The action will be hot and heavy up and down the Northeast today through next week with several major showcase events.
Be sure to check back for updates and weigh in with any info/scores/thoughts of your own.
Here’s a rundown of what’s on tap:
New York Shootout Presented by Nike, July 25, Henninger High School, Syracuse
Participating teams: Hudson Valley (Sections 1 and 9), Nassau (Section 8), Suffolk (Section 11), Albany/St. Lawrence (Sections 2 and 10), Central (Section 3), Southern Tier (Section 4), Rochester (Section 5) and Buffalo (Section 6)
For more info: http://laxlessons.com/blog/2009/07/new-york-shootout-info-rosters/
Final scores
Central 12, Nassau 8
Central 13, Suffolk 9
Central 9, Rochester 7
Nassau 9, Suffolk 6
Southern Tier 10, Hudson Valley 4
Hudson Valley 8, North Country 3
Western 8, Hudson Valley 4
Western 7, Southern Tier 6
Suffolk 8, Rochester 7
Rochester 9, Nassau 7
Southern Tier 12, North Country 3
Western 10, North Country 0
Final shootout records by region:
Central 3-0
Western 3-0
Southern Tier 2-1
Suffolk 1-2
Hudson Valley 1-2
Nassau 1-2
Rochester 1-2
North Country 0-3
Battle of the Hotbeds, July 26-29, University of Delaware
For more info: http://www.hotbedslax.com/
Champ Camp, July 23-26, Johns Hopkins and Towson universities and other sites
For more info: http://www.champcamp.com/tournamentschedule.html
Connecticut Chargers Tournament, July 25-26, Darien and Greenwich high schools
For more info: http://www.ctchargers.com/#50085
Posted In: Recruiting Rundown
Central is already the unofficial champ. Hahah. Just got these socres texted to me from the Shootout …
Central 12, Nassau 8
Central 13, Suffolk 9
HV lost to Southern Tier 10-4.
HV beat North Country 8-3
Suffolk beat Rochester 8-7.
Suffolk wins 9-6 over Nassau.
Hudson Valley lost to Western, 8-4.
NYS Shootout seems like a bit of a dud. Agree?
Obsevant, ur life a bit of a dud? Agree?
Au contraire mon chere Rambo!
Here’s a report from Hotbeds, folks.
WestRock’s U-18 team tied Northport 7-7 in its first game at the event.
Seven different players scored goals for WestRock.
Prime Time is 2-0 at Hot Beds…Beat “Braveheart” and “Black Jacks”. They are playing with out Daniello, Lanza, Morris, Pray, Pickel. First 4 are injured – Pickel chose not to play from what I understand.
Team Superstar went 7-1 at champ camp.
The Prime Time team looks pretty good, Goalies and D look tough. Who is the big D-man who never comes off the field?
Good to know, the prime time team is basically the JJ team of next year plus Near and McCormick from Bronxville. Not good that they’re playing without some of their best players though, are the injuries bad?
In light of Westrock U-18 team’s embarrasing 12-2 loss to a horrible HV Shootout team and Superstar/Primetime showings at Chargers tourney and Hotbeds it’s clear Superstar and Primetime U-18 teams are far superior to Westrock.
JayBird…. Its not that clear.
PrimeTime (John Jay) Still has to show offensively what its has at the middie position and developing depth there.. Their Goaltending and Defense has looked very good all summer. I really like the new efensive package they are utilizing.
The offense has been lackluster and inconsistant at times. Their weakness at times this summer has been clearing the ball .against a good pressing team. But is summer and the coaches will find a way to fix that come spring..
Lets see who shines for them at HotBeds
It’s a summer team so they do have one or two areas of the game that still need work but it’s impressive how in one year Primetime has supplanted WestRock. I rate PT and Superstar as even.
Here’s our first final of the day, gang.
Connecticut Elite beat WestRock 5-4 in OT in U-18 action at Hotbeds.
Some other finals:
Ward Melville 10, Sting Gold 1
Northport 7, Team Fin 3
Prime Time has won their first 2 games today – going 4-0 overall. They beat Team Georgia easily, and Mass Elite in a close game. With their injuries, it has been a balanced team effort.
The LI Pride U-18 team beat the Ocean State Warriors 5-3 at Hotbeds.
Team Hills of Long Island’s U-18 beat WestRock 6-4.
Here’s a quick college note.
The domino effect of coaching moves that started with Bill Tierney’s decision to leave Princeton for Denver is continued today.
Penn has named Mike Murphy, who built Haverford into a Division III power as its new head coach. Murphy takes over at Penn for Brian Voelker, who went to Drexel to take over for Chris Bates, who replaced Tierney at Princeton.
Here’s more on Murphy’s appointment:
http://www.pennathletics.com/ViewArticle.dbml?&ATCLID=204765645&DB_OEM_ID=1700
The WestRock U-17 team is also at Hotbeds and just beat Indiana 12-5.
Mike Murphy is a New Canaan HS and Duke Grad. Great chice by Penn.
Prime Time beat Team Miami by 4 or 5. They are now 5 – 0 at Hotbeds. One more game today vs. Team 302 (Delaware).
More Hotbeds scores:
U-18: WestRock 13, Team Central 4
U-17: WestRock 12, Team Fin 4
Prime Time stays unbeaten… They beat Team 302 (Delaware) by one. They are done for the day.
Any reports from the West Rock vs. Sting game?
Westrock U17 beat the Sting by one. don’t know the exact score. John Haeling from Briarcliff had three goals
Thanks Gonzo, but I was looking for the score/report from the U-18 matchup of the same teams!
Happy Tuesday, folks.
Here are our first scores of the day from Hotbeds in Delaware.
Be sure to post any scores/info on games going on there as well.
U-18: CT Elite 8, Upper Shelf 1
U-18: WestRock 10, Western Michigan 6
U-17: Massapequa 10, LI Pride 1
U-17:WestRock 7, New Jersey Shamrocks 6
Also, WestRock U-18 lost to the Sting 6-4 last night.
Keep those updates coming. Salem Shores – how is Primetime doing today?
Here are a couple more Hotbeds scores, folks.
18-U: WestRock 14, Long Island Pride 1
17-U: WestRock 8, Long Island Pride 7
Be sure to post any scores/info on games going on down in Delaware as well. Since I’m not at Hotbeds, I don’t have access to all the scores.
Primetime’s 18-U team is 1-1 today. Injuries have left Primetime with just three players on the bench.
Among the players injured for Primetime: Mike Daniello (shoulder), Billy Pray (ankle), Jimmy Morris (concussion) and Alex Lanza.
The Hotbeds all-star game is tonight. I will be posting the names of players who were invited from throughout the region as I get them. So be sure to check back for that.
Let me be the first …no one be surprised when you see the name Fitzgerald
Good luck westrock …
Here are some U-18 records for teams from the region at Hotbeds:
Ward Melville 6-0
LI Pride 6-1
Primetime 6-1
CT Lacrosse Club 5-2
Northport 4-2
Massapequa 4-2
Connetquot 5-2
WestRock 3-3
LI Riptide 3-3
CT Elite 2-4
Baldwin 0-7
More U-18 Hotbeds scores from today:
CT Lacrosse Club 7, Team Miami 3
Team Hills 3 CT Elite 2
WestRock 13, North State (NC) 10
LI Pride A 8, Mass Elite White 3
Connetquot 8, Team One 7
Washington Starz 4, Primetime 2
Ward Melville 8, CELAX Elite 4
Florida 17 5, Massapequa 3
Black Jack 8, Northport 7
Massapequa 3 Florida 17 5
Connetquot 11, Team Hammer 4
Western Michigan 7, LI Pride 4
Just got word that representing WestRock in the all-star game tonight will be two Division I-bound players: Erik Pfiffner of Somers (Colgate) and Shawn Honovich of Lakeland/Panas (Fairfield).
ouch Ok so i missed it by a little gotta admitt the kid is a player , and congratulations to Erik and Shawn. To all the local guys,Prime time,Section 1 .. enjoy your time and experiences. Any word on Mcormick playing with Sting .
Here are the three players selected to represent Primetime in tonight’s all-star game:
Charlie McCormick, Bronxville
Brandon Merlino, John Jay
Forrest Walter, John Jay
McCormick and Walter are a bit banged up, but will be playing nevertheless.
Prime Time beat Baldwin (easily) in their afternoon game.
The win over Baldwin improved Primetime’s record to 7-1 pretty impressive, especially considering all the injuries.
I just talked to Pete Coluccini, who coaches the team along with Chris Kear, and he said he has been very impressedby the chemistry the team has developed this season.
The all-star games are tonight at 8:30 (Class of 2010 game) and 9:30 (Class of 2011 and younger).
Joe ….. according to the website Merlino is the only one from PrimeTime on the All-Star team
All three from Primetime I named made the All-Star game, HV LaxFan.
Keep in mind, there are two all-star games one for the Class of 2010 and one for the Class of 2011 and younger.
Not sure what Web site you’re referring to. … Please post the link.
HV LaxFan –
I was able to find the link you are referring to, and you are correct that all three Primetime players are not listed. That is because their status for the all-star game was not set when the rosters were made up because both, as I noted, were banged up a bit with injuries. But I just received word from Primetime director Nick Daniello confirming all three McCormick, Merlino and Walter indeed will be playing in the all-star game as I originally reported.
You folks can view the rosters for the all-star game at the link below (scroll to the links at the bottom of the homepage). Please keep in mind the above info, however, when viewing them:
http://www.hotbedslax.com/
Agreed Joe, Prime Time’s showing has been impressive. Arguably playing without their best offensive player (Daniello) and their best defensive player (Pickel) as well as other key players – their play has been remarkable. Not a real surprise to those that follow them – there is considerable talent on the roster. They might not get headlines but they ALL can play.
Well-put, Salem Shores. The fact Primetime is a first-year program too makes its achievements this year even more impressive. And the future is bright. Primetime’s U-11 team went unbeaten.
Also, WestRock U-18 just downed Black Bear (Pa.) 15-2.
Sometimes it shows that there are other amazing players out there who never make the headlines.
The Prime time team played some amazing lacrosse, with all the injuries and not a whole lot of rest for the guys on this team playing, I hope the guys who made the all Star Team have the energy to play…. congrats to Brandon Merlino you so deserve this, Forrest Walter and McCormick congrats to you too.
Joe …. They are actually 8-1 (with one more being played as we blog) they were one of one a few teams to get in two games on Sunday …. and not sure why they are not counting both games
Sunday they were ………… 2 – 0
Monday they were …………. 4 – 0
Today they are already ………2 -1 with one more remaining against CT Lacrosse
Any reason you know of why they are not counting the second win on Sunday?
It could be a deciding factor for the playoffs
PT won tonight 8-2 over the CT Lacrosse Club. I think on the first night some games were canceled due to thunderstorms. So to ensure all teams had an equal number of games one of the Sunday victories for PT was deemed a scrimmage. So whether they are 9-1 or 8-1 – they are doing well. No word yet if they qualify for the final 4 of the camp. Stay tuned!
Salem –
I see from the scores posted for PrimeTime that they(on average) kept most teams to 3 or less goals ,…. How good were the goalies? Since the defense was also shorthanded ….. how good were they?
Joe, I believe I saw the name of Joe Costigan, the rising junior middie from New Canaan, on the 2011 Blue all-star team at Hotbeds.
I’m getting this info 3rd hand (from a player to a parent to me) so I can’t comment directly. My info says that the goalies for Prime Time have been excellent. Word is there was great disappointment that one of the PT goalies did not get an all-star nod. The All-Star selection process at Hot Beds is another conversation for another day.
Notice Michael Collins, rising Jr of Rye made the 2011 All-Star team at Hot Beds.
It only lists Merlino as an All-Star because I believe forrest and McCormick are not aloud to play because they missed games due to injury. Why they don’t let them play, I don’t know, but that is what’s happening.
A better question might be how did they get selected to an all-star game in a tournament where they were injured severely enough to miss games. But that’s how summer showcase tournaments work, I suppose.
Congrats to all selected.
Hotbeds All-Star Rosters below:
http://www.hotbedslax.com/
Prime Time did not qualify for the camp final four – based on some set of convoluted tie-breaker rules. They won their last game this morning vs. the LI Pride, 5-4. Word is the PT guys played different positions than they normally would. The finished the camp with an overall record of 10-1. Good job by all!
Lax Novice – you are right about AS selections…It doesn’t make sense, and the money making camps should be concerned about perceptions. These camps are not cheap.
Salem Shores ~~
I agree with your comments on All-Star selections! Its amazing how a team can go 10 – 1 and give up a very low amount of goals per game ….. and have none of their goalies or D-men be mentioned or considered as All-Stars ( is quite odd.) Lets give a shout out to the No-Names!
Having seen years and the evolution of Summer Lax…………………….good D and team ebdurance win these tournements. Great overall effort by the Prime Time Team and their program.
…..and on another note, we can see that John Jay will have successfully and fully reloaded after a not so stellar 2009. The Sav Brothers have a strong close knit group to work with here!
Ward Melville beat Team Florida in overtime to win the team title at Hotbeds.
SirLaxalot and/or Joe ~~
How do you think the PrimeTime team would have done against Ward Melville ?
Anyone know about Super Soph rising junior showcase on Saturday August 1, 2009 in New Canaan CT.?? All day affair being run by Whitten Lacrosse?
http://www.ctsupersophs.com/
Town Lax Recruiter –
I think if Primetime had a healthy squad, it could certainly have held its own vs. Ward Melville. Primetime was pretty banged up by the time Hotbeds ended and four key players Mike Daniello, Billy Pray, Jimmy Morris and Alex Lanza were all out with injuries.
Primetime playe Ward Melville in a tournament eralier in the year, I think the Lehigh Laxfest and I believe they won. As for Hot Beds, they were definitely hit hard with injuries and absences giving that J Morris, Daniello, Pray, Lanza, Pickel were all not playing, and on top of that during the tournament Walter and McCormack had to play through injuries. Merlino really stepped it up scoring a few goals each game, as well as Brendan Morris. From primetime Walter McCormack Merlino were all selected to play, but with some lame rule Walter and Mccormack had to sit out. Daniello was also selected to play in the All Star game despite only playing about 1 minute in the first game.
Local team update at Hotbeds….
Nice job by Prime Time in Delaware, they beat all the teams they should have beaten…Except for one or two all their wins came against teams with losing records. CT was a quality win, but Georgia, 302, Shamrocks, Mass Elite…ewww, that’s wearker than day old coffee.
Many many of the teams were banged up and short roster players – the trainers were busy all week.
The good news for PT is that their best days are ahead of them and I see them as rising not falling. Forrest Walter is still the most overrated player in Section 1.
WR U17 went down minus six or seven of their players, filled in pretty well and beat the teams they should have; blew a win against Black Jax Black and came close to finishing second in their bracket.
Westrock U18 was B-A-S-U-R-A all year.
For all the talk about the town teams, how they have too many guys from a particular town and how its ruining the travel circuit;
Superstar had 7-8 Ridgefield guys
HV had 8-9 Yorktown guys
Epic had 8-9 Lakeland guys and 8-9 Mahopac
Prime Time had ??10-12?? John Jay guys
AND
if you look at this year’s WR U18 you will find 9 Somers players.
THAT’S NINE SOMERS PLAYERS!!!!!!!!!!!
The entire defense was the Somers defense and it was not tournament caliber.
This wasn’t a Westrock team it was the Somers Summer program and inferior by every standard Westrock has ever made for itself. Add in a couple of malcontents and this squad was cursed from day one.
Looks like Lew J. fell into the same trap as the others by slanting his roster toward his school team and putting out a team that was less than elite.
This team was garbage by Westrock standards and I’m sure Janavey will do what he needs to next year by recruiting and fielding a truly elite group – as well as revamping his coaching staff.
If he doesn’t he might as well close up shop and re-open as a town team because too many WR parents are livid and won’t pay for this.
Don’t be surprised to see Westrock tryouts next year…and if you do try out, you’d better bring your ‘A’ game because it will be a serious year for the Pack.
Joe Lombardi ~~
Why not give credit and kudoos to the PrimeTime players who did have great performances at HotBeds, instead of always hyping those who were missing?
Mike Daniello, Billy Pray, Jimmy Morris and Alex Lanza were all injured before Hot Beds started and did not participate.
take_it_easy~~
I think Coach Lew will pull it together next year. And as a note the two prep school players …. Pat Johnson and Mark Swank, would be considered two of the top talents in Section 1 if they would have stayed with their respective high schools.
HV LaxFan –
The info you mentioned as well as the names of many standouts for Primetime this week were mentioned here throughout the week.
That’s why it’s important to check the blog each day and frequently throughout the day. No worries, though. If you feel any players mentioned or maybe even not mentioned deserve props, then feel free to do so. That’s what this blog is all about getting input, opinions and insights from readers as well as myself.
Looking forward to reading your thoughts and specifically whom you’re referring to that hasn’t already been noted.
Joe“
Having seem all the PrimeTime games at HotBeds this past week, and not to take anything away from the offensive players mentioned, I was making the point that their Goalies and the D-men held them together ….game in and game out throughout this tourny …. and with no names mentioned or recognition.
Thanks for the follow-up, HV LaxFan. Good point. While the goalies and defense were cited previously, go right ahead and name each individual you feel is worthy. That’s what the blog is all about.
Just to repeat, this blog provides a forum for everyone to share insights, info and opinions not just me. This blog is a conversation. Not a speech by me. (Thank Heavens). So please, chime in with any and all thoughts and specific names as you see fit.
This blog is a very valuable resource for good information about all the goings on in lacrosse in our area. I’m hoping Joe and all the boys at LaxLessons have a great remainder of the summer and thanks for all the hard work. See you in September.
I second Lax Novice’s comment.
Thanks very much, guys. Appreciate all your great contributions to the blog.
Be sure to check back throughout August, too. Among other things, this is one of the busiest times of the year for recruiting and you never know when commitment news will break, as well as last night with J-Bello’s decision to go from the Red Rage to the Red Storm.
http://laxlessons.com/blog/2009/07/somers-bello-commits-to-st-johns/
People get so touchy if you forget someone…Geez.
No doubt the Wolfpack will be back next year with a vengeance.
The U18 may have struggled along the way this year, but it played a very tough schedule and had some high quality wins along with heartbreaking losses. The program is in fact a victim of it’s own success because expectations are always through the roof – probably with good reason – it is excellent.
But what’s getting lost here is that the U18 were still a quality team; the U17 was outstanding and garnered a lot of attention at UMASS, the Classic and Hotbeds; the U16 came together very well and came within a goal or so of winning at UMASS; the U15 struggled; but the U13 was also terrific. Doesn’t sound too shabby to me.
For anyone who doubts Lew’s commitment to his players or his talent for putting together elite teams, pay close attention because it will be a fun time for the Pack in ’10.
I disagree with take_it_easy though; Don’t expect to see tryouts for WR, if anything, they’ve play it even closer to the vest and the selection process will become more selective because I know that the WR staff was unhappy with the amount of players who were missing practices and tournaments. Look for them to fill their rosters with talented, COMMITTED, team players and coaches.
Congrats to PT, Epic, 3 Tribes, Team Superstar, Renegades, H,H & H and all the local teams who enjoyed a great tournament season and left it all out on the field.
Now can we please beat West Islip or Ward Melville?! For crying out loud, the highest quality win we had against L.I. this year was the WR U17 over Shoreham-Wading River! Geez! We can do better than that!!
Did I miss a game? Did any of us beat a high-profile L.I. team?? Please say ‘yes’. LOL.
Congrats to those LI teams as well, they remain the standard-bearers by which Westchester measures itself; and good luck Nicky G, we’re all pulling for you.
BTW, could we please get off Forrest Walter’s back? – he’s a kid, a former WR player and a rising star. Maybe you don’t like the way he runs, maybe you don’t like his school, but he can face-off like no other…and…he’s a kid…they’re all kids. Okay, lecture over.
“Now can we please beat West Islip or Ward Melville?! For crying out loud, the highest quality win we had against L.I. this year was the WR U17 over Shoreham-Wading River! Geez! We can do better than that!!
Just so you know the U-13 team beat WI @ Hofstra [ although they did have a couple of 1 goal loses]
Here’s the schedule for tomorrow’s 1-day LI Elite Tournament at Mitchel Field Complex …
8:30 YJ 2012 Blue vs CT Chargers Field 9
10:30 CT Chargers vs YJ 2013 Green Field 4
11:30 Soutbay 13 Black vs CT Chargers Field 9
12:30 CT Chargers vs YJ 2012 Green Field 1
3:30 CT Chargers vs Hills 2013 Field 2
8:00 CT Chargers 14/15 vs Hills 2015 Field 3
11:00 YJ 14 Gold vs CT Chargers 14/15 Field 4
12:30 YJ 2015 Green vs CT Chargers 14/15 Field 5
1:30 CT Chargers 14/15 vs YJ 2015 Gold Field 4
4:00 CT Chargers 14/15 vs Suffolk All Stars 15 Field 3
U-13…that’s okay if they had a couple of 1 goal losses? The win counts!
Finally, hope for Westchester!
A light at the end of the tunnel!
Well done!
HVLaxFan, you’ve got to put down the confetti for a minute bro.
Prime Time played well and beat up some of the weakest teams down there. Baldwin? 302? The list is long and undistinguished.
The Hotbeds people make it sound like their tournament is soooooo competitive and sooooo much better than the others, but in fact its just another tournament with good teams and bad teams…an PT played A LOT of bad teams.
Hey Joe,
I checked out that Super Sophs. in CT. Mostly CT. Kids, I saw a couple from LI and one kid from Rye. Competition ok, All-Star game was decent the kid from Rye was on it Collins?? Do you know him? He was also on Hotbed’s all-star team too??
Hi West Lax –
Thanks for the update. Michael Collins, a long-stick midfielder, is a rising junior who plays for the Long Island Sting.
everywhere_man
you must include rockland on this one,the WI score was 3 to 2 haggerty 3assist
o’sullivan 3goals both from rockland
I watched a few games at CT. Super Soph Showcase. This was an invitation of rising juniors from mostly CT. I checked out Collins, he played close “D”. His 1 on1 defense is solid, He did make all-star team, he if he gets bigger he will be a force on the back end for Rye.
2010 U-18 Summer Lacrosse in the HV will be interesting. The proliferation of teams that are oriented to one school has significantly changed the landscape of summer teams. WestRock used to be viewed as an “elite” team. Whether it will be so again or will become a Somers team with “fill-ins” will be interesting and may have ramifications for other summer programs. If WR = “elite” does it pull players from “town teams? If WR = “town team” does an “elite” team emerge? Interesting indeed.
What will coach Lew do with WestRock? Will it become Somers oriented? It seemed at least partially so in 2009. Will it be an elite team? There was plenty of talent in 2009 but there were clearly a few players who did not seem to be “elite” and the roster seemed to have too many Attack & Mids. Everywhere_man makes a passionate case (post #75) that WR will be better in 2010 – offering the opinion that WR will ….. “play it even closer to the vest and the selection process will become more selective because I know that the WR staff was unhappy with the amount of players who were missing practices and tournaments.
Look for them to fill their rosters with talented, COMMITTED, team players and coaches”. Hmmmmm – (a) we already know that local talent is pulled in many directions, in many cases to school oriented teams -(b) we know that kids at the U-18 age miss some tournaments due to attendance at recruiting camps – does that mean they are not “COMMITTED”? (c) Can a HS coach run an “elite” program that does not favor his HS team?
If so, how is the talent selected? Will players make commitments in the Fall? Early Winter? What happens if those players are subsequently pressured by their respective HS coaches to play on their “town teams”. How would the concept of “elite” be marketed to prospective players? In the past, it was assumed that WR was “elite” – but that perception may be fading. Does WR (or someone else) explicitly state that they intend to be an “elite” team and clearly lay out their agenda/policies such that it is clear to prospective players that they will be playing on a team that meets their expectations?
Will the Empire games be reinstated? Given all of the preceding questions, does it make sense for a HS coach to “go it alone” and attempt to run an “elite” team or is it wiser for him/her to take the safer approach and form a “town team”?
The lacrosse scene – camps, summer teams, recruiting formats, etc. – has been changing rapidly and will almost certainly continue to do so. I am one who will be interested to see how it continues to unfold at the local level. Meantime, I would like to extend thanks and wishes for future success to all of the committed and wonderful coaches who have contributed immeasurably to the growth of lacrosse in the HV.
well said observer, there will always be percieved conflict be it true or not. When happy with a team or situation that benefits your child you don’t normally hear many gripes. It is good to see many coaches getting involved outside of school that is the best way for our kids to improve and get recognized.
Our friend, Geoff Shannon, at Inside Lacrosse has done a nice job recapping this summer’s showcase events, including a list of semifinalists and finalists.
Be sure to check it out. Here’s the link:
http://blogs.insidelacrosse.com/2009/07/31/recruiting-roundup-summer-club-teams-session-wrap-up/
I think some of you are contradicting yourselves when it comes to summer Lax. Especially Westrock. Most of you seem like your complaining about how Lew runs his program and who plays on the teams. Yet within the same breath you mention all the other programs in the area. ( All are watering down the HV ) Westrock still draws from more schools then any other program in the Hudson Valley. And without question Lew does the BEST!! job out of all these followers in helping playes with the recruiting process. Earlier on, Lew J and staff used to get players from Put Valley, Mahopac, Lakeland, Yorktown, Brewster, JJ and New Fairfield, all of who have now ,after the fact started there own travel. This being said, How can WR not start to have More Somers players fill in to cover Roster spots. When you take away some of the top programs in the Hudson Valley, this was inevitable. Epic, and Superstar also do a very good job helping with the recruiting process, and understand what benefits the HS player during the summer period.
I think the trend of going to Town teams, is taking over merely because some have no choice. However I believe that W-Rock will continue to draw from the most schools, and Lew will do his best without tryouts to put together the best people , and help them all he can. Get back to more kids, Just having FUN! HopeI didnt leave anyone out, and best of luck to all in 2010!
This is a terrific thread with many compelling posts.
My son is a WR veteran and had a great time again this year. I’d have an easier time getting him to quit lacrosse than quit WR. lol.
I think the biggest question is whether or not Empire will be re-instated because that will obviously have the greatest impact on everyone.
Aside from that, I will be interested to see whether players who were unsatisfied with their town teams, migrate back to Westrock for a higher level experience, which is more fun for them. My son spoke to many former WR players (half a dozen or more) during the season and to a man they all expressed how much they miss WR because the WR teams are better teams, plus they like playing alongside guys from other towns, which helps them improve and it’s more fun.
I still maintain that with these town teams, the varsity program benefits, but players are still stuck in the same ‘ol same ‘ol, biz as usual with the same ‘ol coach calling the shots. I’m sure for some kids it works, but for many it doesn’t.
And in the case of 3 Tribes, I mean $1250…that’s more than Westrock and and the Pack is almost ten years old with a tremendous track record. 3T didn’t go to UMASS, the L.I. Classic or Hotbeds. What?! (Hey guys, we’re over here!) But I don’t want to turn this into a 3 Tribes bashfest; let other people do that.
I can also mention that, just like every other summer program out there, the WR U18 routinely practiced with half a roster and is wasn’t because players were out of town or at other venues – a lot of the time they just didn’t come. Lew and the guys were not happy about that, nor should they have been. Let’s face it though – it’s summer – and if coaches could collect a dollar from every kid who misses a practice they’d all be millionaires.
Finally, as far as I know, they all had a great time, won some big games and competed well all year. Whether you love them or hate them, WR remains a premiere lax organization and will be only better than ever next year. Lew is a recruiting master and if he can gain back some of his former guys he’ll do it whether they’re from Somers or wherever; and if not, he’ll find new guys – it’s what he does.
2010 will be tremendous fun for all the guys who sign on because they seriously like playing competitive lax, making new friends and playing in interesting tournaments.
P.S. Try outs for Westrock?…no way. lol.
Rock-Dad,
Could be changed but 2010 ESG at least have been scheduled by NYS for Buffalo.
Fast Break, many good points but I think there is a point that is being missed. I am not familiar with 3 tribes, but based on your comments I don’t think that is a good example to use. WestRock used to be the only show in town (in the world of “select” pay for play summer lacrosse). It attracted the best from every HS. There were no or limited options. If you didn’t make the ESG team, WestRock was waiting if you were the next tier of player.
The world has changed. Many have entered the fray of creating “elite” teams for $$$. Some are good, some are bad. But if a player establishes relationships with a particular program, coach, and/or group of players he is likely to stay.
Town based teams are the current trend, as opposed to regional teams and it is NOT because they don’t have a choice for the better teams & kids. The current seniors of Yorktown are the 1st example. Started as Ballers – and will finish as Ballers. Next are the current juniors at John Jay playing for Prime Time. You don’t have a Hudson Valley Elite team without representatives from either of these groups. They only would have left their teams for the Empires.
If Janavey didn’t end up in Somers, my opinion is that WestRock would have had problems in the future. Their younger teams are not generally strong. But they will pull from Somers. Prime Time will pull from JJ, Colsey will get the Ridgfield kids, Yorktown kids will play for the Ballers, etc.
I’m not saying one way is better than the other. And while WestRock will have some very good teams and some not so good – the days of being the regional elite team are over based on the current and future landscape.