Photos by Dave Anderson/MaxPreps.com
Top: Mike Madsen, who had five goals in Locust Valley’s upset win over Port Washington. Above, twin brother Joe Madsen.
It didn’t take long for there to be a major upset in the nation’s No. 1 hotspot for lacrosse, the NY/NJ/CT tristate region.
It happened on Wednesday as Locust Valley, coming off a 6-11 record in 2013, beat 2013 Nassau County finalist Port Washington 10-9.
St. John’s-bound sophomore Mike Madsen finished with five goals and an assist. Madsen’s twin brother, Joe Madsen, had one goal.
“Starting off the season with a win against a high ranked Class A school gives us the confidence to succeed and do great things this year,” Joe said. “Our win was an overall team effort while both our offense and defense played great.
“We know what we are capable of and hopefully winning this game made a statement that Locust Valley is here to compete.”
The Falcons’ assistant coach, Mike Gallagher, is a teacher at Port Washington.
“Ever since he started here, he wanted to beat Port Washington, but had never done so until now,” Mike Madsen said. “He was extremely proud of us and what we accomplished.
“His personal situation gave us a great motivation to go out and get a win for him. Port Washington came out and played a great game, but we pulled through with the tight victory.”
The Madsens are looking forward to getting more big wins at the next level. The twins verbally committed to St. John’s University, as reported by Joe Lombardi on LaxLessons.com Lacrosse Insider premium coverage section.
Joe, who was also recruited by Cornell, UPenn, Georgetown, Dartmouth, Binghamton and Albany, is 5-foot-6, 130 pounds. Mike is 5-foot-7, 132 pounds. Joe is a righty, Mike is a lefty. You can watch Joe’s highlight reel here. You can watch Mike’s highlight reel here.
Now, let’s hear from Joe and Mike on their commitments.
What were the main factors in your decision?
Joe: First, the proximity of the campus to Manhattan and the city environment.
(St. John’s Head) Coach (Jason) Miller and (Assistant) Coach (Dan) Paccione’s vision for the lacrosse program and the fact that Coach Miller and Coach Paccione made me feel very comfortable. I look forward to playing for Coach Miller and Coach Paccione.
The fact my brother and I get to play together.
Also, the academic options offered. I plan on studying business and accounting.
Mike: I like the environment of the campus being just outside Manhattan. The coaches also made me feel comfortable. I get to play with my twin brother, which is a plus because we have had a natural chemistry on and off of the field our entire lives.
I plan on studying business at St. John’s and look forward to playing for Coach Miller and Coach Paccione.
I love the city, the program, the coaches, and the school, so this is definitely the place for me.
How did you get introduced to lacrosse and what other sports have you played?
Joe: In first grade, another set of twins that Mike and I are good friends with invited us over one day to throw around with lacrosse sticks. Their father, seeing that we were good baseball players/athletes, wanted us to pick up the sticks and see how we liked it.
We loved it from there on out. My brother and I have been playing together ever since. My brother and I played travel hockey and played basketball.
Any final thoughts?
Joe and Mike: We greatly appreciate the time and effort of our varsity coach at Locust Valley High School, Matt McFarland.
Matt McFarland is not only a great coach, but a great friend and mentor.
I also want to thank my box coaches, Brian O’Keefe and Pat McCabe.
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.
Get in the Zone: The HS Zone
High School Zone: Hudson Valley
High School Zone: New York City
High School Zone: Upstate New York
High School Zone: Pennsylvania
High School Zone: Beyond the Northeast
More LAXLESSONS Links
Top 25 tristate preseason team rankings
Top 100 tristate preseason player rankings
LaxLessons.com Video Specials
5 in 5: Tristate Top 25 preseason team rankings
5 in 5: Tristate Top 100 preseason player rankings stories
5 in 5: Top 2013 offseason tristate stories
Recruiting coverage
* Updated tristate recruiting commitment rundown for Class of 2014
* Updated tristate recruiting commitment rundown for Class of 2015
* Updated tristate recruiting commitment rundown for Class of 2016
* Updated tristate recruiting commitment rundown for Class of 2017
* Class of 2013 commitment rundown by high school/prep school
* Recruiting commitment story archive
* 2012 National Letter of Intent Fall Signing Week story/photo archive
Be a Lacrosse Insider
Lacrosse Insider: Tristate Division I senior (Class of 2014) commitments by college
Lacrosse Insider: Tristate Division I junior (Class of 2015) commitments by college
Lacrosse Insider: Tristate Division I sophomore (Class of 2016) commitments by college
Schedules Scanner
2014 men’s/women’s college, boys/girls high school schedule links
Apps for iPhone/iPad
* Download for free the new LaxLessons’ playbook Android app in Google play.
* Download for free the new LaxLessons’ playbook iPad/iPhone app in the iTunes store.
Connect with us
* Follow LaxLessons on Twitter by clicking here.
* Become a Fan of LaxLessons on Facebook now by clicking here.
Subscribe to our free newsletter
Be sure to sign up for our free online newsletter. Just enter your email address on the “Receive Our Newsletter” link on the homepage of LaxLessons.com.
Posted In: Long Island lacrosse, Recruiting Rundown, Section 8
