Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is Capital fading? Except for the 24 Blue team, they had a rough weekend at Live Love Lax.

Capital had a great weekend at LLL. Marginal goal differentials with top national clubs across the board. More competitive than other DC programs against higher-ranked teams.

Your relationship with a Capital competitor is clear from your comment. For those who aren’t familiar with club lacrosse, and are genuinely interested in how Capital operates, I’ll try to explain.

The club season is about recruiting (this isn’t HS). Being competitive is what matters. Not winning.

Capital is successful at recruiting because the program (unlike most clubs) implements an equal-playing-time rule — and still shows it can hang with the best teams in the nation.

Equal playing time gives more kids more game minutes to show their stuff to coaches. More game minutes for each player means more opportunities to get more players recruited.

Equal playing time doesn’t prioritize winning. It prioritizes recruiting.

Other clubs don’t do this. They keep the best players on the field (and bench those who may not be quite as strong) to try and win. They think this will attract more coaches to the sidelines.

But this only helps a handful of top players — not the team — get recruited. (Translation: it’s hard to get recruited when you’re rarely on the field).

College coaches recruit individual players, of course — not entire teams. Any coach will tell you a team club win doesn’t matter to them. They care about how the girls play, compete and perform against the best teams when they hit the field.

Parents need to accept the equal playing rotation at Capital if their girls are strong enough to make the cut. The most competitive kids want to be on the field when close games are on the line. But Capital’s philo helps the team maximize recruiting success, which is what it’s all about.

There’s a method to Capital’s approach and it seems to be working. The vast majority of 23s are committed to some great D1 schools. It’s why Capital continues to be the most dominant DC-area girls lax club that sends the most kids to the best colleges in the country.

As someone who has been through the process before, I can tell you that performance in club showcases matter much much less than most people think and performance at prospect days, showcases, combine etc matter much more.

For 24s, at this point in the recruiting calendar most top 25 and Ivy coaches have their list of prospects down to 60-90 girls. They will end up recruiting about 30 of them. Coaches are going to see specific girls. Obiously, there is a chance a girl not on the list could make a impact, but they would need to have a monster game.

For non-top 25 coaches, they are casting a wider net and waiting to see who falls through the cracks in September.

Though noone says it, getting good film in the summer after freshman year and fall of sophomore year is more important than these performances. College coaches have already talked to club directors about who they are recruiting, who may have interest in their school and who can academically quality.

In-person performance will matter much more to smaller schools and D3 who may not have prospect days or get top players to attend.

** And if you are a goalie, draw specialist or low defender, these games are almost entirely meaningless. You aren't getting a D1 offer unless you have played in front of the coach at a camp or his/her prospect days.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So winning games and club raking don’t matter? Tell that to the other top clubs….

Also tell that to the parents who club hop. Players in the DMV do not have to go out of region to get better or be recruited.

That is from someone defending their club that continually loses to the better Maryland clubs. The DMV clubs, especially during the middle school years are failing at developing talent. Player growth isn't there and it shows. That's why the top DMV players continue to leave Pride and Stars and go to the better Maryland clubs.

It’s surprising how many kids commute from Virginia to play for the Baltimore teams.

Why? Better coaching, schedules and opportunities. If the families want to drive a little more, why the surprise?

MD clubs get the Nova kids who don’t make Capital.

The sport is growing. 180 DC kids tried out for Capital last year. Not all will make it.

Those who don’t will face the decision of going to Pride, Metro or MCE - or fighting rush hour to go to a MD club to try and match the recruiting strength of Capital.

I’ve been around this crazy sport for years and have never heard of a Nova kid who chose a MD club over Capital. I know plenty who didn’t make Capital and joined a MD club as a second choice.

NoVa? Unlikely.

But DC/MoCo? Definitely. Many go about 6th/7th grade.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So winning games and club raking don’t matter? Tell that to the other top clubs….

Also tell that to the parents who club hop. Players in the DMV do not have to go out of region to get better or be recruited.

That is from someone defending their club that continually loses to the better Maryland clubs. The DMV clubs, especially during the middle school years are failing at developing talent. Player growth isn't there and it shows. That's why the top DMV players continue to leave Pride and Stars and go to the better Maryland clubs.

It’s surprising how many kids commute from Virginia to play for the Baltimore teams.

Why? Better coaching, schedules and opportunities. If the families want to drive a little more, why the surprise?

MD clubs get the Nova kids who don’t make Capital.

The sport is growing. 180 DC kids tried out for Capital last year. Not all will make it.

Those who don’t will face the decision of going to Pride, Metro or MCE - or fighting rush hour to go to a MD club to try and match the recruiting strength of Capital.

I’ve been around this crazy sport for years and have never heard of a Nova kid who chose a MD club over Capital. I know plenty who didn’t make Capital and joined a MD club as a second choice.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So winning games and club raking don’t matter? Tell that to the other top clubs….

Also tell that to the parents who club hop. Players in the DMV do not have to go out of region to get better or be recruited.

That is from someone defending their club that continually loses to the better Maryland clubs. The DMV clubs, especially during the middle school years are failing at developing talent. Player growth isn't there and it shows. That's why the top DMV players continue to leave Pride and Stars and go to the better Maryland clubs.

It’s surprising how many kids commute from Virginia to play for the Baltimore teams.

Why? Better coaching, schedules and opportunities. If the families want to drive a little more, why the surprise?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So winning games and club raking don’t matter? Tell that to the other top clubs….

Also tell that to the parents who club hop. Players in the DMV do not have to go out of region to get better or be recruited.

That is from someone defending their club that continually loses to the better Maryland clubs. The DMV clubs, especially during the middle school years are failing at developing talent. Player growth isn't there and it shows. That's why the top DMV players continue to leave Pride and Stars and go to the better Maryland clubs.

For recruiting purposes wins and losses mean nothing. Playing well against quality opponents matter on an individual basis. Scores only matter to parents who are living vicariously through their kids.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So winning games and club raking don’t matter? Tell that to the other top clubs….

Also tell that to the parents who club hop. Players in the DMV do not have to go out of region to get better or be recruited.

That is from someone defending their club that continually loses to the better Maryland clubs. The DMV clubs, especially during the middle school years are failing at developing talent. Player growth isn't there and it shows. That's why the top DMV players continue to leave Pride and Stars and go to the better Maryland clubs.

It’s surprising how many kids commute from Virginia to play for the Baltimore teams.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So winning games and club raking don’t matter? Tell that to the other top clubs….

Also tell that to the parents who club hop. Players in the DMV do not have to go out of region to get better or be recruited.

That is from someone defending their club that continually loses to the better Maryland clubs. The DMV clubs, especially during the middle school years are failing at developing talent. Player growth isn't there and it shows. That's why the top DMV players continue to leave Pride and Stars and go to the better Maryland clubs.

Anonymous wrote:So winning games and club raking don’t matter? Tell that to the other top clubs….

Also tell that to the parents who club hop. Players in the DMV do not have to go out of region to get better or be recruited.

Between the VHSL playoffs and injuries, I am not sure any Capital team had their full contingent of players on the field this weekend.

So winning games and club raking don’t matter? Tell that to the other top clubs….

Anonymous wrote:LLL Results

2023 Blue: 1-2

2023 Orange: 1-2

2024 Blue: 3-1

2024 Orange: 2-0-1

2025 Blue: 0-2

2025 Orange: 1-0-1

And there are some bad losses in there, like the ‘23 Orange team getting beat by Renegades 10-3.

To be clear, I’m not trying to malign the club. Just an interested parent trying to understand what is going on. And what I am seeing is that more and more, even NOVA girls are playing for the Baltimore clubs over staying closer to home.

Well … there was a thorough post on page 3 addressing how Capital approaches team play that explains this. But you’re talking right past it and have now taken a good amount of time to research and post Capital’s entire record this weekend. So yea, “interested parent” … I’d say that raises legit questions about your agenda.

Posting the previous note below so that others have the complete picture …

###

Capital had a great weekend at LLL. Marginal goal differentials with top national clubs across the board. More competitive than other DC programs against higher-ranked teams.

Your relationship with a Capital competitor is clear from your comment. For those who aren’t familiar with club lacrosse, and are genuinely interested in how Capital operates, I’ll try to explain.

The club season is about recruiting (this isn’t HS). Being competitive is what matters. Not winning.

Capital is successful at recruiting because the program (unlike most clubs) implements an equal-playing-time rule — and still shows it can hang with the best teams in the nation.

Equal playing time gives more kids more game minutes to show their stuff to coaches. More game minutes for each player means more opportunities to get more players recruited.

Equal playing time doesn’t prioritize winning. It prioritizes recruiting.

Other clubs don’t do this. They keep the best players on the field (and bench those who may not be quite as strong) to try and win. They think this will attract more coaches to the sidelines.

But this only helps a handful of top players — not the team — get recruited. (Translation: it’s hard to get recruited when you’re rarely on the field).

College coaches recruit individual players, of course — not entire teams. Any coach will tell you a team club win doesn’t matter to them. They care about how the girls play, compete and perform against the best teams when they hit the field.

Parents need to accept the equal playing rotation at Capital if their girls are strong enough to make the cut. The most competitive kids want to be on the field when close games are on the line. But Capital’s philo helps the team maximize recruiting success, which is what it’s all about.

There’s a method to Capital’s approach and it seems to be working. The vast majority of 23s are committed to some great D1 schools. It’s why Capital continues to be the most dominant DC-area girls lax club that sends the most kids to the best colleges in the country.

LLL Results

2023 Blue: 1-2

2023 Orange: 1-2

2024 Blue: 3-1

2024 Orange: 2-0-1

2025 Blue: 0-2

2025 Orange: 1-0-1

And there are some bad losses in there, like the ‘23 Orange team getting beat by Renegades 10-3.

To be clear, I’m not trying to malign the club. Just an interested parent trying to understand what is going on. And what I am seeing is that more and more, even NOVA girls are playing for the Baltimore clubs over staying closer to home.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is Capital fading? Except for the 24 Blue team, they had a rough weekend at Live Love Lax.

There’s a method to Capital’s approach and it seems to be working. The vast majority of 23s are committed to some great D1 schools. It’s why Capital continues to be the most dominant DC-area girls lax club that sends the most kids to the best colleges in the country.

CLC 23s did very well for sure but are they an anomaly due to covid when coaches couldn’t watch games? An interesting issue to watch.

Covid impacted the 22s. For the 23s, college coaches were able to sit sideline for the entire summer tournament season leading up to the opening of the Sept. 1 recruiting window.

So one half (or less) of a recruiting cycle.

What’s your point? Coaches didn’t get enough looks at the 23s? You’re wrong if so.

Coaches don’t go to winter indoor games. And they don’t go to spring high school games because they’re in season.

So if you’re basing your point on the fall tournaments, everyone knows coaches take a very relaxed view during that time period.

Coaches don’t start recruiting in earnest until the summer tourney season.

There were six summer tournaments last summer (if you include AS or UA). Four games each - 24 game opportunities to scout players. The right clubs had coaches lined up on the sidelines and had plenty of time and opportunity to evaluate and finalize their prospect lists.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is Capital fading? Except for the 24 Blue team, they had a rough weekend at Live Love Lax.

There’s a method to Capital’s approach and it seems to be working. The vast majority of 23s are committed to some great D1 schools. It’s why Capital continues to be the most dominant DC-area girls lax club that sends the most kids to the best colleges in the country.

CLC 23s did very well for sure but are they an anomaly due to covid when coaches couldn’t watch games? An interesting issue to watch.

Covid impacted the 22s. For the 23s, college coaches were able to sit sideline for the entire summer tournament season leading up to the opening of the Sept. 1 recruiting window.

So one half (or less) of a recruiting cycle.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is Capital fading? Except for the 24 Blue team, they had a rough weekend at Live Love Lax.

There’s a method to Capital’s approach and it seems to be working. The vast majority of 23s are committed to some great D1 schools. It’s why Capital continues to be the most dominant DC-area girls lax club that sends the most kids to the best colleges in the country.

CLC 23s did very well for sure but are they an anomaly due to covid when coaches couldn’t watch games? An interesting issue to watch.

Covid impacted the 22s. For the 23s, college coaches were able to sit sideline for the entire summer tournament season leading up to the opening of the Sept. 1 recruiting window.

Covid effed the 22s. No college coaches, other than a miniscule amount of very random D3s, watching them play for the summer or fall recruiting window and no camps or clinics during same time.