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With the accelerated recruiting process, official visits, which cannot be taken until fall of a student-athlete’s senior year, are now often orientation-type trips for already committed players.

Westminster School (Conn.) standout Brian Smyth, meanwhile, has effectively made the most of his unofficial visits. Smyth, a midfielder recruited by many of the nation’s top programs, made not one, but two, unofficial trips to several of those colleges.

In the end, he decided on Duke.

The 5-foot-10, 200-pound Smyth is a righty is an athletic player who excels in three sports. He becomes the Blue Devils’ fifth 2016 tristate commit.

Now, here’s a Q&A with Brian on his commitment.

What were the main factors in your decision?
It came down to how I felt when I was on campus. I liked all the guys I met and the campus itself is great.

The coaches were all nice guys and I got a sense that they were close with the players, which I liked. I wanted to play at the school with the combination of the best possible lacrosse and best possible academics.

What other schools were you considering and what schools did you visit?
I visited a lot of schools over the summer, but it eventually came down to Duke, Princeton, Yale, Notre Dame and Notre Dame. At those schools, I did another visit in the fall so I could see it when people were there.

What are your strengths as a player and how would you describe your style of play?
My strengths are having a variety of moves to get to the net and being a situational playmaker. I would describe my style of play as a dodger.

What area of your game do you need to work on?
I need to work on my lefty shot, as well as my overall accuracy with both hands. I also take faceoffs so I can always improve in that area as well.

How did you get introduced to lacrosse and what other sports have you played?
I got introduced to lacrosse when I was 6 and started to play with Doc’s Lacrosse when I lived in New York City. My dad got me into lacrosse because he grew up on Long Island and had never played himself. I also play hockey and played football until last year.

What travel team do you play on what showcase events did you participate in?
I play for the Bulldogs Lacrosse Club (CT). I played on the 2015 team and went to NSCLA and Crab City with them. I also went to Maverik Showtime, Prep School Showcase, and played for New England in the Under Armour Underclassman Games.

Any final thoughts?
I would like to thank my parents for supporting me throughout the process. They have spent endless hours bringing me to all my tournaments and college visits. I would also like to thank them for not letting me quit the game.

I would like to thank my Westminster coach, Peter Newman. He has been someone I could go to and talk about my thoughts on all the schools and has pushed me to improve tremendously over the last year.

I would also like to thank my Bulldogs coach, Brian Adkins. He has pushed for me since I joined his team three years ago and has helped me a great deal through this process.

Lastly, I would like to thank Bill Zempsky, Bob Macca and Steve Fisher for coaching me at the youth level in West Hartford and teaching me important lessons that I still carry with me today.

Have a recruiting commitment to report? Send an email to info@laxlessons.com, contact Joe Lombardi directly at joe@laxlessons.com or send a Tweet to @Joe_Lombardi or @LaxLessons.

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