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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]It's weird that lacrosse is growing nationally but it does feel like it's contracting locally.[/quote]
The local rec leagues like the one in NoVa are the feeders to the club programs. They suffered a big setback during COVID. I suspect that is playing a big part in the 28-32 age groups who missed a year of it. And I’m hearing the rec leagues are not what they were up till just prior to COVID. Those championship games in the AAA level of NVYLL were pretty much 100% kids from the Elite programs in the DMV. Great competition. [/quote]

The clubs all started playing in the HOCO league and many of the better players stopped playing NVYLL or those that did only showed up for games.  The end result is that the clubs are not developing players and NVYLL used to do that.  The rec team also brought more athletic kids to the game.  COVID was a part of this but I think club lacrosse is the culprit.  Paying $3500 per year vs $350 per year and not getting the same level of coaching and this is the result.  Less kids equals less competition and less development.  You hear club coaches tell kids not to play rec.  Don't bite the hand.....[/quote]

Not following this at all.  Rec teams through NVYLL still exist, so it's not like kids who don't want to pay for club can't get an introduction, exposure, and chance to develop at the sport.  Rec is still here, like it always has been.  Who cares if the better players prefer to play with other better players through club lacrosse?

I've never seen an "AAA" NVYLL team with anywhere near 100% elite program kids.  Maybe a handful IF that team is fortunate, and then a huge drop off in skill for the rest of the roster.  For Elite level kids, rec isn't that fun, and most (nearly all?) would choose to not play rec, it's much more fun to play with better players across the entire roster.  Parents/Dads do like to chase rec league bragging rights and the opportunity to fulfill their coaching desires through getting involved with coaching their kids rec team, so some elite level kids still play rec.[/quote]

You are not following this logic because you probably never excelled at a team sport and did not play lacrosse growing up.  Either way, the comment and critique of the current system is that fewer elite players are coming out of the DMV in recent years and that is easy to see if you follow the recent recruiting trends.  By the way being on an "elite" HOCO league team does not make a player elite.  The conversation was around a much lower number of D1 recruits in the DMV region despite growth in other areas of the country.  One fairly recent trend is the fact that most clubs now for go NVYLL to play in HOCO and tell kids not to play NVYLL.  The old NVYLL teams were much stronger so if you are basing your comments on current NVYLL teams that would be correct.  However, to say it is not "fun" to play rec is the fault of the greater lacrosse community.  Playing with friends is what is fun. Representing future HS is fun.  If the option to pay $3500-$5000 per year was not an option and every kid played rec, rec would still be fun.  The problem is not parents/dads chasing glory the problem is parents/dads who want to make a living off youth sports and turn it into a business instead of getting a real job.  Either way, the point is that the current model is NOT producing better players and for the first time ever lacrosse is a shrinking sport in the DMV.  [/quote]

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