Total troll

Oh please. DMV lacrosse is good, but top players come from all over the country now. Look at any D1 roster. If this kid is an athlete and coming from a decent club he can make any of the area teams.

Anonymous wrote:OP here. He’s not looking at lower tier, and he has an age advantage. I’ll have our current club director make calls. I should have thought about that so thanks for that advice.

You are no longer swimming with minnows. This is the shark tank. If your kid is really that good you would have faced our teams in national tournament play and would already know who the best teams are in the area.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For boys, Madlax

Don't go near MaxLax. Parent-coached, toxic environment, and in decline. Next Level 2027 beat them by 10 goal last spring. If your son is truly an elite player, ask Next Level for a tryout. If your son is not elite, but is solid, try DC Express Black.

^This

Regardless of what you may have heard about ML in general, good or bad, the 2027 team is a daddy-ball mess. NL is a great option if your kid is a true star.

Otherwise look elsewhere.

Anonymous wrote:Moving to the area at the end of the school year. What are the top travel clubs for 2027 grad year? DS is an advanced player is looking to play this summer.

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One would think that if your DS is an advanced player at this point they would have faced most if not all of the top clubs in a tournament and you would already know who the clubs are. that does not mean it should not be posted here but maybe decide which one of the top clubs (DCE, ML, NL) have a likely opening?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For boys, Madlax

Don't go near MaxLax. Parent-coached, toxic environment, and in decline. Next Level 2027 beat them by 10 goal last spring. If your son is truly an elite player, ask Next Level for a tryout. If your son is not elite, but is solid, try DC Express Black.

Agreed about NL being the clear #1 in the area. However, if you are willing to look at Southern Maryland, there are some other great options. Zingos is a very solid club and plays in all of the top tourneys and practice in Ellicot City.

One other thing to know about VA/MD lax which is different than most other areas is that club teams play together in the spring. This makes it even harder to break in mid-year

Anonymous wrote:OP here. He’s not looking at lower tier, and he has an age advantage. I’ll have our current club director make calls. I should have thought about that so thanks for that advice.

Reading between the lines, it sounds like your son is a re-class, and you think that is a stud. So here are his options.

Next Level is the top team in the DC metro region, but unless his name is Kavanaugh or Thompson, he will have trouble cracking the line up. He will be working against both talent and politics. The roster is huge (29, according to their web page) and 5-6 favored players never come out of the game, so there are a ton of extremely good players constantly unhappy with their playing time.

MadLax all depends on his position. If he is a goalie, FOGO, or offensive middie, they will add him pronto. But if he plays close D, LSM, or righty attack, he will never get on the field. If he is a lefty attack, that would get interesting.

If you think he is a stud, then any team besides those two you would probably think are beneath him. DC Express is very strong in the 2025 and 2026 classes, but still developing in 2027.

If you can stomach the drive to Annapolis or Baltimore, you should consider the Hawks and Crabs, respectively.
The Hawks routinely beat all of these teams - Next Level is similar to the Hawks in talent, but always choke in head to head games, and I don't believe has ever beaten them.

Ask your current club director what he thinks - he will verify all of the above is true!

Anonymous wrote:For boys, Madlax

Don't go near MaxLax. Parent-coached, toxic environment, and in decline. Next Level 2027 beat them by 10 goal last spring. If your son is truly an elite player, ask Next Level for a tryout. If your son is not elite, but is solid, try DC Express Black.

OP here. He’s not looking at lower tier, and he has an age advantage. I’ll have our current club director make calls. I should have thought about that so thanks for that advice.

a couple things to respond to the OP

1) Almost any club would give your son a tryout, but he would need to be incredible to make a team midseason with an already established roster. This could be helpful in setting up for next year

2) Don't want to start a board war here, but at least half of most top club rosters are kids who are not "on age". It is not uncommon for a 2027 team to be 50% 15 year olds during the summer.

3) there are some lower level club teams which may still have openings. I believe Loudon hammers and True have roster spots. However as many folks here point out, those aren't close to top clubs

4) I'd recommend having your current club director make some calls. If you have some good film even better. He is likely well networked and could help you find the right fit.

Same with boys regarding dates. Tryouts a couple weeks later — late July for many. I’d recommend playing with former club this summer.

Also, not trying to offend the OP, but unless you are giving from Long Island, even an out of state advanced player will likely end up at a third or fourth tier club. Just the reality.

If you are good enough to make mad lax or next level, you are probably one of the top 150 kids in your age group in the country.

For boys, Madlax

OP here. Sorry, I meant boys teams.

For girls, tryouts are in the summer after the season is completed. She would tryout this summer for next year. Not sure she would be able to find a team for this summer given the teams have already played in the fall together and we’re coming into the spring/summer season. If she’s real good someone may pick her up. BLC, Pride, and Stars a distant third.

Moving to the area at the end of the school year. What are the top travel clubs for 2027 grad year? DS is an advanced player is looking to play this summer.