Question: Can you play in ISL lower division and still play D1
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Anonymous
| My kid is currently in 7th grade at a lower division school and we keep hearing she will need to go to a better lax school for HS if she wants to play D1. Anyone disagree with this? I was under the impression that HS lax doesn’t matter, just club. |
Anonymous
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HS does not matter but your club choice will be the most important and singular factor that will increase exposure during her recruiting summer! The better club, higher bracket more college coaches on the sidelines. GET ON THE BEST CLUB TEAM!
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Anonymous
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High school does not matter for recruiting. College coaches are busy with their own teams and typically do not recruit during high school seasons. If recruiting doesn't even take place during the high school season, how important could it be? The better case to make is attending a better lax school school offers stronger preparation for college and recruiting by providing a higher level of play compared to lower teams and divisions.
Also, many ISL A girls are committed to play D1. The link below shows 2026 and 2027 player commitments, and you’ll find several from ISL A schools. https://public.clublacrosse.org/commitments/Dashboard/gender-with-player |
Anonymous
if a player chooses not to follow through on their commitment, does it remove them from this site? |
Anonymous
| Unless you are at SSSAS or SR, HS lax for girls truly means nothing for recruiting. Club is king and your parents doing alot of leg work |
Anonymous
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Even then, it doesn't mean much (other than the value in playing and practicing against better competition). Club is key. For school your daughter should pick the best academic and social fit.
Mine chose an ISL A (lower division) school and had some D1 interest but followed the same thought process for college as she had for HS and instead will be playing lacrosse at a high academic D3 next year. |
Anonymous
For SSSAS, I would agree. Not for SR, though. |
Anonymous
The SR coach has tons of college connections so you do not know what you are talking about. But I agree, the better the club team you are on the better your chances of being seen. |
Anonymous
I am speaking from experience. Bruh. |
Anonymous
| I agree with most that how you play during your Sophomore club season is most important. However, your player development before that Summer is absolutely crucial. A player will play in a significantly greater number of High School practices and games than in Club where you may practice one or twice a week. I strongly encourage you to go see a Top Level ISL game versus a game in the lower bracket. It is almost a different sport. The Varsity teams in the lower bracket would lose to most JV teams at the top. If your DD really wants to play D1, I would want to spend every day in practice working against other players who are going to play in college and not play against the full-time Violinist who plays lacrosse part time at Sidwell, NCS or Maret. Develop your skills in HS to prepare for the rigors of D1. A hand full of girls have gone high D1 from the lower bracket, but they are the exception. |
Anonymous
You are answering a different question. Your first sentence answers the OP's question. Club (plus showcases and camps) is where recruiting happens--not high school. You do have a point that top quality competition in ISL AA or WCAC certainly helps for player development--assuming they make and play on Varsity as a Freshman and Sophomore. That does not mean, however, that kids who don't do play top private lacrosse and still get recruited to D1 "are the exception". Locally, regionally, and nationally, literally hundreds of kids a year come from public schools or lower tier privates that don't have top quality lacrosse and high levels of competition. You can absolutely develop a quality lacrosse game outside of your high school team, and you show that at your club tournaments and showcases. |
Anonymous
Oh word! What a DB. |
Anonymous
| The flip side of the argument is that many of the freshman and sophomores in ISL AA don't get meaningful playing time because the juniors and seniors are also very good and the coaches want to win. So, it's a trade off, a good freshman at an ISL A school can play most of the minutes in each game. Admittedly, the competition isn't as good but I've seen it from both sides and there is value in being the "go to player" on your team and getting meaningful playing time leading up to your junior summer to supplement the club team. |
Anonymous
My take. It's not hard to play lacrosse in college. There are plenty of D2 and D3 roster spots to be had. You can be on an average high school or club team and get offers from these schools. There are plenty of D1 schools that pull from just "OK" club teams as well. The problem is most kids would not want to go to these schools. If the goal is to get to the UVA's, Duke' s and other top D1 programs, you 100% need to get to the top club teams (Hero's, M&D or Capital Blue) AND it also helps to attend the top private high school programs - GC, SR, SSSAS, or other MD privates. Most people think their kids can be the top dog at their public high school and get recruited to play at UNC. There is ZERO chance of that happening. You need to check as many boxes as possible to get to the top tier and it's far more competitive than most think. Girls from Long Island, Philly, and Baltimore run circles around DC talent. |
Anonymous
Not true for SSSAS |