US Lacrosse Community Forum Forums MID-ATLANTIC LACROSSE MARYLAND FORUM Girls 2026 Grads - Mid Atlantic Region

The fact that you think going to D3 is "average talent" just shows your ignorance and i feel sorry for your daughter. Going D1, D2 or D3 is a preference for some. Of course some that go D2 or D3 weren't recruited to D3...but there are certainly PLENTY of girls that CHOOSE to go D3 OVER D1. D1 is ALOT of work and some D1 schools the player has no life outside of lacrosse. Some girls want both.
There is NOTHING wrong with going D3...and no, my daughter plays does not play D3, she plays D1...

Every athlete needs to consider the " Broken Leg Test' before applying and accepting any college offer!

☝🏻

Yeah, because no one with talent plays D3. Somehow the goalie for Northwestern was able to play at a high enough level at Tufts for 4 years to step right in and win a D1 championship this year. D1 or bust mentality is so limiting and sets girls (and families) up with unrealistic expectations. Lacrosse is a game and should be fun. If it can get a player into a school that fits their academic and life goals, it has added value. If the goal is lacrosse only, kids will end up disillusioned because lacrosse will end for most when college ends. A tiny fraction will find a way to scratch out a living from lacrosse.

Totally accurate and not to mention that college is about academics and receiving a degree first and foremost. There are plenty of D3 that are better academically than their D1 counterparts and offer better pathways to desired degrees. To poopoo D3 is absolutely ridiculous and is telling in terms of where your priorities are for yourself and your kid.

You must not be on a top team at your club. No way a player on those top teams will consider a D3 school until it’s obvious that there are no more chances to get there. The parents all feel D3 is below them.

Excellent take here!

Does anyone know how many club teams take on new players after freshman year? Or how many player they may take on?

Several clubs have tryouts (of course they are the same days) and want to understand if they are worthwhile. I know it is mostly dependent on the player being better than what the team had existing.

I am just curious if any new additions are predetermined and tryouts are somewhat for show and partly to find something unexpected.

Find a top team to play on if you can. Any team that plays in highest brackets in area. The top 3 will be tough to make but not if your daughter is outstanding. Tlc and Coppermine could use a few athletes. Along with the 2nd teams at top 3.

Not sure if TLC is getting better or the teams they played last weekend are on the decline, but a good option for new adds

If your daughter is outstanding, she'll make any team anywhere, even right after freshman year. The likelihood of her truly being that level of outstanding but not being on any of the clubs radars is low. You don't give much backup info here such as has your daughter played for a club previously. If she hasn't and she wants to try to make a top team, she should go for it! Just make sure she understands the odds aren't great. For kids, taking a chance and not getting the spot is a great life lesson. there will be lower level teams she can always jump on if she can't get on a top team. They'll do supplementary tryouts. The top teams are not predetermined technically, but the reality is that your kid would have to be a lot better than current players, not just slightly better. With the top 5 or 6 clubs regionally, especially the top 2, this is going to be tough, but it's not impossible. Under those top 5 or 6, it gets a lot easier, especially for a high-level athlete that might be just a little raw on stick skills. At the risk of starting a flame war, I would recommend against going to TLC at this point. It's a club that's on life support.

Agreed on last sentence. Baltimore area order of toughness
Top 2 - Heros or M&D
Swb
Coppermine
M&D red
SW white or Heros white.
Just my opinion.

Hero’s White Sadly is no longer the tough top 5 team it was 3 years ago. Great group of girls and super families. But they will not be in the top tier of recruiting

Unfortunate but true. They have won 1 game since last summer and it was v. Virginia One this weekend. I wouldn't be surprised if a few of their better players leave. They really should drop down a bracket or 2 to gain some wins. It can't be fun just losing week in and week out.

That is a shame about HW. Heros had two powerhouse teams. Now they have one top 5 team and HW isn't close to a top 100 team. They are playing low mid tier teams now. I wonder why they would do that? I would think having two top teams in an age group would be an asset not a liability. It looks like they have dropped below SWW in talent level.

But I wouldn't put Coppermine 2026 in this conversation at all. M&D Red is far better than that team. Red is just below the top tier teams. Coppermine isn't even close to being on their level.

That’s gonna change because the 24 M&D black coach is now the head coach at Coppermine 2026.

Even if it's true that JB is the new coach, he needs better players. Where are they going to come from?

It's not going to change. Reputation in recruiting matters and it takes years to build that up. Buying properties does not establish reputation. The 2026s will have graduated before it matters. And that is a big assumption on anyone's part that Coppermine will ever have a reputation for getting girls recruited at top schools.

Maryvale assistant?

John Brown went to Coppermine?

I thought he was helping w 26 Black?

They have to start somewhere and maybe it helps that tean find a good place to continue playing? Coppermine is trying to get people in that will help them build their lax program. Will see if it’s true.

M&D Red is probably much better than Coppermine 26, but at some point, they're going to have to prove it against good teams. So far, they're boosting their ranking by running the score up against weak teams.

Could not agree more. JB has a proven track record of success. That success has been at M&D with their black teams. The 24 team is as loaded as any team could be. How much difference is he going to make with the talent that is on this 26 team? Are girls from top programs going to go there just for JB? I doubt it. They will probably get a few who want more playing time. 26 girls are a year away from there recruiting summer. SR at M&D is a big reason girls will play on a Red team there. He gets girls recruited. The same applies at SW and Heros.

Big name coaches don't matter much if there isn't a recruiting director with long established success and connections. Maybe AJ will hire SR to buy his reputation. As the previous post said, until then it is a big assumption that Coppermine will ever have that reputation.

And it could be they just offered JB more money!

Truth. Stop the chest pounding when it comes to how great you think Red is until you actually beat good A teams. Red is a strong B team, nothing more.

Was this announced somewhere on Coppermines website?

I'm pretty sure the 2024 team isn't done yet. And he is essentially an assistant on 2 other teams. Seems like spot stirring.

Could not agree more. JB has a proven track record of success. That success has been at M&D with their black teams. The 24 team is as loaded as any team could be.

So they loaded it for him ? Didn’t he coach a couple red teams too and help them improve ?

Coppermine does already have some talent and maybe JB will be able to bring over kids that aren’t happy at their current club/s.

JB is going to Coppermine

At this point, it's not about coaching, it's about showcasing the talent you have. Also for high school summer season, most players are too busy with showcases and prospects days to even attend practices. Most clubs combine practices between 25 and 26s just to try to get numbers most days.

USCL posted a players to watch post for lftc, how do you get put on there? or do you pay to be put on

Coaches submit players. All teams could do it and pick the names. That's all it is.

JB will win, but Coppermine parents better get ready for the turmoil. Yes he will bring over players and there will be a large turnover in the roster. He had some great players leave his team at his previous stop, including a first team all-metro player this year , and another 2024 player committed to Northwestern. You may also investigate why he got dismissed from his high school head coaching job two years ago. In summary JB will win, but the controversy follows him.

YOU are the kind of parent no one wants on their team.

Strange response. I don't think the poster said anything to make them a bad team parent. Can you elaborate?

If JB is such a great coach and will bring over talent, why would a Top 3 club like M&D just let him go without locking him in to a new team to coach? The Coppermine 26 team is not good, so something else is going on to attract JB to the Club.

Perhaps he's being offered more responsibility than just coaching the 26s.

JB may know the game, but there is more to coaching. He was dismissed from MV as an assistant then dismissed right before the 2022 season at Westminster. And, as PP mentioned, several top 24s were on that M&D team and are now elsewhere (mainly SW) and left because of him.

Sure. I will elaborate for you. The kind of parent who comes to an anonymous forum to talk negatively about a coach headed to a new program. You don’t think the program he is headed to did their homework? They clearly see something in the man to hire him, don’t you think? Instead you bring all of the bad stuff onto an anonymous forum to cause drama. That kind of parent. Glad you’re not on my team.

As for the high school stuff I don’t know. The MV situation seems off since she loses coaches all the time and not well liked expceot by some of her players. As for the club he lost a couple the first year and then added good talent that has been around the whole time. Everyone has to find the right fit. The poster is most likely someone that left the team and likes using this board to stir up stuff. Maybe even has a 28 daughter too ?