Athletes and athletic interest form

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an 8th grade daughter who is excellent at lacrosse, plays for a top travel team and on other nationally recognized teams. We have been contacted by four high schools with strong teams who have asked us to apply, at least for our sport we haven’t filled out any forms but the coaches know who they are looking for.

That's impressive. I hope she knows to choose a high school where she'll be happiest, since high school lacrosse doesn't matter much if at all for elite players.

I actually think it might be strategically good move for a top tier middle school girls lacrosse player to choose a second tier or lower high school lacrosse program where should could make a major impact as a freshman and sophomore, which would be more difficult at some of the lacrosse powerhouses (e.g., SSSAS). College coaches are busy with college lacrosse during the high school season and they are not paying attention at all. All that the will see are the accolades (e.g., all league selections), which would be far easier to get on a team that isn't full of 4- and 5-star T25 commits.

It may be a strategically good move for a talented middle school girls' lacrosse player to select a high school program that is not among the top tier. At such schools, she could potentially have a significant impact as an underclassman, which might be less feasible at established lacrosse powerhouses like SSSAS. During the high school season, college coaches are primarily occupied with collegiate lacrosse and do not closely follow high school games. Consequently, their focus tends to be on accomplishments such as all-league selections, which are generally more attainable for freshman and sophomores on teams that don't have a bunch of high profile T25 committed juniors and seniors.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an 8th grade daughter who is excellent at lacrosse, plays for a top travel team and on other nationally recognized teams. We have been contacted by four high schools with strong teams who have asked us to apply, at least for our sport we haven’t filled out any forms but the coaches know who they are looking for.

That's impressive. I hope she knows to choose a high school where she'll be happiest, since high school lacrosse doesn't matter much if at all for elite players.

I actually think it might be strategically good move for a top tier middle school girls lacrosse player to choose a second tier or lower high school lacrosse program where should could make a major impact as a freshman and sophomore, which would be more difficult at some of the lacrosse powerhouses (e.g., SSSAS). College coaches are busy with college lacrosse during the high school season and they are not paying attention at all. All that the will see are the accolades (e.g., all league selections), which would be far easier to get on a team that isn't full of 4- and 5-star T25 commits.

It may be a strategically good move for a talented middle school girls' lacrosse player to select a high school program that is not among the top tier. At such schools, she could potentially have a significant impact as an underclassman, which might be less feasible at established lacrosse powerhouses like SSSAS. During the high school season, college coaches are primarily occupied with collegiate lacrosse and do not closely follow high school games. Consequently, their focus tends to be on accomplishments such as all-league selections, which are generally more attainable for freshman and sophomores on teams that don't have a bunch of high profile T25 committed juniors and seniors.

My bad for pasting my Copilot corrections and not deleting the original. I confess to using AI all the time!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have an 8th grade daughter who is excellent at lacrosse, plays for a top travel team and on other nationally recognized teams. We have been contacted by four high schools with strong teams who have asked us to apply, at least for our sport we haven’t filled out any forms but the coaches know who they are looking for.

That's impressive. I hope she knows to choose a high school where she'll be happiest, since high school lacrosse doesn't matter much if at all for elite players.

I actually think it might be strategically good move for a top tier middle school girls lacrosse player to choose a second tier or lower high school lacrosse program where should could make a major impact as a freshman and sophomore, which would be more difficult at some of the lacrosse powerhouses (e.g., SSSAS). College coaches are busy with college lacrosse during the high school season and they are not paying attention at all. All that the will see are the accolades (e.g., all league selections), which would be far easier to get on a team that isn't full of 4- and 5-star T25 commits.

It may be a strategically good move for a talented middle school girls' lacrosse player to select a high school program that is not among the top tier. At such schools, she could potentially have a significant impact as an underclassman, which might be less feasible at established lacrosse powerhouses like SSSAS. During the high school season, college coaches are primarily occupied with collegiate lacrosse and do not closely follow high school games. Consequently, their focus tends to be on accomplishments such as all-league selections, which are generally more attainable for freshman and sophomores on teams that don't have a bunch of high profile T25 committed juniors and seniors.

We’ve been thinking about this. She was interested in Stone Ridge but they’re so stacked I’m not sure how much playing time she would get initially, whereas she could be a standout starter at some lesser lacrosse schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How much does being a good athlete (high travel level) help a student to get into high school at GDS, Potomac, Maret, Sidwell, etc. assuming that the student has also done well academically in middle school? Student does not have any siblings and coming from a public school so no hooks there.

What is the purpose of the athletic interest/inquiry google forms for upper schools if the schools say that the form is shared primarily with the Athletics Department. What comes from filling out the forms? Does the coach at the school reach out, etc.?

My son is now in college but he went to a K-8 private and was an excellent student . Advanced math track, very high GPA, 98th percentile SSAT. He had some good extracurriculars ( coding , student government, debate …) , interviewed very well, but was a mediocre athlete.
He got waitlisted by every single “Big 5 “ school in the area.
The common thing between almost every kid who got into these schools from his K-8 was that they were great athletes. They were still good students although most didn’t have his stats ( based on what some of the kids parents shared with me at the time) .
It all worked out for him and he’s now at a T20.
All to say that a high level achievement in sports is very important for privates in this area especially if your kid has recruitment potential, and as long as they meet a certain academic performance threshold. So a great athlete who scores in the 85th percentile on the SSAT is at more likely to get admitted than a mediocre one who scores in the 99th percentile, all else being equal. These high schools want to boost their college matriculation to look good for incoming students and to be able to justify the tuition they charge. Recruiting exceptional student athletes is almost a sure way to make that happen.
Best of luck to your child.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How much does being a good athlete (high travel level) help a student to get into high school at GDS, Potomac, Maret, Sidwell, etc. assuming that the student has also done well academically in middle school? Student does not have any siblings and coming from a public school so no hooks there.

What is the purpose of the athletic interest/inquiry google forms for upper schools if the schools say that the form is shared primarily with the Athletics Department. What comes from filling out the forms? Does the coach at the school reach out, etc.?

My son is now in college but he went to a K-8 private and was an excellent student . Advanced math track, very high GPA, 98th percentile SSAT. He had some good extracurriculars ( coding , student government, debate …) , interviewed very well, but was a mediocre athlete.
He got waitlisted by every single “Big 5 “ school in the area.
The common thing between almost every kid who got into these schools from his K-8 was that they were great athletes. They were still good students although most didn’t have his stats ( based on what some of the kids parents shared with me at the time) .
It all worked out for him and he’s now at a T20.
All to say that a high level achievement in sports is very important for privates in this area especially if your kid has recruitment potential, and as long as they meet a certain academic performance threshold. So a great athlete who scores in the 85th percentile on the SSAT is at more likely to get admitted than a mediocre one who scores in the 99th percentile, all else being equal. These high schools want to boost their college matriculation to look good for incoming students and to be able to justify the tuition they charge. Recruiting exceptional student athletes is almost a sure way to make that happen.
Best of luck to your child.

What private school did he end up at?