US Lacrosse Community Forum Forums NORTHEAST LACROSSE BOTC MAIN FORUM (LI, CT, WC) Boys 2026-10th Grade Fall 2023/Summer 2024

Use this thread to discuss lacrosse pertaining to 10th Grade Boys (2026 Grads) for the Fall 2023/Summer 2024 Season.

Posted this in the 2025 forum. Just trying to be helpful but I’m sure the trolls will come out. I’m actually surprised there are zero posts in the 2026 forum which may be appropriate as high school club lax is really not about wins and losses by this point but more so about recruiting, play good lax and having fun.

This is long so feel free to scroll on by.

For those interested in 2025 recruiting this post is only my opinion as everyone’s experience is different. Background: 2 kids who just went through this. One got into a top 30 D1 academic school without lacrosse and is not playing lacrosse at that school. Other got into a top 40 academic school and will hopefully play MCLA. Both had a good amount of recruitment but none to their liking as academics were more of their focus.

First decide if what is more important, academics or lax. If it’s academics then high d1, high d3, high MCLA is the way to go. If it’s lax, you have plenty of choices with the rest of d1, all if d2 and low-mid d3 and a plethora of MCLA. If your interest is:

High D1 (top 20): it’s never too late but times running short. Coaches always keep 1-2 spots open but your chances of getting in are low. The name of the game is connections: if you aren’t from a top lax High School (or less important a top Lax Club) your chances are low. If you look at the rosters of these colleges, almost all of them have come from a powerhouse High School. Since all these schools are also excellent academic schools, you have to have the grades. Don’t think that lax will make exceptions for you. You have to be an exceptional player to be that’s exception and they have already made their commitments. Otherwise, your grades have to be in the ballpark.

Mid D1 - not too late but now is your go time. Good news, with the exception of Dartmouth and Colgate, the academics needed to get in are not as rigorous

Low D1 - academics are usually not a concern. My kids were still getting interest through March of their SENIOR year

D2 - really not on par academically but some great lax programs. I believe they are are able to reach out to you starting June 15 after your sophomore year.

Really High d3 (NESCAC, Swarthmore, washLee [am I missing any others]) - again, academics are a necessity to get in. They used to start making offers June/July after your JUNIOR a year but NESCAC pushed their back to august, presumedly while awaiting the Supreme Court decision. Don’t know what will be this year

Slightly less high d3 (centennial, chris Newport, Salisbury , colorado college, liberty, MAC, ODAC) - some are better schools but there is some great lax programs where academics are not as competitive

Mid-low d3 - tough to be these schools recruiting. Spots are always open. You may have gotten letters accepting you without even talking to you. It lax is your focus and academics not so much? Then you can always find a spot here

MCLA - 3 divisions with D1 being the best (they have tryouts for some as the rosters have kids from great lax high schools). Such a good under appreciated option for those kids where academics are important. How much more fun would it be to play against Clemson, BC, Stanford, Northeastern, VaTech, Florida, BYU, USC, UCLA, Texas, GaTech, The down side is you ain’t playing on national TV and you have to pay your own way. But on the flip side, A LOT less practice. D2 and d3 more like true club but they do travel.

A couple other points:

Don’t despair by the amount of social media commitments since Sep 1. My kids were getting recruited up to the day they set foot on campus. It’s obviously not too late to get recruited. With 80 D1, 75 D2, 250 D3 programs there is a spot if lacrosse is your main priority.

Most lax players seem to go into finance. But if you are STEM focused, don’t tell them you are STEM focused. A lot of schools don’t want someone tied up in labs and missing practices.

Be wary of prospect days. Many are done just to supplement income for coaches. You will get a ton of invites. How to distinguish? If they mention something in their letter that your kid did specifically (not the rando “we saw you at ‘x’ tourney and were ‘really impressed’) or if they contacted your coach who recommended you to go. That being said if your kid really wants to go then by all means, they should go.

Don’t count on a full scholarship. As one coach said they would rather split the scholarship money amongst 12 recruits rather than give someone a full ride.

Enjoy the process but don’t make a lax commitment and sacrifice academics. I’ve seen too many kids go to a “lesser” school just to commit. College lax is just four more years. College itself is a lifetime decision.

Again, just an opinion and trying to be helpful and not anecdotal because there are always exceptions. Everyone has different priorities. Please post if there are any gross errors. I’m sure I missed a lot so please add on because I wish we had better guidance when we went through it. Good luck to everyone.

Good assessment. One glaring mistake though. You said Colorado College and Salisbury are both mid academic. Colorado College is very high academic (14% acceptance rate) and Salisbury is very low academic (87% acceptance rate).

Totally agree on your assessment. My bad that I wasn’t more clear. I was citing the combined strength of academics + lax together. I hesitated even putting Salisbury in that group at all but given the strength of their lax, it vaults them up but from a pure academic standpoint, the tie aren’t even close.

Express over 91 in Florida

At this point does anyone care ? It’s all about getting recruited now. I don’t think any of these kids are worried about winning a t-shirt

This person is clearly an [Censored], wins and loses no longer matter. Teams are both relevant and college coaches are watching both with the same intensity.

Agree, but when it’s bracket play, everyone wants to win.

How many full teams really showed up to this? Give me a break.

1. It doesn't matter as much any more - just need to be on a top team so college coaches want to watch your game.
2. When has 91 ever beat LIE in this age group? LIE only lost to Team Ten this year and only had 1 loss all of last year.

Sweetlax won the NLF last time i checked and Laxacusetts beat Express easily in semis ..has Express ever won the NLF ?

As stated above...one loss last year and it was to Laxachusetts. Year before that lost to Tigers in finals. Year before that won it. If you are going to say LIE is not one of the top 2 teams solely based on not winning the NLF summer championship..then yes they are not a good team but record and other championships say otherwise. However the conversation was started over LIE beating 91 this past weekend. 91 has never beat LIE.

Not actually necessarily true. College coaches aren’t traveling just to see good games and championship games. They are actually traveling to see the kids in their list so it happens regardless of whether or not they are on a good or bad team.

True but that means the athlete did work ahead of time to get on the list. If your athlete didn't do anything ahead of time and you are in the consolation bracket they most likely are not going to watch your game. They are going to be watching the winner's bracket. Recruiting is a whole process that some don't even know about it. You can't just sit back expect coaches to show up.

100% one of the top two teams based on wins ! LIE is a very good team with an incredible FOGO . Having played LIE many times i would say they have 4/5 Div 1 offensive Athletes surrounded by an average defensive unit , and the best FOGO in the grade!

Thanks FOGO dad

That’s why they are discussing taking the FOGO out of the game , should be the best “ team “ that wins not the best FOGO ..if you want t on grow the sport stop allowing this one position to determine the winner of these tournaments, look at the the IMLCA this past weekend for a perfect example

Do some of those kids play on the Redwoods?

you must live under a rock

I might live under a rock , will continue this conversation after Sep 1 of next year ..will see who is correct ! Not counting the student reclass LSM fyi …

I wouldn't have said it that way, but yes if you are the #1 team right now at 2026 you most likely have 13 D1 kids. Might not all get offers on 9/1 but the starters will all go D1 plus some others.

How old is the LSM

why?

Soooory to ruin the,,but 2026 class is weak to average.

Best players in the class are holdbacks ! It’s sad that’s the best way to make yourself relevant is tell your kid let’s play with the younger kids ? That logic is insane to me , and undoubtedly done by parents that care more about being the best as opposed to competing and challenging yourself to get better!

What are you talking about? If they win the face off, stop them from scoring. If your defensive unit is incapable of stopping an offensive series, you are not the "best team." The problem is crappy defense not dominating FOGO.

Clearly you don't know the 2026 class...

I have to agree with getting rid of the FOGO. Often times might as well just have the teams sit it out and determine the winner by having the two face off play a best of series. I get your logic of the defense needs to get the ball back however if you look at basketball they don’t play winners ball because generally speaking the defense is at a disadvantage in a scoring sport.

I agree that the FOGO has too much influence on the game for such a specialized skill. One way to look at it is to count offensive possessions for each team and compute their offensive efficiency (goals per possession). Keep in mind the offensive efficiency is impacted by the other teams defense so how good each teams offense and defense units is factored in. If Team A has an OE of 35% and Team B has an OE of 25% then most would consider Team A superior to team B.

When you give Team B a FOGO who is going 16 for 20 then there are 12 more possessions for that team which would be 4 more goals in this case. It may even be more when you consider a dominant FOGO is also generating fast-breaks. To me that advantage is too big for a specialized skill. I would like to see more 6 man scrums on the FO to have more of the team impact the result.

Face offs will not be changed. Was a discussion between coaches.

You should bail out of lacrosse now, because holdbacks and private school kids dominate the rosters of every major program. The crumbs are left for public school kids who are on age. It’s an unfortunate fact that will never change.

What showcases are good that are not invite only? My kid is looking lower level D1 and down. Thanks

HAAAA. Clown that is so narrow minded. When you look in the mirror you see and flabby spoon chested pencil neck body that wishes he was even reasonably at lacrosse. Go fall off mount Everest.

Laxmasters has some good patriot league camps but they are expensive. I think ML8 does a good job as well. Mylacrossetournaments seems more geared to LI. Not a huge apex fan as the numbers are enormous and usually you get a lower level assistant coaching you. Prep showcase at Brunswick is good and you don’t have to be a prep school kid. NXt is Ok but I feel the quality has gone down a little but.

We are in the same boat. We are spending our money on Prospect Days instead of Showcases. Although I have heard the Lacrosse Masters High Academic is a good one to do. Lots of positive feedback from that one. Good luck to your son!

I’m not even sure I understand what your point is but whatever. There is literal proof on every D-1 roster. So keep believing your silliness, you sound amazingly intelligent. What exactly does “wishes he was even reasonably at lacrosse” mean? Guessing college never happened for you.

The laxmasters high academic is indeed very good but not for the person looking for lower level D1. Too expensive and the schools are not a match unless they do the patriot league laxmasters. Prospect days are hit or miss. Many are money grabs to supplement assistant coaches salaries. If you’ve been invited or told to go to one by your coach it may be worth it. But if you just show up you may not get anything out of it if you aren’t on the “colleges list” I.e. don’t count on getting “discovered”. But regardless, I think your chances are still better than a showcase with 150 kids per grade and 50% field time. Good luck!

What a lesson to teach our young generation , if you can’t play with , excel with or dominate at your own age group go play with the younger kids ? Lol ..my dad made me play with the older kids , and when mommy and daddy weren’t around later in life to “ reclass “ me or clear an easy path to success, like the real world i was able to overcome and figure things out . Sad lesson we are allowing to dominate such a great sport ..society in a nutshell make it easier

It’s ironic that the best club teams have the most holdbacks
Well that’s not fair that team is a “National Team “ well your team has 8 holdbacks , kids that should be playing a year sometimes 2 years up ..that’s fair Just so confused , this should be a simple conversation, soccer even got it right !
Let’s look ..top 5 2026 teams..no order so relax

Laxacusetts
Team 91
Express
Team 10
Sweetlax

There are a minimum of 5 kids on each some have 10 that are playing Down .you don’t think the D1 coaches know this ..embarrassing .

Coaches absolutely know it and prefer it. I can’t believe we’re still talking about holdbacks for 10th graders. And no my kid is not a holdback but he is on varsity playing against and with older kids.

Good try pal. Crabs are number 1.

Coaches would also like your kid on steroids. You going to give it to your kid? Be the adult. Holdbacks are terrible for sports. It’s a selfish decision and it is cheating.

-It isn't cheating if it is allowed.
-The average hockey D1 freshman is over 20 years old.
-College coaches don't care and almost prefer an older, more developed player..
-For the record Express has 2 holdbacks and 91 3.
-Most of the holdbacks go to private/prep schools. They are competing with yours and my kids for college spots. It's reality.
-It makes your kid better and more prepared for varsity/college at this age/level.
-I assume your kid isn't on one of these top teams. If he was, you wouldn't care about reclasses because the coaches are there to watch them, hence also watching my son.
-They are now using age verification at lower ages, which is meant to make it safer for developing kids. As a 2026, if your kid is already playing varsity (which all public school kids on the teams above are) playing against a kid a year older isn't a thing.

who are the top goalies in the class?

Not sure where the “steroid” coaches are, but you should absolutely report this to the authorities or you are a complete coward and a lousy parent! Your kids coach is pushing steroids and you’ve done nothing? Call the papers for God’s sake, what a rotten adult you are! Coward. Shame on you

Like tops at all the other positions, they are on these teams below. lol

Laxacusetts
Team 91
Express
Team 10
Sweetlax

Umm, coaches don’t care about a holdback. Don’t they andvise kids to go do another year ant a prep school? I think they do. Only people that care are ones that didn’t reclass or PG. Pg year is same thing in reality, PG fills the spot of a potential HS recruit. Is reclassify/PG cheating? Some say yes, some say no. To each his own. If somebody makes a decision to give their child the best opportunity, that’s their business. And it seems to work out opportunity wise. Again, no rule against it.

In order next level, express north , hhh, west coast stars, 91 , crabs , prime time , dc express , Long Island express , hawks

How good could express north be. That team is ranked 35 and they lost a pile of games this fall. Give me a break. This ranking [Censored] is so rigged.

HHH goalie is actually 2027 playing 2026. and you left Team Ten's goalies off the list. The one was MVP at 1% last winter, old Tigers goalie. He lost out this winter to express north goalie.

i would assume Goalies
Express Long Island
91,
Team Ten
Laxachusetts
Sweetlax ny and fl

If your ranked in the 30’s I would pump the brakes dad.
Express North, CoachC, 91 Primetime and Lax Black all have the top goalies. Period stop. Rank them however. Those will be the first to go Sept 1.

I forgot Team 10 and Sweetlax above.

I would assume , regardless of Social media hype, these coaches know who the best players are in every position regardless of rank, etc

You must be new to the recruiting scene. Goalies almost never go September 1st. 91 doesn’t have top goalies.

The Show.

Actually the tip-top goalies do go early to the tip-top schools. Then there is a break.

https://www.insidelacrosse.com/recr...25&position=G&hometown_state=ALL

Top 20 goalies went in Sept.

That’s fine. The poster said September 1st. Of all the goalies ranked within the top 100 last year only one was from Long Island (Ippolito). Long Island isn’t a goalie hotbed anymore.

Like I said.......the poster said they will be gone by September 1st. That's a big difference from going later in September. Again, if you look at that list you posted there are only 1 or 2 from Long Island.

Well in reality the actual number going on Sep 1 is actually fairly low. Whenever someone says Sep 1 lacrosse commits, I’ve always loosely interpreted that as the first few weeks

What’s the difference the top 50 are usually done before Thanksgiving and most of the other 4 stars outside the top 50 are done as well.

Both starting goalies in the national championship game last season were from Long Island!

Dukes goalie is not from Long Island

He grew up on Long Island

Can anyone give me some honest feedback on the following showcases. Just wondering if anyone saw any real value in them or were complete money grabs

Player Series
CBL laxers winter and summer
Blatant summer exposure
Apex

If there are any others you found to be a money grab (or very good ) Please let me know. Thanks.

Players series was run very well. More like a camp than a recruitment event. Duke and UNC I believe run the event. The next two are kind of local events. Maybe useful if you want to go to a LI school. Apex is a money grab. A gazillion kids. Low level assistants coaching. Fake all star selection process. Huge social media presence which makes it seem more important than it actually is

CBL is actually more useful than this poster is suggesting and not just for Long Island schools. My older son didn't go to the schools that saw him there, but it did get him a lot of attention a couple of years ago.

Agreed on Apex and the social media thing is something to remind your kids about. Those videos on Instagram aren't what are gonna get you recruited. Don't fall for it.

Player Series is the best of this bunch.

Arguing about team rankings is a waste of time folks. I know this age is new to actual recruiting but your team's ranking doesn't matter. Probably never did.

Don't let anyone tell you that college coaches only watch the top clubs either. That's just what your club directors will tell you with their hands out for the next check.

Focus on your kid getting better and being on the field as much as possible during every game. On the field for a B team gets you more looks than the bench of a AAAA team.

Agree with most of this. No one cares about wins and losses in high school. And coaches will come see you regardless of what team you are on, IF you are on the list. The one thing I will say about rankings is there does seem to be a correlation between higher ranked teams and their college placement. Whether or not it’s the chicken or the egg, who knows, but they correlate nonetheless

That is not good because Inside lacrosse said 2025 was weak as well.

Players Series, in my opinion, and based on experience, is a well run camp and there is no recruitment value. Would not recommend for recruiting, but fun time for the kids with the social posts and coaches that attend.

CBL, never went,

Blatant, never went

Apex, depends on the talent of the team your son gets placed on. Which is true for so many events.