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[quote=Anonymous]There are tons of misguided posts on this thread, either from parents who do not know the game or simply have a myopic view based on their geographic location.  It seems many parents on this thread are from Montgomery County, and their experience is limited to Bethesda, Breakout and/or Next Level.

Here are some insights.

Breakout is run by very good people.  Contrary to an earlier posts, their coaches DO know what they are doing.  Breakout's issue is that its talent pool is very shallow.  It is squeezed by Montgomery County clubs like Next Level and Club Blue, and the Northern Virginia clubs like VLC and Madlax.  So most of the kids come from DC and the Chevy Chase areas - not a great feeder area.  So it is the small talent pool, not the coaches, that prevents Breakout from being competitive with the top teams.  Their current U15 team, however, is good and competitive with many U15 teams in the area.  If your son is new to the game or not a serious advanced player, Breakout is a very good option.

Club Blue is dominated by people affiliated with Mater Dei and Prep, and many of the kids in the program go to those schools.  It is a non-profit and the costs are kept very low, so there is a lot of bang for your buck.  But if your son is not going to MD or, eventually, Prep, you or your son may not feel part of the "crowd".  Everyone knows here knows the stereotype of the "Catholic Mafia" when it comes to sports, and CB parents definitely uphold that stereotype.  There is also no HS option for CB kids - they either play for different clubs or just for Prep's summer teams.

Next Level is a for profit business, so their costs are among the highest in the area.  Some of their teams are good, some are terrible - it just depends on the year.  The coaching can also be suspect.  Their HS program is marginal.

VLC was started by people dissatisfied with Madlax's coaching and costs.  All of their HS teams are excellent.  Their current youth teams range from ok to very good.  They were purchased by the Baltimore Crabs last year, and I have heard the integration has been paying big dividends in terms of visibility and entrance to certain recruiting camps.  Expect VLC to get even more talent in their youth teams.

Madlax is the biggest club in the area in terms of numbers.  They often have three teams per grade level.  The coaching and talent is good.  Some grades have very good teams, others are just ok.  Most of their B and C teams are not very good.  If your child is not on their A team, the experience is almost always underwhelming.  It is also very expensive and has a different feel from the non-profit clubs like VLC and Club Blue.

Blackwolf is an invitation-only club that has become very popular.  The talent of its now three HS teams is excellent, and they are starting a middle school team.[/quote]

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