2023 Girls ISL and WCAC outlook

[Anonymous]

Wow. Big surprise. STJ must have had injuries.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Watched NW beat UNC yesterday. NW has zero DMV girls on their roster and only one from Baltimore. Are girls from the DMV as good as we think they are? Has NE, NJ, Philly replaced DMV recruits?

Of course, they're as good as we think they are. They're our girls! But the game has rapidly grown outside of the hotbeds. If a top 20 D1 coach can choose between a 8/10 DMV athlete with great stick skills that have topped out, and a 10/10 athlete with reasonable stick stills that are still improving, they're going to take the 10/10 kid. There are lots of 10/10 girls across the country that DMV and LI island girls weren't competing with 5-6 years ago.

Guys, this area has never ever been a "hotbed" for lacrosse and is still not close to being one. Long Island, Philadelphia, and Baltimore are the top, then Colorado. From Philly myself, played D1, and have been coaching and watching the girls' game since my now 2023 DD (who excels at a different sport and not lacrosse) was 8. This area simply does not produce the players that Philly and LI do. You will not see many, if any, girls from around here at the tournament, much less the final four. Not this year, and not a few years from now. The players at that level are certainly not playing for the ISL.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Watched NW beat UNC yesterday. NW has zero DMV girls on their roster and only one from Baltimore. Are girls from the DMV as good as we think they are? Has NE, NJ, Philly replaced DMV recruits?

Of course, they're as good as we think they are. They're our girls! But the game has rapidly grown outside of the hotbeds. If a top 20 D1 coach can choose between a 8/10 DMV athlete with great stick skills that have topped out, and a 10/10 athlete with reasonable stick stills that are still improving, they're going to take the 10/10 kid. There are lots of 10/10 girls across the country that DMV and LI island girls weren't competing with 5-6 years ago.

Guys, this area has never ever been a "hotbed" for lacrosse and is still not close to being one. Long Island, Philadelphia, and Baltimore are the top, then Colorado. From Philly myself, played D1, and have been coaching and watching the girls' game since my now 2023 DD (who excels at a different sport and not lacrosse) was 8. This area simply does not produce the players that Philly and LI do. You will not see many, if any, girls from around here at the tournament, much less the final four. Not this year, and not a few years from now. The players at that level are certainly not playing for the ISL.

Get over yourself. Who cares where you’re from or where you played. Look at where DMV girls are heading to college. To say this area isn’t a hotbed means you’ve been living under a bridge. And I’m sorry - if you think Philly in any way matches LI you are smoking the good stuff.

[Anonymous]

Talent pool for Philly is probably about the same depth as the DMV and certainly not on par with Balto or LI. One thing to consider is that as women’s lacrosse has grown at the collegiate level, coaches are looking outside the traditional areas for talent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow. Big surprise. STJ must have had injuries.

SJC had a key player out (injured earlier this week who is a difference-maker on the circle). HC brought the energy, controlled the clock, executed the game plan, and came out with a hard-fought win. Question is, was this a bulletin-board game - or can / will they keep the momentum going?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anyone know the score of the Potomac Episcopal Academy (PA) game yesterday?

Potomac completely out-classed.

[Anonymous]

Potomac is mid-tier in girls lacrosse. What did you expect?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Appreciate the two previous posts on the topic of toxicity. This is mainly a parent issue not a player issue. This stems from a few insecure parents on clubs who feel the need to try and control every situation and clubs let them get away with this bad behavior. Or it stems from parents who cannot accept their daughter just is not a top player, so they do everything they can to give their daughter an edge they are unable to earn on the playing field. These parents are easy to spot. So the question for the individual who feels wlax is toxic, what have you done to address the few bad apples in the bunch? Just a suggestion, let the girls play and the cream will rise to the top.

Still a toxic sport and toxic environment. Parent coaching at high level clubs, team cultures where the best players often aren’t on the field, could go on and on. To deny that a lot of Club, HS and College coaches and programs continue to breed more toxic environments is burying your head in the sand. Some bad parents always but that’s not what makes these teams and the sport more and more toxic. As others have said, would not get into the sport if starting over.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Appreciate the two previous posts on the topic of toxicity. This is mainly a parent issue not a player issue. This stems from a few insecure parents on clubs who feel the need to try and control every situation and clubs let them get away with this bad behavior. Or it stems from parents who cannot accept their daughter just is not a top player, so they do everything they can to give their daughter an edge they are unable to earn on the playing field. These parents are easy to spot. So the question for the individual who feels wlax is toxic, what have you done to address the few bad apples in the bunch? Just a suggestion, let the girls play and the cream will rise to the top.

Still a toxic sport and toxic environment. Parent coaching at high level clubs, team cultures where the best players often aren’t on the field, could go on and on. To deny that a lot of Club, HS and College coaches and programs continue to breed more toxic environments is burying your head in the sand. Some bad parents always but that’s not what makes these teams and the sport more and more toxic. As others have said, would not get into the sport if starting over.

The evidence overwhelmingly shows the sport is growing by leaps and bounds across the country. This wouldn’t be happening if the sport was as toxic as this one poster’s individual experience has been.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Washington Post Rankings are out:

1. Spalding (12-4)
2. Good Counsel (17-4)
3. Stone Ridge (15-7)
4. Glenelg Country (17-2)5. Glenelg (14-1)
6. Visitation (16-6)
7. Paul VI (18-5)
8. St. Stephen’s/St. Agnes (20-5)
9. Dominion (17-2)
10. Marriotts Ridge (15-4)

On the bubble: Bishop Ireton, Broadneck, Oakton, Severna Park, St. Mary’s, Yorktown

These are the pre-season rankings. I'll be interested to see how things start shifting as teams have a few games under their belts. It's also interesting to see how wide a net the Post throws compared to the B'more Sun. Teams from Howard Co and AACo get double dipped.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Appreciate the two previous posts on the topic of toxicity. This is mainly a parent issue not a player issue. This stems from a few insecure parents on clubs who feel the need to try and control every situation and clubs let them get away with this bad behavior. Or it stems from parents who cannot accept their daughter just is not a top player, so they do everything they can to give their daughter an edge they are unable to earn on the playing field. These parents are easy to spot. So the question for the individual who feels wlax is toxic, what have you done to address the few bad apples in the bunch? Just a suggestion, let the girls play and the cream will rise to the top.

Still a toxic sport and toxic environment. Parent coaching at high level clubs, team cultures where the best players often aren’t on the field, could go on and on. To deny that a lot of Club, HS and College coaches and programs continue to breed more toxic environments is burying your head in the sand. Some bad parents always but that’s not what makes these teams and the sport more and more toxic. As others have said, would not get into the sport if starting over.

The question posed to you was what have you done about the few bad apples. You actually address the answer in your response. High level clubs should not allow parents to coach or allow them to influence play at all. This in turn should help ensure the best players are on the field and in the right positions. Most issues stem from a few insecure parents who want to control the situation and influence club decisionsg. Club directors need to remove these few parents. Tough to do though given club lacrosse is big business. You state there are some bad parents but this is not the issue, so if it’s not a few people what is making the sport so toxic and what do you propose be done?

[Anonymous]

The question posed to you was what have you done about the few bad apples. You actually address the answer in your response. High level clubs should not allow parents to coach or allow them to influence play at all. This in turn should help ensure the best players are on the field and in the right positions. Most issues stem from a few insecure parents who want to control the situation and influence club decisionsg. Club directors need to remove these few parents. Tough to do though given club lacrosse is big business. You state there are some bad parents but this is not the issue, so if it’s not a few people what is making the sport so toxic and what do you propose be done?


One thing I've been thinking about recently is that because parents put so much time, effort and money into their kids sports (driving, gas, hotels, club fees, etc.) they feel entitled to express their opinions and get more involved. They are way more vested considering they are giving up their weekends. In a way, I don't blame them to a certain extent. If their kid should be getting playing time but maybe isn't because of some relationship or politics, they feel they have a right to say something. Back in the day, when you paid $25 for the whole season and the practices and games were all less than 3 miles from your house, parents really didn't care as much if little Jenny got it or not. Go to the pool and have fun after the game. Just a thought.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Appreciate the two previous posts on the topic of toxicity. This is mainly a parent issue not a player issue. This stems from a few insecure parents on clubs who feel the need to try and control every situation and clubs let them get away with this bad behavior. Or it stems from parents who cannot accept their daughter just is not a top player, so they do everything they can to give their daughter an edge they are unable to earn on the playing field. These parents are easy to spot. So the question for the individual who feels wlax is toxic, what have you done to address the few bad apples in the bunch? Just a suggestion, let the girls play and the cream will rise to the top.

Still a toxic sport and toxic environment. Parent coaching at high level clubs, team cultures where the best players often aren’t on the field, could go on and on. To deny that a lot of Club, HS and College coaches and programs continue to breed more toxic environments is burying your head in the sand. Some bad parents always but that’s not what makes these teams and the sport more and more toxic. As others have said, would not get into the sport if starting over.

The question posed to you was what have you done about the few bad apples. You actually address the answer in your response. High level clubs should not allow parents to coach or allow them to influence play at all. This in turn should help ensure the best players are on the field and in the right positions. Most issues stem from a few insecure parents who want to control the situation and influence club decisionsg. Club directors need to remove these few parents. Tough to do though given club lacrosse is big business. You state there are some bad parents but this is not the issue, so if it’s not a few people what is making the sport so toxic and what do you propose be done?

Not the PP but agree that Parent coaching, at High level clubs, is a big issue. I believe that is a large contributor to the problems. The lack of real, qualified coaches is another big issue. Coaches may think they know what they are doing, but they play favorites/politics for whatever reason. Those are the problems I see.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The question posed to you was what have you done about the few bad apples. You actually address the answer in your response. High level clubs should not allow parents to coach or allow them to influence play at all. This in turn should help ensure the best players are on the field and in the right positions. Most issues stem from a few insecure parents who want to control the situation and influence club decisionsg. Club directors need to remove these few parents. Tough to do though given club lacrosse is big business. You state there are some bad parents but this is not the issue, so if it’s not a few people what is making the sport so toxic and what do you propose be done?

One thing I've been thinking about recently is that because parents put so much time, effort and money into their kids sports (driving, gas, hotels, club fees, etc.) they feel entitled to express their opinions and get more involved. They are way more vested considering they are giving up their weekends. In a way, I don't blame them to a certain extent. If their kid should be getting playing time but maybe isn't because of some relationship or politics, they feel they have a right to say something. Back in the day, when you paid $25 for the whole season and the practices and games were all less than 3 miles from your house, parents really didn't care as much if little Jenny got it or not. Go to the pool and have fun after the game. Just a thought.

Agree, the amount of money and time parents invest in clubs is helping to fuel the toxicity. The pressure for an ROI grows every year. To me it’s about setting proper expectations. Club directors need to be transparent about playing time and positions when parents are looking to invest in their clubs. High level clubs should want to be competitive at the highest level. This in turn will attract the college coaches, which is important to successful recruiting. This is what parents expect from their high level club. Get their DDs recruited to good schools and lax programs. This should be the clubs sole focus at this level. Clubs that want to focus on rec level players and fun is a different story.

With this goal parents need to understand just because they paid the same amount as everyone else it does not guarantee their DD playing time or the position she wants to play. Paying doesn’t entitle a parent to make the demands or influence club decisions that lead to the toxicity. Clubs need to make it clear players will earn playing time based on their effort and talent compared to others. The best will rise to the top and play. But at least everyone will have bought into this upfront knowing there are no guarantees and everything will be earned. Those who complain about this after buying into this expectation should be removed from the team.

Much of this issue is driven by a few. Set the expectations upfront. Have everyone acknowledge they understand and agree to these expectations and remove those who don’t live by those expectations.

[Anonymous]

Sort of. There are plenty of high level clubs in the area that split playing time to no less than approximately 60/40, while others let their players sit. Parents are investing a lot of money and time and so the kid should get sufficient playing time to generate game film and college interest.

IMO, High school is where the time can go to the highest performers because at the varsity level, their mission is simply to win. I've had travel coaches tell me the wins and losses are secondary to getting game film against the best teams and to leverage that for recruiting. Hard to do that if parked on the bench and raises the logical question of why pay for something that has little benefit.