team. they told the family they have 4 at this point. does anyone have any hard info. on whether some of these top 10 have policies of not making the info public? clearly not UNC or MD, but what about the others??

I think half is good number right now. MD and UNC have many more than half at this time from what is being said. Even the top 2020 are being looked at, and spoken to as well-rumor has in the travel circuit.

maybe this potential NCAA rule change has them moving even earlier than recent years to lock up these A level freshmen???

Where is the NOrthwestern commit from?

So are you done calling BS? It is factual. 4-5 at least in the top 5 programs and several others ... Overall there are 2019 girls committed in the several dozen. It is what is going on. Only the top girls and the top programs, but in the spring it will move to the next tier.

philly..one of the Catholic schools

Highly unlikely. 2019 talent in the Philly area isn't in the Catholic schools. It's in select publics in SE PA and the Inter-Ac schools. In that grouping a few of the elite girls are being actively recruited, but for most their time will start to come this summer.

Liar

New England region

Summit, NJ and STEPS Blue, she is a very good player. Her older sister who is an awesome player is committed their as well.

You said filled their classes already which is just not true. Several dozen girls have indeed committed, but even top schools are not full.

read the quote again ... it says HALF full.

well then they r up to 5 because there is a new england 2019 that just committed as well

Most likely their all telling the truth .... Although NJ sounds like a stretch .. At summer tournaments their teams got mauled by jackets, Heros and M&D.. But maybe a stud turned some heads who knows..

The acc teams cannot be half full there's no way. If the best team -YJ - has what 3 or 4 girls and third tiers like steps and ultimate have 1(if that) then it just doesn't add up to a big number. How about Duke or BC? Any notice about commits from them?

no they're not likely. The post said 4 or 5 teams are half full. Seems like NU is. Maryland probably. UNC has at least a couple. Ohio State actually has a couple. As do others. Other kids have offers and haven't committed, but likely will soon. So it seems plausible that a handful of schools r around half done, a bunch have 1 or 2 commits, and many others none yet. All of this is 6-8 months earlier than last year though, which was 3-6 months earlier than the year before.

Funny. Let the 2019 YJ bashing begin

Hofstra has a couple lol

heros will have 7-8 commits by the end of the year to big schools.

The best players on the top yellow jacket teams are always very very good. However, simply being on the best team does not make you one of the best players. Every year there are players from many of the other clubs who are stronger players and recruited over kids that play on the top YJ team. Also, remember that there is a big difference between being #1 or #2 recruit at a school and rest of the recruits. The best 25 players in the country do not play for the same club team. The top 10 - 20 colleges do for the most part recruit the same players. After the top prospects commit the flood gates open and it becomes a free-for-all. There are more spots available than there are quality players. The majority of the high end talent is scooped up by the top college programs but never forget that there are girls playing on teams that are not in the top 20 that are better than girls who are on the Maryland Roster.

just got some intel on Duke. my daughter's school has a big sister program and the girl that mentored her is now a junior defender on the Duke women's team. my daughter is more of a soccer player that is JV level lacrosse but they do talk about both sports. according to this girl they currently have 6 verbal commits in the 2019 class. to my knowledge they have made none of them public to toplaxrecuits or any of the other sites. Yah have to assume they have a policy against news releases right?? has anyone else seen any of them announced? maybe I am looking in the wrong place. is there a better place to look for this stuff????

Way to go [lacrosse] Tracy.

if that's true, and that's a big if, how is it even possible they are ready to commit scholarship monies to this many kids so early on? if I'm the AD there I am asking how are you spending my cash this quick, 4 years from the time they need to be signed and you're blowing it all out already.. wth

that is 2018 girls not 2019, don't get everyone crazy on here.

true for 2018 class not 2019s, I assure you

Duke not recruiting until summer.

Hofstra has 2 2019 commits from what I hear

I heard that they gave Coach Reese a contract extension at Maryland for doing exactly that...

So a guy at a party tonight said he doesn't think 2019s are committing. Maybe one or two, was his concession. From everything I've heard and seen, it's way more than that. I have what I believe to be fairly certain knowledge of ten or more girls at just a few schools that would lead me to believe there are closer to 30-50 2019s committed or at least w outstanding offers. What is the consensus on this board? Do u guys think it is closer two "just a couple" or 30-50? Or somewhere in between?

Oh it's at least 30 and likely a bunch more than that. NW has a handful, notre dame has 3 girls verballed from what I have been told-- obviously Maryland has almost a full class. This proposed rule change seems to be having the unintended consequence of pulling forward girls even faster and causing a rush to recruit. Like all brilliant ideas from the NCAA..

It is not the NCAA's idea. The same coaches who are doing the recruiting are the ones who came up with the idea.

Don't think it's quite that high on committed. Certainly MD and NW are active, and many of the top programs have a player or two verbaled, but it's not a super high number. The ND info is off, they along with the top academics have a slower process by design to look at academic info. ND's process is specific, and incorporates 1st year grades, etc to see if a player can even qualify.

If you are in MD or NY yes the top are verbaling, along with siblings in other states attending the same school as older sister. NJ, PA eyc the top have been identified and reached out to, but the process is still early.

Net net, it's always not as many as people would like to discuss, but if you're 2019 is a top player, she's been contacted by at least a few clubs by now. Doesn't mean it's late for anyone else, the process is fluid and you'll see much more conversation with a wider range of 2019's come spring and summer as evaluations continue.

agree with this. Probably 25 or so girls committed at this point in 2019 class best educated guess. Look at some of the club websites at you can get a sense plus from knowing a lot of lax families. In terms of Notre Dame, I highly doubt they have any 2019 commits. For the 2018s, they invited their top 9 recruits on September 5th of their sophomore year to visit for the weekend, including attending the Texas/ND football game. During the weekend, Coach Halphpenny made it very clear that these were their top recruits, they did not allow for commitments prior to this weekend as they wanted to watch all of the girls at least through the summer of their rising sophomore year and they wanted the recruits to have to come to campus for a entire weekend with their parents and spend a lot of time with the coaches, girls on the team, and with the other recruits. They said they realize many of their ACC competitors had already takend commits, but they felt this was the best approach for Ntore Dame. That is why I strongly don't think ND has taken any 2019s at this point. It goes against their philosophy.

Disagree in that I know a 2019 with an offer from ND. She hasn't committed so technically you are correct at least in her case, but the ball is in her court. Things have accelerated meaningfully with the 2019s vs the 2018s.

Difficult to believe. Not saying it's untrue, however would be very unlike ND.
In the past, and this year as well, they have wanted at least a semester of grades but really prefer a full year, along with psat/sat, and other info before a consideration would be made. And also pretty consistent that nothing happens until after freshman year.

If it's an offer great, but far too many times in the past people confuse interest with offer or impending offer, etc...

Why is it hard to believe? They have gotten potted plants into south bend to play football.. Now they are becoming somewhat legit in WLax, I mean they locked up Fortunato when she hadn't even gotten her braces on right? This in not Cal Poly here folks.

I'm sorry but to say they have waited for SAT scores???? You're going back to wooden sticks, no goggles and natural boundaries on the field. Come on let's gets real now.

ask the 2018 girls from the YJs who all committed after the September 5th recruit weekend at the beginning of their sophomore year to ND if it is true. I was there, I assure you it is true. Maybe ND changed its approach for recruting 2019s, but based on what they said during that weekend, I doubt it.

Am agreeing with you, they haven't changed their approach at all. To the potted plant and wooden stick posters, you're just showing your lack of knowledge into the real process after being told from posters who have gone or are going thru their process. Too many stories floating that player x got an offer, Duke has their 2019 class almost filled, etc... Are there some schools being aggressive right now? Sure there are, and players are committing when it makes sense to them, Northwestern and MD being prime examples.
This isn't a revenue producing sport and grades and other intangibles count, frankly more programs should be like ND, Duke, and others and ensure the recruit can be successful at the school of choice.

I would not be surprised if ND has offered spots to one or two 2019's. The recruiting timeline has changed significantly over the past 18 months. There are a few schools ND being one of them who realize that they were not in the game with the top 2018's. It was not long ago that ND, Duke and others could Identify, track and recruit players as rising 9th graders without having to worry about pulling the trigger. Schools were able to build a pipeline without having to actually make an offer. Now however, coaches have to be ready to commit a kid in the 9th grade or risk falling behind their competition. Remember, not all recruits are created equal. The top programs are all chasing the same players. ND wants to be in the hunt with all of the top programs, they want to be able to land 1 or 2 of the top recruits in the country. If you do not get at least a couple of studs per year you will not be competitive. With other top academic schools willing to commit kids early ND is most likely willing to at least give give a wink.

Obviously you were not smart enough to get in to ND. If you think they admit any football player, you are wrong. The average football player at ND is not as smart as the average student, but is there a school in the nation where that statement isn't true? They don't admit a single player who they don't think can graduate. Many players major in something soft, but so do many other students, right? Probably like you did, if I had to guess.

No confusion. A 2019 has an offer from ND. I'm sure you are correct about the 2018's. I'm also sure I'm correct about this offer to a '19. She is a top player and has offers outstanding from more than a few places, ND being one of them. ND wouldn't have a chance of getting her if they didn't offer her now. So, unfortunately, the process has accelerated yet again this year and given your knowledge of the situation w the 2018s, it appears ND has had to change with the times as well. What we all thought we could count on/knew from last year, seems to have gone by the wayside. At least for the early wave of recruits. Chances are the next wave will be earlier than last year as well, however.

not smart enough yes, plus I wanted to go to an SEC school for football. but my daughter is smart and probly headed for a Patriot league school or a service academy. all I know if this proposed moratorium on early recruiting is causing a feeding frenzy. time to get aggressive guys.

So here's a legit question and not asking anyone to name clubs or do any club bashing but looking for feedback from people who have left a club and felt they made the right decision. Our daughter is a few years younger but looking for feedback from folks with a few more years under their belt. It would also help if you state why you left and if you found it someplace else. Would also like to hear if anyone regretted or returned to their former club.

Not sure how this info will help you without naming names. Just wondering if the grass is greener? As I'm sure you realize, every situation is different.

I'll bite. My daughter played for a club for two years, when she was a rising 6th and a rising 7th grader. The first year was okay. The second year we had a new coach and even that was okay.

What changed was the entire roster except for my daughter. Okay, maybe three girls stayed. The rest were grandfathered in from another club and that was problem number one.

Problem number two was the atmosphere of the team. The grandfathered-in girls and their parents were chummy, and my daughter, practically the only original member of the team was suddenly an outsider, as was I. No one would pass her the ball, I'd try to chat with the parents and they'd respond politely but never innate any conversation. They included us in nothing, and how frigging awkward when you take your daughter to a local attraction and there's the team enjoying themselves. It was a clique and we were not in it.

The final straw was a complete lack of communication from the club directors and their apparent disinterest in the girls' side of the program. I touched base with parents from the first year and we moved on and had zero regrets.

What you need to look for as you shop around is partly the club specifics, how much, how far, what's included, which tournaments. But also very important is the age level and the team you expect her to play with. Are there girls your daughter knows? Do you know the parents? How well would the fit be?

To the previous poster, yes I think it's more about is the grass greener someplace else.

I do get the clique thing for sure especially when you see a very close group of girls and parents all from the same town. I'm less worried about me but what my daughter to have a great experience. I appreciate the candid response.

Why can't lacrosse play by age-based divisions? What is it about this sport compared to others? It seems so simple and obvious to run things by age. I guess the rich folk like to buy their kids everything, including an expensive extra year of middle school so little Buffy can "compete" better. Pathetic.

I regret being on team elevate I could not recommend this team in good conscience

The most important consideration is finding a team for your duaghter where she can develop best as a lacrosse player. If she would be a starter on one team and the last sub in on another - choose starter. If team A has "stud" players but a lousy coach and team B has weaker players but a great coach - choose B. Find a team that practices together as often as possible - practice is just as important as play. Those are my opinions, so take them with a grain of salt.

NO team/club/coach/parent group is perfect, so you will always be weighing pros and cons rather than having a clear cut choice.

That being said, my daughter is entering her 5th season on the same LI team and she couldn't be happier. Many of her former teammates have moved on to other teams and they appear to be content as well. Some left to get more playing time, others left to play a different position and still others chose a new team because it was closer to home. All legitimate reasons.

At the end of the day, you will be spending a lot of money and a lot of time on travel lacrosse - make sure your daughter is enjoying herself and getting better as a player every year.

Why are you so disappointed with Elevate? Did you just move there from another team?

Couldn't have said it better myself. I think that too often parents are more concerned about their own image i.e. my daughter plays on such and such team, rather than what's actually in the best interest of their child.

Ok but let's say kid gets dropped to second team form club A but club B will gladly take her on their top team. Isn't it better to be on the top team regardless of club? Aren't the top teams given the most attention by club directors and usually have the best coaching?
All too often I see such a dramatic drop off from 1st to 2nd team.

I'd leave the choice up to your daughter. If playing time doesn't matter to her and she's ok with minimal minutes, A team is the ticket. If she wants to play and improve, go with the B team. There will be a drop off in talent from top to bottom, but college coaches have said if a child has ability they will find them. Most clubs play their A and B teams in the same anyway. I know girls who have great skills that languish on the bench of an A team as the coach plays his/her horses almost the entire game in an attempt to win the tourney. Despite a drop in their confidence and happiness, they have opted to stay as it's important to them (or perhaps their parents) from a prestige level. There are many factors to weigh...

Went to an Elevate clinic the other week. Had like 7 age groups combined. One woman coaching who seemed like she couldn't be less interested in being there. You know of any clubs taking girls this late? Need to get out before the summer!

Unfortunately, if you have a pulse and the funds to cover the fee you are in. Better if you have someone on the A team to vouche for you and you are guarantee spot on top team site unseen. All with the promise to beat YJ this season.

NO top Elevate team is beating a top YJ team in ANY age group. I think the top YJ team is comparable to the 3rd YJ team in each age group. Would you agree?

I think there's usually a ringleader in every age group trying to persuade disgruntled players to come aboard with visions of grandjuor. Club directors will make promises of playing time, allowing players to dictate positions and some will be happy others probably not. What most people fail to realize is these ringleaders of your so called friends are usually offered something in return for getting players in the form of "scholarships" or reduced club fees. Think about it why else would they be recruiting so hard? The unfortunate thing is for the ones that leave and end up unhappy, going back is not always an option.

Are you referring to the ringleaders at Elevate? We have one of those parents in my town? They are also the parent coaches at Elevate. Most non-parent coaches have left Elevate so that is all that is left.... parent coaches. I think most parents in the town are growing tired of Elevate and I think this persons association with Elevate is starting to damage their reputation within our town lax program as well.

This is absolute BS. Just flat out untrue. Happy New Year keep stirring the crap.

We are very happy and our daughter loves the team and all the opportunities she has gotten. Sad that you need to come on here and make stuff up.

So says one of the local ringleaders! Once you set the hook keep reeling in!! How many girls did you convince to come over?

Could you expand on the opportunities your daughter was given? Are you a 2019?

The only competitive team Elevate has ever had is their 2017 team and they were never really a top team. Every year they claim to have the next best Elevate team only to be B-C level at best. If you are not looking for a highly competitive team then maybe they are the club for you.

Elevate 2016Blue team was excellent … a lot of the girls going on to play lacrosse in college.

Excellent is a bit of a stretch

Thxs Dave.

They had some very good players but were by no means an excellent team, had they ever won a competitive tournament .I know when they played YJ top team it was not competitive at all. To say that team was excellent just shows Elevate has never had a top team.

Who cares about top team here top team there. Is your daughter happy? People who come on here and chest pump are usually the ones who never played and are living through their kids. My daughter has been with Elevate for 2 yrs now and I wouldn't change a thing. Folks there's a bigger picture out there then everyone fighting about who's team is the best.

I'm happy your daughter is happy with elevate but it probably won't last with Dave running the show

It's funny I keep on hearing about how bad this guy is. Sorry I don't see it. He is hands on with these girls and is always around. Can't say that about other club directors. And not for nothing he does alot for the girls on recruiting side of it. The right tournaments for your daughter to be seen. We aren't at that age yet but soon.

so let me ask you something..if you keep on hearing about how bad a guy he is, maybe, just maybe, there is a hint of truth to it?..cant be ALL bad folks posting..Have you looked into his past business dealings?...may open some eyes...

No I haven't. And that's none of my business about his past. As long as he is doing the right thing now that's all that matters. And keeps on doing right for the girls.

Can I ask for some examples of why your so happy? Many people post how great and happy they are but never offer any specifics.
Did you start with this club or move from another and have something to compare it to?

What kind of "dealings"?

Happy cause daughter loves her teammates and is enjoying herself. Meeting girls from many different towns and building many friendships. Yes and I like when Dave is there at clinics coaching the girls. My daughter plays better when he is around. He knows how to motivate them. Is that good enough for you?

Excellent advice on recruiting from former Tewaaraton winner, Katie Chrest Erbe - and not just for lacrosse:

So you want to play lacrosse in college? Well, I’m sure you’re already familiar with most of the fundamentals of recruiting: join a club team, attend camps of the schools you’re interested in, compile an academic and athletic resume, email college coaches and keep them abreast on where you’ll be playing and when. These are all important parts of the recruiting process, but I wanted to bring attention to a few other, less talked about aspects that are actually a huge deal.

First, it’s extremely important to honestly assess which schools and which level of lacrosse is the best fit for you or your daughter. Maryland, UNC, Northwestern bring in about 8-12 girls per year. So while lacrosse is certainly a sport with tons of opportunity, the sport has gotten much more competitive and the spots at those top schools and programs are more limited than ever. Those programs are looking for the cream of the crop, a chosen few. There are an incredible number of opportunities out there beyond the top 20 Division I schools. Now that I’m in the Midwest, I’ve begun to realize how many Division II and III programs exist that are dying for players. Keep in mind that, for the most part, lacrosse ends after college, so the education piece of your experience truly is the most important. Don’t get caught up in the hoopla of where everyone else is going. Do what’s best for you.

Second, student athletes MUST lead their own recruiting process. There are a few things that cause sirens and alarms to go off for a college coach and turn them off to a kid, and a parent who is working harder than their child to get recruited makes that short list. Once a student-athlete arrives on campus, a multitude of responsibilities are heaped onto their lap. Being a good student, attending study hall hours, turning in assignments on time, managing time wisely, showing up to practice on time with all the correct gear and equipment, being socially responsible, hosting recruits… the list goes on and on. Much of the recruiting process for a coach is feeling out a student-athlete to see if they are capable of shouldering these responsibilities. If a recruit isn’t the one taking initiative in their recruiting process, it’s going to be hard for the coach to believe she will have the life skills and wherewithal to be a reliable member of their team. The student-athlete will be the one attending school, dealing with the coach, etc. once she gets to school, so she needs to be the one doing the work in her recruiting process.

Going back to the sirens and alarms and red flags… this brings me to my next point: making good decisions off the field. Whether it’s at a tournament between games, on your weekends with friends, on a recruiting trip or on Twitter, social responsibility is absolutely essential. We are in a day and age where a 140-character post to social media by a teenager can cost a grown adult their entire career and livelihood. Many coaches have spent decades working their way into the job in which they now hold. This is why many coaches are incredibly cautious about recruits whose decisions surrounding their social lives and their social media usage appear risky. Coaches are finding more and more that taking a risk with a player whose social media is questionable just isn’t worth it. Be smart, think before you post, and if you wouldn’t hold the picture up in a personal meeting with the coach (or your parent for that matter) then don’t post it!

Next, ACADEMICS, ACADEMICS, ACADEMICS! I’m talking to all you freshmen out there! With how competitive things are getting across the board with college acceptance, admission standards are higher than ever and are continuing to stiffen even more. Sometimes coaches have some wiggle room, but more and more college admissions offices are demanding that athletes make the cut prior to stepping foot on campus. In many cases a "C" on a report card, even if it’s from your freshman year, is a big no-no. On top of stricter standards, recruiting is occurring much sooner these days so your freshmen transcripts may be what coaches are depending on when they’re deciding if you can hack it academically at their school. Good grades often signify maturity, responsibility, hard work and attention to detail — all qualities that coaches are looking for in their student-athletes.

Last of all, here's a little analogy that may help as you try to understand and navigate this process. I’ve often said that recruiting is a bit like dating. There are times when either party (college coach or student-athlete) really put themselves out there. There are times when you’re really feeling the love and times when you’re getting all kinds of weird signals… or no signals at all. Here are a couple things to keep in mind. First, recruiting is just one job on the list of a coach’s many responsibilities. Yes, it’s a big part of their job, but they’re also trying to manage 30 players, develop talent, build a solid lacrosse program, scout other teams, watch film, fundraise and keep on top of academics. It’s a HUGE job. With that said, it’s important to understand that almost no college coaches are responding to every email they receive. They receive hundreds and hundreds of emails — especially during tournament months. Also, they are most likely spending the majority of their recruiting time on the recruits they are very interested in. So, if you aren’t getting anything back, it might be time to move on and take a look at another school. If you’re set on that particular school, it may be helpful to ask your club coach to contact the coach to see if they’re interested. If they are not, you have two options: move on to another school or apply and try to get in on your own and ask if they will take walk-ons.

As you can see there is a lot more to getting recruited than playing on a good club team, scoring goals, making saves and getting ground balls. Make sure you’re taking care of life outside of lacrosse; it’s as important as your on-field value. And, remember to read the signals as this can save you a lot of time and confusion.

Ugh. Have read so many of these posts about Dave, specifically, and feel like I need to respond. My daughter is in her 2nd year at Elevate. She is not 2019 -- in fact, she is much younger (2024). While everyone is certainly entitled to their opinion, I can only say that Dave has changed the way that my daughter feels about lax. At practice, he encourages the girls, he motivates the girls, he has fun with the girls, he supports the girls. When my daughter does something well, he is there with a high five. When she makes a mistake, he says that it is great because it means that she is pushing herself to try new things. It is always positive and motivating. The girls all play better when he is there, and my daughter works harder at home (backyard) so that she can show him how much she has learned. Dave shows up to the younger kids' tournaments, he shows up to their practices, he is fully "in" when he doesn't have to be at a field for his older teams. And, these are not grades with his daughters, they are not recruiting age girls, they are little girls who are new to lax! He loves lax & he loves coaching these girls - it is evident every time I watch him. At the end-of year gala last year, when he was presenting the scholarship for a player, he couldn't get through his speech without tearing up. And the girls who spoke at the end -- the girls who were not coming back due to their graduation year, spoke of Elevate being their second family. I have no idea why so many people are concerned about Dave and his past, but if you're not part of Elevate then leave it alone. We, who are part of the team, are here for a very specific reason. My daughter will probably not play lax in college. That's OK. But she loves her team, she loves her coaches and she is very proud to say that she is part of this club.

Great post

^^Bingo!!
Copied, pasted and sent to my already commited daughter, because it doesnt end with the NLI

Did anyone go to that thing in PA last weekend? If you did - how was it? Did a lot of coaches show up?
Or should we just hold on to our money.

Hold on to your money if what you are asking is: Is it worth it from a recruiting point of view?

Yes, I'm wondering if it's worth it. And also wondering if we made a mistake. My daughter applied and was invited then changed her mind because her two BFF's have parents who are a little quicker on the up-take than I am and opted out. We therefore opted out. I was wondering if it was the right decision. From what I have heard so far - it was not impressive and did not meet the hype. Is that true? I don't think we will need to attend one of these next year.

These things are a waste, generally speaking, from a recruiting point of view. I strongly believe, having had one kid go through the lax recruiting process recently and others through regular college searches, that the best way to do this is find a handful of schools that you think fit your daughter academically, socially and from a lax point of view. Do it just like you would with a non athlete. Put together a list of stretch, match and safety schools. It's a little more complicated in that one school might be a stretch for lax, but a match academically, as well as the other way around. So I would find a few in each category and start focusing in on those schools. Attend as many on campus clinics/camps as geographically and financially feasible. If you have crafted the list well, several of those situations will pay off. No money towards these other "recruiting camps" unless you have it to burn and you think your daughter will just "enjoy the experience".

The other point I would highlight is to try to get someone with influence (club coach, high school coach, former player) to help place your daughter in a top group at the college camp. If it is one of the bigger ones, there are definitely two tiers. One is for the "real" recruits, and the rest is for making money. If your daughter isn't in the group with the coaches from the target school, it probably also is a waste of time.

My 2 cents.

The Elite 120 is worth it in my opinion. My daughter is committed to a top 10 program and that is where she was first noticed by several schools in January of her freshman year. Well attended by coaches, established now, and top players attending for the most part (if they have not already committed).

Fair enough. That's why I said generally. I think most are not worth it. And while there will be anecdotes of "success stories" from these events, the hit rate I believe is quite low. I think you have a much better percentage return on money spent going the route I suggested in my last post. It certainly is not to say that it is the only way to do it. If you have a harder time figuring out the target schools and are taking a more "shotgun" approach to the process, then these larger recruiting events may have more value as well I suppose.

I'll bet since she is a strong enough player to commit to a top 10 program, she didn't need to be at the elite 120 to be noticed. My bet is she could have ended up in the same place having not spent the money on Elite 120. Not saying it was a waste of money, but I don't think it is the reason your daughter ended up where she did.

To be honest, that is probably true. I do agree with most of the original post and as that posted stated, there is no one route. Be targeted and bottom line the kid has to play well consistently and be very athletic which seems to be the biggest common denominator in who gets recruited.

Every girl has a different path. To say one way is definitively better makes you sound foolish. We chose the wait and see who is interested first method and went to ua and going to 120. Although basically ready to decide, we never traveled to all the camps because there was no way to know if they were even interested. We wanted to visit schools that were interested and also fit for academics and lax. Different strokes for different folks.

Dave DELETED

I have no issue with your feelings until you drag the kids into it!!

Knock it off, idiot!!

I'm sure I'm foolish because my wife says I'm an idiot several times a day. I didn't say there was a "definitively better way". I did say that, in my opinion ("my two cents" means that from a fool), approaching the challenge of recruiting in much the same way as a "regular" college search makes sense. You can do whatever you want, that's the beauty of a free country.

Basically ready to decide what?

We were told when we joined Elevate, they had a lot of year round training and were in winter leagues, etc. There is nothing and I mean nothing. the only time you see anything they do in the off season is on social media when DK posts a picture of him and 5 kids off somewhere you we weren't asked to go. This club has been a huge disappointment.

We hear nothing from Elevate any more. There is little or no communication. We asked about opportunities but heard nothing. We are looking into opportunities with other clubs for clinics and leagues especially with season starting in the not so distance future.

I don't think this is just Elevate and we are not with this club so can't comment on what you were promised but I have yet to hear about any club that offers true year round playing? Sure all the clubs offer clinics but they are mostly geared toward the younger players. As far as winter leagues, they seem to be very hit or miss and mostly miss! I think part of the problem is it's very expensive to rent quality indoor space and if there isnt enough demand and clubs can't make enough money they won't do it.

Call around to other clubs they would be happy to have you play for them.

How does Elevate compare to Others ?
The cost is 2200.00 per season and that just pays for tournament fee's. No winter clinics, no indoor leagues -

Why is it so much money ???

Do the math - TEAM ELEVATE is making a LOT of money on selling little girls a dream of playing college sports. ITS A CRIME !!!

By far and away, no fan of Dave K.--in fact, I KNOW he is a certified crook..but, their costs are prob right in line with most/all clubs nowadays...we play with Another club and they charge slightly less but do get winter practices...but hey, I am DK will make it up to you somehow...and he does have a lot of followers on FaceBook so that must be worth it, right?

I think the fact that you are hearing nothing from elevate is due to the fact that the administrators who were running the club both left. Many coaches have left as well. We don't even know who our daughters coach will be this summer. I know many coaches listed on the elevate website are no longer there. We too are concerned about the summer and disappointed that the entire off season has been a bust. We had better expectations based on last year and what we were told this year. No winter clinics, no leagues, etc.

Here's a suggestion, if your not happy leave but truth is its no better anyplace else.
Winter leagues - there are none to join. You want to train, get a bunch of your daughters friends of equal ability and or teammates and find a good trainer to do a small group lesson. There's no silver bullet out there and many of the top kids are training year round. The difference is they are not sitting home waiting for a tweet or email from the club director.

Here's another suggestion, don;t believe all the BS that these people post. So much of the stuff on here is complete BS from disgruntled parents who never played the game and are now living through their children's lacrosse lives. It amazes me how "caught up" these people are. Go out and have a catch with your own kid - even if you have to use a baseball/softball glove because you never played.

Wow, how profound

Just to clarify, which information about Elevate are you calling BS?
1) that there are no winter leagues/clinics?
2) that directors and coaches have left?
3) that the club has lost access to the Sports Hub for indoor training?

or that Elevate lost access to CSH school fields because DK was running a biz on taxpayer dime?

Impressive you know all the Dave k facts I'm surprised he is still around

kool aid will run out soon...

I agree. I think elevate has been exposed for what it is. I think that people have figured this out and will move on. The few people I know that are left at elevate are not happy and looking at all of their options.

Not happy about what? You people are starting to have myself second guess staying with this program? Why such hate? My experience has been good. DK works with the girls real well. What do you want him to do? Only thing I don't like are parent coaches that's it.

You are new to elevate we were happy once I wish I left sooner than I did Dave cannot be trusted he will lie straight to your face and put your money in his pocketI do not really like saying bad things about people but I don't want other girls getting blindsided by Dave. I should have left sooner. There are a lot of honest travel teams on Long Island that really care about the girls look for them

Really?? Can you please tell me where the Honest Travel Teams are? I think every team I know of is bashed on here. Is YJ, TG, TE, 91, Express honest? Every one of them is bashed terribly on this site and all their directors should be in jail according to posters.
It is a free market, if you are not happy, move on. But buyer beware. Do your research.

Anyone who runs a CLUB program whether it be lacrosse, soccer etc is in it for the almighty dollar at the end of the day. Anyone that states otherwise is full of BS. With that said, my daughter played with Elevate for a few years. It started out great, DK preaching family values, "Elevating the girls" etc etc but it quickly became more and more a money grab from every angle. Costs for HUB winter league's were exorbitantly inflated with rosters of 20+ kids. Offseason practices (Fall/Winter) were ZERO unless you were paying for skill clinics run mostly by DK at the HUB. The only practices you received here were a few right before your first tournament followed by one to two practices per week while you completed the 4 tournaments. By the time the team gels the season is over. This is followed by additional money grabs such as the end of the year Award$ dinner, pre-tryout mini camp$ and then tryout$.

While I can't comment about any "honest" clubs out there, my daughter has moved on and they have already had more practices from fall to date than probably the past 2 years combined at Elevate. Since DK lost the relationship with the HUB as well as field space in CSH, go ask the 2019 girls what they are doing this Winter. They are scrambling to put practice sessions and teams together on their own in order to get themselves ready for their freshmen season. I was a "Buyer" here unfortunately for one too many seasons and would tell anyone to "Beware" that you get little value for the money you spend here.

Anyone that disputes what I said above please back it up with facts that support Elevate is doing otherwise for the girls

I could not have said it better myself. Dave k preaches bs and lies straight to your face any club is better than ekevate

Your post sounds too rationale to call BS. Sounds like you weren't happy, moved on and seem better off. I think everyone's experience and expectations are different and maybe some just don't know any better?

Sounds like an honest, non-bomb throwing assessment. We are making a move for my younger daughter next year if things don't improve with her current team, and (if you feel comfortable with it) could you share what team you chose that is better than Elevate? (If not, I understand not wanting to create a SH*& storm on the thread). I was looking into Elevate, YJ or maybe Legacy.

Every club charges extra for clinics, their end-of-year club-wide parties and clinics. Not sure why Elevate is being singled out. Do you think YJ runs their weekend clinics or mid-week leagues for free? No. Those activities are all optional and "extras". What is wrong with you people? Do you give away your services for free? I am in healthcare...dont give away my expertise for free. Do mechanics fix your car for free? Do teachers tutor for free? NO. I have been to this rodeo before with two different clubs....they are all essentially the same. This is their business and it is treated as such. Get real.

You are correct about everyone charging for the extras. However when Dave started his own team after leaving Express he bashed that club to anyone who would listen. Fast forward to today and Elevate has become everything he was.criticizing his daughter's former team and YJ's for being. Hypocrisy at its finest.

I think you are spot on and if you ask two people at the same club their opinion you will get two different answers. I think it also depends on what team you are on within the club. Most of the unhappy people are not on the top teams or were former top team players that got demoted. I would also venture that many of the unhappy parents don't have a realistic view of their childs ability and as badly as they want the next superstar for many it's not in the cards.

Dk took a 1000 dollars from me and will not give a refund. He said the money is non-refundable !
Can I sue him in small claims court ?
Is Elevate a corporation or a non-profit ?
I checked the NYS corp website and its not listed ?

Does anyone have information that may help?

We should take a class action suit he took money from me as well

Not for anything and DK and I are not "special" friends as many of you think BUT, you guys call him out by name and yet you remain nameless. How much credibility do you think you deserve? In my book, unless you sign your name to each and everything you write, you are nothing but a troll and can spew all of the bull you want. That is just not even odds.. Just sayin!

i would hope that requirement would go for ANY director mentioned by name....so Shannon Smith will get the same treatment?

I gave those trolls no credibility either and personally think that situation was a bunch of loose cannon entitled parents. Again, throw out someone's name and add yours too.

Question. And yes there is no "right" answer. But if your daughter could likely see the field at any college lax program in the country, where would you want her to attend?

I know everyone can answer "wherever the best fit is ... wherever she is comfortable ... wherever she'd be happy if lax weren't in the equation etc."

Putting aside those boiler plate answers, pick a school. Would it have the balance of a potential National Championship and great academics, would it have the absolute best academics with likely no/small chance at winning it all? Would it be best lax program bar none? Just curious.

My daughter likely doesn't have this luxury, but I was just curious what people think.

I think I would say Duke, Northwestern ...but then I think, could you really say no to Princeton, Stanford or Harvard? And then I wonder what the awesome experience at a Maryland or UNC must be like for those girls and I go in circles.

What do you say?

I would say it's not your decision...it is your daughters. Visit the school multiple times and have her make the choice. All the schools mentioned are great, but it has to be the right fit for your daughter athletically and more important academically. Let's not forget socially either, the feel and the atmosphere has to feel right for her. She can visit many times before making a decision. Good luck to her!

USC

I second that

If I could've picked For my daughter I think I would've been happy if a school like Rollins offered her and she picked them. D2, Florida, high academics. As it turned out she picked a D1 school in the CAA. But, I think a high academic D2 school is an almost perfect situation.

You're an [lacrosse]. if you think for a minute you have no part in the decision you are wrong. You still paying! It has to be a good fit for the person yes but the poster clearly asks put all of those in a vacuum answers away and give an answer.

STAN UNC DUKE USC (warm weather for us). Notre Dame Any Ivy Lousiville.

Jj

I am most curious what club you moved to. It seems you are happy now and so this is good information to know. Thankyou.

3 USC's and a Stanford. Sounds like Cali is on the rise. Interesting that no one has picked Northwestern yet. Is it weather? Or do you think the Amonte magic is gone?

I enjoy a discussion like this much more than the nasty stuff. Anyone with daughters at any of these places? What's the actual experience?

Weather, big time sports, and a program on the rise

And "straight outa Compton"!

Is it true DK was hired to coach a HS team? If so, does that mean he can no longer hang around our HS games and berate the coaches and program? Any truth to this?

Liberal nirvana.......and on other side of country. No thanks

Other programs have caught up and Northwestern has a reputation of only allowing girls to take certain majors and the weather is chilly!

Doubtful that a school district would hire DK

UNC, no brainer

Holy trinity in hicshvilke

Holy Trinity just did

Girls or boys lax?

they will regret that hire soon enough!

Head Coach for Girls Varsity???

they churn through coaches pretty quick. They don't pay and all the athletes are at the other catholics

if true.... if anyone can sell a program, its DK so for that purpose alone, its a home run for Holy Trinity...works for him too as he will get full use of a private school facility to run Elevate and his various $$programs...if it were a public school, he would have problems getting facility for his exclusive use...nice work, DK

And add on the $$$$s he will make from the HT kids that will join Elevate so they get playing time at HT. Money, money, money! He could take that job for free just given the fields they will give him for elevate which he will make money off of and the additional kids that will join elevate.

Roster majors don't seem to be that way ... See a few Pre-med and few engineers, including a player who started every game. Seems like most top places r like that. Just looked at Stanford too. Only a couple "real" majors there. Other than Ivies, who doesn't steer majors?

0

Heard the Elevate college bus tour was like a mini van tour as there were no girls. Heard they had like 7 or 8 kids. That is a far cry from where they were 2 years ago. Amazing how far they have fallen!

Why do you care? Strange that you obsess about a group of girls going to vis it colleges. Worry about your own kids business!

Would have to agree, what does it matter to you? Don't play for elevate but I think that's a great idea and probably a lot of fun. Sounds like a great way to expose even younger age girls to college campuses. Not sure what your beef is with these guys but I think it's time to move on.

Soooooo funny. I have a picture in my mind of DK pulling up with a few girls to a major college with the minivan all decked out in Elevate colors, bumper stickers and the Elevate logo on the side of the van. In all seriousness, a lot of people have dropped Elevate for various reasons. It will be a challenge to rebuild what they had a couple of years back. Not sure what changed.

Karma. In life you get what you deserve

Numbers are down everywhere in travel lacrosse. Seems to have peaked about 2 years ago. Parents are on to the next hot thing

Not sure I would agree that overall numbers are down but there are more clubs and startups then ever before.

definitely a better more competitive landscape on LI a year or 2 ago

Competitive on LI. Name one club from 17s down to 22s that can beat YJ ?

Grrrr...

To clarify, I don't think the landscape on LI is more competitive than 2 years ago. I think the competition for business for directors of girls lax clubs is more competitive. I think the competition has been watered down. So clubs like Elevate are not only losing girls to other clubs like Icon, Legacy, Igloo, etc. who are new, but Elevate has to settle for less skilled players just to fill the rosters and keep the $$$$ coming in.

Name the top 5 2019 teams you have seen.

Here are mine:

M&D
Hero's
Skywalkers
Yellow Jackets
Mass Elite

NO You are so wrong. Don't you Know it is

1)YJ 1
2)YJ 2
3)YJ 3
4)YJ 4

5) Everyone else

You clearly have not been paying attention

That's correct for Long Island, but poster is correct when you include the rest of the northeast.

Can't call it a fluke when they beat em back to back....

I would include Capital on this list. Best team in DMV and a number of commits already...

Ok fair enough. Any others want to chime in?

Where would you slot Capital among the Maryland teams?

M&D
Capital
TLC or Skywalkers

Add Integrity Green to the list. I saw them play a little last summer and they are legit. Right on the heels of M&D and Heros. Very good team.

no Heroes? I thought in the 2019s they were pretty strong.

Anyone out there that left their club but returned the following season?
We made a move this season but begining to regret our decision but concerned how we will we viewed if we want to return?

Why are you regretting your decision to leave?

Mnd
Heros
Yj
Sw
Integrity-capital-tlc. All the same

Anything different and you haven't watched the last two years.

And I think I saw that heros dominated mnd at full strength at the end of last season. But not enough to get them into 1.

Capital is only some parent putting them in there. Good but not top 5. Let's be real. Got demolished by heros.

Something is going on at SW. Teams not as strong as in the past. I would remove them from this discussion. I would put Capital and SW and TLC behind Integrity.

Don't disagree w that. Integrity is very good.

I'm throwing Mass Elite back in the mix. And before you bash me, my daughter plays for YJ. My guess would be that they are maybe only really strong at this age group, because my older daughter has played them before and it wasn't very close.

We played them at LFTC (we were down one of our better players but still) and they were impressive. We pulled out a 1 goal win in the last second.

Appreciate you recognizing another team, but had to laugh that you couldn't get through it without throwing in the "missing one of our better players" excuse. On a 12 player team, one "better" player shouldn't make that much of a difference.

I would imagine it wouldn't be too difficult if you didn't burn any bridges when you left, but I have no experience with this.

but lost twice to TG last summer..so go figure

Ouch

That was the 2nd team Integrity, nice try though.

Steps beat the yj 1 team this fall

Integrity "A" team is Green and "B" team is Blue. Blue lost to TG.

in a recruiting tournament...pretty much the same as preseason in the nfl

Integrity Green lost TG Black

Twice

Stop the excuses they are all recruiting tournaments

Look at where Capital is sending girls---top academics/top teams....they are certainly a top 5 program.

Are we talking about 2019s?

Kid got demoted made a knee jerk decision based on some others and probably let emotions get in the way. Been to a few clinics with the new club and not sure team is what it was cracked up to be. Will stick it out and hope for the best obviously have not seen the entire team together but feeling a little buyers remorse. Didn't make any noise when we left just didn't accept the spot.

Capital is good at this age just outside top 5 tho. Maybe in a tie for 5th I'll give you that.

Clearly top 3 are:

MnD
Heros
YJ

At this age group. Then I think you can make an argument for the others.

One mnd and and three heros going to umd. Another to psu and another to unc and several more not allowed to commit yet but will go to top 5 school

YJ 2019 would lose to some 2020 teams, including yj 2020

after the 2020 commit I was expecting a flood of 2019 ladies to start jumping. Any news/movement?

Interesting, what LI club had the dominate 2019 team?

None , YJ has the best 2019 team on long island but they are not a very good team( worst top team of any YJ age). Its not a lack of talent its more the coaching. The actual coach is a good coach but I believe is rarely there and a few years ago they added a homer coach to the ranks and the team has been a mess since then .The homer coach brought several kids from his hometown with him and has no idea what he is doing .The reason he was promoted is simple he will kiss as much butt as necessary and he was the only coach in the YJ organization that the actual coach could stand behind and still see the field.Will be very interesting this summer as team 2 YJ may surpass team 1.

Yj is surprisingly week at this age group. That being said they have high standards so they are still a top 5 team in the country. With heros crushing mnd at full strength at the end of last year, there may be a shakeup in the top programs.

If dad had a relationship with gary gait they would have "jumped" already

How many times have they beat TG or Liberty?

Your continued attacks against this teams coaches are fairly transparent. As a former bench warmer one would think that you would be prepared for a similar situation to transpire with your daughter. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree!

Would Elevate be in the top 5 in this age group?

Liberty 19's have to be considered right there...YJ still team to beat, but others like Liberty nipping at their heals...

HAHAHAHA!!! Good one. First of all, YJ isn't top 3, certainly not clearly, in this age group. Elevate is nowhere near YJ. So lets be a little logical here, please. Just to begin with here is a list of teams WAY better than Elevate 2019 ... M&D, Heros, YJ, TLC, Mass Elite, Steps, Skywalkers, Capital. I'm sure you guys can come up with more. These Elevate people are FUNNY!!!

Really? What are you basing that on? Also, please tell me who else is nipping at their heals.

"Your continued attacks against this teams coaches are fairly transparent. As a former bench warmer one would think that you would be prepared for a similar situation to transpire with your daughter. The apple doesn't fall far from the tree!"

Couple questions for you ? Why do you think the team has been relatively unsuccessful , certainly less successful than other top YJ teams. Is it lack of talent or something else. I am basing my statement on what I have seen, heard and results. Coach is a nightmare in his hometown with many top players and parents getting as far away as they can causing the same divide he does at travel. You obviously feel you know who I am so grow a set and contact me. Benchwarmer ,maybe, maybe not, depends on the sport. I will be waiting for your call, email, or dare I say face to face conversation.

grrrr..cat fight!...you will be the guy in the IROC right?

Love it. If you guys (or girls) fight let us know when and where so we can all watch. Nothing like lax parents mixing it up. Represent!

Do you mean YJ? A few examples ... G8 last summer. YJ 3-2 in 5 games. There were 5 teams with at least 3-2 records or better. Lax For The Cure, YJ lost to Steps and beat Mass Elite by 1. I would say they are in a group with 3-5 teams behind the top couple in the age group. They r fine. They just aren't "Clearly" one of the top 3 teams.

I find it quite interesting and highly hypocritical that you are interested in having a " phone conversation, email or God forbid a face to face. It really sucks to have someone speak poorly of you behind the veil of anonymity. Here's a thought how about having the same one on one conversation you are requesting of me ,with your coaches who you continue to besmirch . For the record I never singled anyone out but it appears as if you felt the need to defend yourself from anonymous attacks. I am sure you felt the need to defend your position just as the recipients of your attacks most certainly do as well. It's time for you to make a phone call. MAN UP !

You two A-holes realize you're fighting over 14 year old girls lacrosse right?

If you don't stop being mean, I'll scratch your eyes out and pull your hair! LMAO

that's a long list of teams and some are real soft.. a guy on my desk daughter plays for steps out of NJ. he is crushed every Monday morning, according to him they have never beaten any LI team, even elevate.... don't know much about mass elite either

what team are you watching? we have never lost to steps and have probably played them 10 times in this division. get the facts.. wth man?

First off, I believe Steps beat YJ at Lax for the cure. Doesn't matter tho. Was not saying Steps is as good as YJ. Was just saying YJ is not clearly in the top 3 in 2019. They are in a pack of 3 or 4 teams that are a SMALL step down from M&D at least and probably Heros. That group of 3 or 4 is up for debate but at least includes Skywalkers and a few others. As far as Mass Elite, they lost to YJ by one at the buzzer the only time they have played, so MIGHT suggest they are at least in the ballpark? And Mass Elite handily dismissed Elevate at that same tournament. Was not even a game. So there are two conclusions I am making. 1. YJ is very good, just not clearly one of the top 3 in the age. Might be, but it's not clear. They maybe in a tie for 3rd w several other teams, how's that? Elevate is not in the same league as at least 8 programs, maybe more.

There is a rabid Elevate supporter on several age group threads demanding proof that Elevate is not considered as one of the top clubs. Has some of their teams taken a game from some top teams once in a while? yes. But honestly across all age groups there is no way you can consider this club the top tier, not even in a single age group. I know you will point to some random win over anther club here or there as proof, but big picture, I am sure if you asked any and all the people from the top clubs if they thought Elevate was top tier, you would hear a resounding NO. Top tier meaning they have a team in every age group at or near the top five. That list is short and Elevate is not remotely close. Even on long Island the may not even be in top 3.

I think the question was how many times have they beat TG and Liberty?

Topguns has taken a large step down in recent years but still edges out Elevate. The debate begins between Elevate and Liberty to round out top three on LI.

Thanks for not saying why this YJ team is the worst top YJ team , don't worry everyone knows the answer as to why this age group is not even in the discussion as top team in the age group. Actually you attempted to single out a child when in fact I was just singling out the butt kissing [lacrosse] that pretends to be a coach. Could be wrong but I have heard this same [lacrosse] may be breaking some rules in regard to school district residency to up the anty on butt kissing . Feel free to disparage a kid again but that will make yours free game .

Md seems so civilized now!! Thanks

It's not important who is the top team in Long Island as much as the girls are happy and having fun

Don't have a daughter on either of the 2019 teams but having seen them both play I would take liberty black over elevate blue for sure. Liberty is a much better team. Elevate has a few good players but do not play as a team.

Steps beat YJ 1 and Top guns in back to back Games to end the fall Season!!!!

Congrats, 2 great wins. You must have gone 4-0 at that tournament, right?

Elevate is very weak compared to top teams in the 2019 and 2020 age groups and I think that would hold true for other age groups as well. Have mostly seen them in the 2019 and 2020 groups and I believe other younger ages are pretty much the same. They do not draw the same talent other clubs draw so its hard for them to compete at a high level.

yeah sure they did. those rich kids with their 25 kid rosters from NJ.. the profits that club generates make CR look like a non profit volunteer rec coach

You talking about Steps 19?

Elevate 2020 Blue is a very solid team. Not exactly at the point of a YJ Blue, but I would consider them top 3 on LI absolutely.

ahh yeah. what other team shows up with 15 subs all lined up waiting to play? feel bad for those kids

What towns will feel the hit of the girls going to the private schools

Uh...No. Maybe #5. YJ Blue, Leg Blue, TG Black, YJ Gold

TG black. Stop

Elevate Blue tied Legacy and YJ Gold last summer so not sure why they are behind both and TG Black lost their star player so I certainly would have them below all three of these teams.

Why r u guys talking about 2020 teams in 2019 thread? Go there please. Now back to our originally scheduled programing ...

How's the recruiting road treating everyone? The timelines moved up again this year. Does it seem like it's slowed down a bit now that teams are in season?

Seems like it slowed down a bit. Yj had a couple kids commit last week, i guess it just depends on the schools.

where r they going?

I think 2 recently committed to Notre Dame and Maryland. Others listed on YJs website. Most other programs do not have as many 2019s committed yet. Not a statement about JYs (and it is not a race), just based on what is on websites.

They must have heard you - two more this week, Delaware and Penn State.

thank you coach sausage

Nope, not even close - was just following up on a question that was asked. And I only know the sausage reference from reading it on here.

The "dark horse" at this age is the "A" team for Integrity.

Ranking according to a top D1 Assistant coach (not a full ranking but during recruiting said these were the top 3 teams they had seen at this age).

M&D
Mass Elite
Heros

I was surprised. My Daughter plays for a different Maryland team and I can understand M&D and Heros. Surprised by Mass Elite. We have never played them but what about YJ?

YJ 2020 would beat 19 blue

Easily

Keep hearing that. Is it really true? Saw them both play at a tournament in the fall. Not sure I would go that far.

Mass elite?? Obv a parent. Heros and mnd yes. Integrity is also very good. Heros hab yj 8-3 in tourney last year only to end up 9-6. Should be a fun few years now that the girls have lacrosse every day.

Heros also lost to Yj by 4 in a game last summer

Nope. Not a parent. Just reporting what I was told. Out of curiosity, why do you doubt the statement?

What is the estimate of the average age of the MD teams? Bet at least half have birthdays in 2000. They are a year older. If they played true to age, they would not be nearly as "good".

Wrong. That may be the case on the boys side, but for girls it is not. I've been in the game a long time and I do not know even one girl who was "held back".

Maybe that's wrong in MD, but it goes on in Nassau County? I easily thought of 4 girls - all HS players who were holdbacks with fall birthdays

I have never heard of anyone intentionally holding girls back but I can tell you this is impacting soccer with US soccer moving to calendar year age groups. Will certainly see some changes to many travel clubs and is going to make for an interesting year.

As a reminder, just when things start to get interesting in travel lacrosse and teams begin to gel and skills really peak... these tournaments turn into all showcase formats, you play 4 games and go home.. equal playing time ( as it should be in a showcase) wins don't matter, top teams in different brackets etc etc.. was a little frustrating because you think your kid is on a really good squad.. but those big time match-up showdowns never materialize..
it's all good in the end when the commitments start to pile up, and you see the kids from rival clubs are applying to the same schools as your daughter and they are more interested in hugs for their friends on the other team after the game then who won

Then you probably don't live in a wealthy Nassau County school district.

Great post, I agree 100%. Priorities change for the best

Not following you? Please expand on your thought. Are you saying wealthy families are intentionally holding girls back, especially in NC?

I don't know if it happens especially in Nassau County, but our school has several girls who are holdbacks. It's rampant with the boys too . Girls are more fall days but boys born in the summer are held back from starting shook based on age guidelines

I don't believe you. I'm sure there are a few when they switch from public to private repeat a year. But the real issue is that I believe the girls start school later in MD. Particularly in the private school systems. The MD club teams don't participate in age-based tournaments (see U15 Nationals) because their teams don't qualify. Produce the birth certificates. I will bet that there are a number of girls on M&D 2019s that were born in 2000. To be "on age" and in 2019's you should be born in 2001.

BTW easy solution. Lets go to age-based divisions, like every other sport. Can anyone tell me a REAL reason that shouldn't be done? The college recruiting thing is ridiculous. EVERY other sport can recruit while playing age-based divisions. The only reason I can come up with is that rich people (a lot in lax) want to be able to buy an advantage for their kid. Anyone have a better reason??

Believe it. I said, I do not know of any girls who have been "held back". Is it possible that a few have, sure but I've never heard of any. As far as starting later here in MD, if it's true then that's not the fault of the girl. As far as Public vs Private, I cannot answer that. My daughter is a current senior at a public school. She has a friend that is the "star" at McDonogh and that girl was not held back. As far as "producing birth certificates"...that's ridiculous. I think even if a girl is "on age" in your opinion, it would depend on when in the calendar year she was born, wouldn't it?

In soccer, birth certificates are presented to the coach or club director (I forget which) and player cards are assigned and shown to the ref at every game. No card, no play. Soccer plays by birth year, not school year.

This is the first year of birth year for soccer and the mandate goes into effect in August/16

Rich people buying an advantage by holding kids back? I got news for you, the rich people are more focused on the right education their kids get and can afford college. Trust me, they are not doing it for the slim chance of some academic aide.

Meant athletic aide

Who cares how old your opponent is ? once you get to High school you play against girls of all ages for the rest of your playing career. If it's a tournament championship you seek, go buy your kid a trophy and stop complaining

Well, my kids started playing before the new millennium and birth year was how it was done then, so I'm not sure what has changed or what your saying. Or did they change the cut-off date? Is that what you're saying? It used to be August 1.

Um because people get on here and pound their chests about how good such and such team is etc. And if you've got a group of 15 year olds playing a group of 14 year olds, one would hope they would be "better". As a separate issue, as early recruiting has gotten younger and younger, it is starting to bleed into the growth years for these girls. Being a year older in 8th and 9th grade makes a huge difference physically. Not so much later on. These Maryland teams don't pass the eye test on that. They are definitely older. As far the rich people, they don't do it for athletic money, they do it to get their kid into a better school through athletics. Sure beats having to get 1600s and 4.0 in all AP classes right?

From US Soccer;


As previously announced in September 2015, US Club Soccer will be implementing the U.S. Soccer Federation’s birth-year registration mandates on Aug. 1, 2016.

This means that all youth competitions beginning Aug. 1, 2016 will be based on age group cut-offs of January 1 for each age group. Due to additional interpretative changes by U.S. Soccer since this announcement in how competition age groups are labeled, US Club Soccer and other sanctioning bodies are now clarifying the age group structures for the 2016-2017 season.

Beginning Aug. 1, 2016, all youth soccer sanctioning organizations will form competitions based on birth-year age groups.
Beginning Aug. 1, 2016, US Club Soccer will be using the following birth-year “labels” for competition, based upon the season in which competition ends. For example:
Players born from January 1, 1998 – December 31, 1998 will be labeled as Under-19s.
Players born from January 1, 1999 – December 31, 1999 will be labeled as Under-18s.
Players born from January 1, 2000 – December 31, 2000 will be labeled as Under-17s.
For any birth year, the age group “label” will be determined by subtracting the year in which the players participating in the competition were born from the year in which competition ends.

Can lax please follow? Anyone want to argue against? Hockey does same thing.

From a recruiters point of view it would be more interesting to see them play in proper age group. Then the extra year is an added bonus, not the reason they r playing better than the competition.

This is too funny - my daughter plays on one of those top two Maryland teams and the parents on that team pretty well feel the same way. That there is no need to beat our chests when others talk about us enough. Regarding the ages of the girls whether held back or not - that advantage seems to wane after 8th grade. Besides - when a 9th grader is on the varsity squad - I don't think she is concerned about how old that 12th grader is coming up on her 6.