good goalie on sub-par squad

[EHSLAX12]

well it would be awesome to get input.

so last season was good for me, not for my team. we went 7-10. my issue is that my stats werent as good as i wanted because of a sub-par defensive group. almost every goal scored on me was a 1 on 1 if i didnt save it. i ended up with an 8.6 gaa because of it. but that looks bad against my other high stat of an average of 22 saves per game over 17 games with close to 300 saves on the season i had a few important games that i broke out with 25+ and 1 with 30+. my coach has confidence i can get a scholarship or grant or somethin, but im new to the process and dont know how to approach it because of that blemish stat and the fact that im at a new program in an area where lax is huge but im not in the part of the area that its so big...im like 30 minutes from john jay but we dont play them, were class c, theyre b and much better than us, although my coach has confidence i can play their level. my quesiton is how to i go about contacting coaches and stuff like that from my area....im currently a junior.

[Garor]

If you see 20+ shots in a game, you'll have great game tape to send to a coach. Tape one of your games, send your stats (what's your save percentage, if it's really high it will speak for itself). Get yourself on a club team so you can get exposure against better talent. Your coach my be able to help you since the rest of the squad might not need any help.

[EHSLAX12]

my save percentage wasnt as good as it could be....only around 70ish because of some games the 1 on 1 factor got high and cutting and feeding got the best of my defense. i can put together a great sophmore season video, i have at least 20 minutes worth of sick plays including a 20 yard btb pass for a goal, i can put a 6 or 7 minute video together for sure.

[cali feeder]

70ish is still pretty good. Head out to a few camps, and then you'll most likely have a solid defensive group in front of you. Show that you can lead and direct a defense that's never played together before, and still make saves, and you'll catch coach's eyes.

[EHSLAX12]

i did that a peak this summmer, i played incredible. i saved closer to 90 percent of teh shots there, and i still saw a decent amount of shots. but thats 1 camp, i need to get to others but i was working at a summer camp so i could only take that week off for that. this year my coach thinks i can make empires after being cut on the 4th cut last year, the only guy on my team to ever make it that far.

[gfkeeper28]

Keep in mind, even if you make Empires, you might not get the looks you want. The other freshmen goalie on my college team played for Hudson Valley in the ESGs two years ago (and played decently too) and he only got looked at by smaller DIII schools. If you get invited to Blue Chip or anything like that, I'd go there.

[EHSLAX12]

yea, but since im in such a small area getting invitations to blue chip or top 205 are really hard. and since my school is relatively unknown because the program has only been around for like 4 years, its hard to get any recognition

[gfkeeper28]

I think that your high school coach can reccomend you for an invitation to Blue Chip. Mine did, and I also play for a relatively young and unknown program.

[EHSLAX12]

ill see if my coach wants to get me into anything....i gotta prove i got rid of some rough edges from last season, then hell probably recommend me.

[JohnHoppetyHop]

edgemont is terrible...

[EHSLAX12]

lets compare yorktown to edgemont for a minute.....better yet, why dont we not do that because you guys have been around for awhile and obviously its not worth my time to do so....only good thing produced from there in awhile was my coach.

ive probably been playing the sport longer than you anyways so it doesnt matter much to me what you say about our team. im not gonna even argue it anymore.

[Dashlock]

im in the same situation. my team sucks and im from the midwest so its really hard to get exposure. just get on a club or select team or whatever and play hard. send your tapes out. you'll get noticed. coaches can see a good goalie behind a bad defense

[gfkeeper28]

edgemont is terrible...
Completely unnecessary. The thread title itself admits he plays for a sub-par team. Just because you were lucky enough to have your parents live in a school district that includes a legendary HS lacrosse team doesn't mean you have the right to insult a player who's looking to continue his lacrosse career at a higher level.

[EHSLAX12]

ouch, toasted...

and i know i can play better than mike b on any given day....

but in all seriousness, anyone here thats in college (pref a goalie) can you give me some advice towards this? even if your not a goalie, help a brotha out.

[gfkeeper28]

I sent you a PM.

[Conn.LaxMom241]

Tried to send you a pm, EHSLAX12, but you're over quota for those, it said, and have to clear some out before I can send it.

My son had almost the same situation as you describe. He's been a 3 year starter (soon to be 4 year) on a young, poorly-coached (till now) team that never went better than 6-10. His SV% is .69, but his GAA is also not great. Defense was pretty sick, the middies and attack weren't strong so it almost always came back in his face.

He's the top gk recruit at 3 decent, really fast-rising DIII colleges and is applying Early Decision to his top choice. He's been told he's very likely to be accepted, but we won't tell anyone till he does (mid Dec). They beat a Top 5 DIII team and also one of the Top 10s this past spring. Given their rise in rankings and achievements, folks are thinking they could challenge the top teams in playoffs by the time my son's an upperclassman.

Also 3 other even better DIII coaches told him they'd be glad to have him as a walkon trying out with equal shot at starting.

He's been recruited by or contacted by over 130 coaches at almost 100 schools across all divisions. He wanted DI originally, but that turned out to not be likely nor the best thing for him. DI's wouldn't consider him seriously because of the HS he comes from. Probably will be the same for you, despite anything you might do. But there are some awesome DIII programs that are better by far than many DI's.

A save % in the 70s is extremely high. Be sure your coach agrees that that's official.

The others' advice is very good, here's a few clarifications.

Jake Reed's Blue Chip is by college coach invitation only. HS coaches can't ask for invites for players unless they're already well-connected friends of Jake Reed's.

Not to be confused with Fairfield U. 's Blue Chip 225 which isn't that great for D1 attention but ok for others.

Top 205, you can definitely get your HS coach to get you invited. An email from him to them is really all it takes. The email is top205lacrossecamp@hotmail.com . Have your coach email them and make a good case. My son got the invite (both his HS coach and club coaches wrote them) and went this past summer to session 1. Towson's HC Tony Seaman told him afterward that he surprised and really impressed a lot of coaches at 205. He got LOTS of notice at that camp.

He also did Peak 200 this past summer. NEPL is also excellent. He did Pilat's Goalie School two summers in a row before that.

Being a jr., it is rather late in the process for you but not impossible. Just do research on what colleges you are interested in, go to their websites, the athletic pages, and get the coach's email addies and phone #s. If you really like a few a lot, write them a handwritten note and send it ASAP. Tell them a tape is coming, and give them your accomplishments and grades (hopefully those are good). Look up the colleges grade requirements on www.collegeboard.com to see if you're in line (they have a tool to see if your grades meet the colleges' expectation levels, it's quick once you have your grades and SAT scores entered).

My son emailed coaches several times throughout his junior year, telling them when he'd be playing a tourney and where, then telling them how he did afterward, when he won an award, or got really good SAT scores, etc.

My son started when he was a soph in a club called IAS SELECT out of northern MA. I couldn't recommend it more highly than I do. Players come from LI, Georgia, Florida and all over the US to play for Jeff Coulson. There are a lot of CT players too. They run an outstanding showcase in Nov. and June. You could be added as a player-at-large even now. http://www.indooraction.com/blaxshowcase.htm is the website. About 60-80 college coaches come to one or both days (http://www.indooraction.com/nov07boycoach.htm ), and it's a huge success for players to get seen. IF YOU GO, make sure to email your college coaches that you'll be there so they know to look for you.

Being on the IAS club is what got my son all the attention and recruiting he's gotten, not where he played HS lax. Jeff Coulson goes to bat talking to college coaches on the phone for his players. It is late, and he won't know you so well unless you play a lot for him, but if you start the process now and really work hard at it with IAS through winter and next summer and fall, you can ask him to tell you when he feels he knows you well enough to make calls for you.

Also, get those tapes together asap and just start sending them to the coaches at the schools you're interested in. My son emailed over 100 coaches to start, and whittled down the list to about 50, then 10 this summer, then to 6 now. You have a late start but it's possible. Many DIII's are looking for talented student-athletes who are overlooked otherwise.

Coaches usu. like to see 5-10 min. highlights, and also a whole game or half or quarter. And not just saves. It's successful clears, GBs, interceptions, runs to end line for passed balls, it's field general talk, directing the defense.

You could also get your films online for coaches to see even if they can't see you play live, at TheCoachesEye.com . It's cheap and it's great for getting coaches to spend a few min. watching your film. They load it up for you or you can do it yourself. The best service out there, by far.

This is rather disjointed, I know, but was trying to get a lot of info out to you quickly.

It IS possible to play good lax at a good college, coming from this kind of situation. Takes a lot of legwork and persistence, but it's really paid off for my son. He couldn't be happier with how his 2 years of working at it has paid off.

Best of luck!

[UVALAXR2011]

currently im a sophmore. and play goalie.
i went through the same thing in 8th grade...it sucks.

but...

i just got invited to the blue chip top 100 this past week. i dont know who wrote the reccomendation, but it was my coach who has very good connections or one of the uva coaches who i am good friends with.

you should send emails to coaches before the season starts to get your name out before the summer club ball starts...because when theyre lookin over the rosters, they see your name and might drop in to see you play.

fortunatly, a D1 (top 5 program) coaches son plays with me on my summer team and my school team so he can see all our games.

also i would advise going to the schools camp that your interested in, the coaches are there and you get to see the campus.

[vimoose]

my son has been in the same situation but in box lacrosse. He faced over 40 shots a game last year but allowed less than four goals a game and we ended up being 14 - 2 and went to the provincials. We probably won one or two games by more than one goal.In one game two years ago he face 90 shots and yet only let in 10 goals. His key is his thinking that the more shots he faces the better goalie he will become thru practice, and it is true. A goalie on a good team who only faces 10-15 shots per game is only going to develop so far . The more shots you face the more experienced you gain . A goalie needs to play to get better and the more shots the better, you learn our angles better,learn how to handle the ball better etc.. You must also play with class, after every goal don't get upset and display anger. Think about the goal and what you need to stop the next one. Opposing coaches,players and especially scouts will notice and you will earn their respect. Give 100% all the time and scouts will really notice that and doors of opportunity will open up quickly.

[CtLaxin]

im going to be honest, you all cant blame the team. Some goalies tend to blame their team when they cant make a save. I know I was guilty of that in soccer. Youre a goalie, your job is to save the ball.

its possible for some of you but not all of you, or maybe you guys just think your betterthan you are

[EHSLAX12]

i know its my responsibility to stop the ball but when your defense collapses too often and leaves their assignments and leaves a cutter open to the goal straight down the middle and allows a feed, theres only so much i can do.

im definelty going to try to go to the ias showcase, itll be a long drive but hopefully worth it.

[mvgoalie]

Yea I'm going to that too. I've heard its hard for goalies though because there are so many shots from close in. But you get to see alot of shots in a game. By the way don't even complain about defense untill you've played with MN sub-par defensemen. I would love to have New York sub-par defense any day of the week.

[EHSLAX12]

yes, but is that a first year team sub-par defense. even though its in ny it probably compares.

the difference between my hs defense and my travel teams defense is ginormous.

[suburbandevil98]

sub par D? ouch freed. you think youve seen 1 on 1s? fugget about it, this year im telling the whole D to only slide for alvie

[Conn.LaxMom241]

im going to be honest, you all cant blame the team. Some goalies tend to blame their team when they cant make a save. I know I was guilty of that in soccer. Youre a goalie, your job is to save the ball. its possible for some of you but not all of you, or maybe you guys just think your betterthan you are

I hope you're not including what I wrote in your comment. I didn't say or imply that kind of blame-the-team attitude.

That said, the goalie, as all goalies know, is the LAST line of defense. Not the first or the only. If dpoles and dmids don't do their job --which is ALSO to "stop ball," just outside the cage--then it makes the goalie's job just harder, that's all I think most folks are saying here. Some saves no goalie can get, even at the MLL level. The college coaches know this. And they know this at a place like the IAS Showcase and all the others too. They also want to see how players react when they are frustrated or when they make a mistake or don't play as high-caliber as they'd like. If you can handle a game where you get lit up and still don't show anger, that says more than just what saves show them.

EHSLAX and mvgoalie, that's great that you'll go/try to go to that showcase. There are more shots and more close shots, but all 7x7 format showcases are that same way and many are. I think the last game for each team on each day is also fullfield.

I read somewhere once that the college-level # of SOG is around 25-28: not "all shots faced," just those that would've been goals if not for the GK. So you're right, it's hard on goalies but it's great practice, plus you can really work on improving against 1on1s and fakes with that many closer shots. Those showcases gave my son lots of college coach attention, lots of great video for those who didn't attend, and really helped him stand out, even with good stats on paper. Sure in his first one in June 06, he got lit up in 1 game, but it was the Fighting Clams A team shooting on him and he wouldn't have improved on those faster, closer shots if not for that kind of game.

Goalie Brian Carcaterra once wrote, "The only important shot is the next one."
That has helped my son get through that kind of game.

mvgoalie are you on MN Loons? You guys have a lot of talent, at least when last I saw at the IAS Showcase.

Best of luck, all of you!

[CTwiltongoalie1]

edgemont is terrible...

Yorktown hasn't been doing too hot lately either...Don't bash the kid for being loyal to his hometown and not shipping off to an elite private school.

EHS, what high school you go to really doesn't matter that much, it's the summer team that you play on that really counts. This past year there was a truly incredible defenseman from New Fairfield High School in CT (a less than average program until recently) who played for the Connecticut Hurricanes, probably the most elite club team in Connecticut. He verbally committed to Duke last year, and made Team USA for the 2009 World Games.

As far as summer teams that are available to you that I know of, the most prestigious is probably Hudson Valley Empire. If you don't make that team (unfortunately the team selection process is so political you pretty much have to be from John Jay, Yorktown, or Somers to make the team) there are lots of options in the area. There's West Rock, North County, the Renegades, or No Limit, all quality Westchester-area teams.

Good luck, and always remember to stay loyal to your coaches, they can get you far places.

[akalata]

My teams defense was terrible last year. We had one good guy on my team. It was my first year and I didnt do so hot. Save % around 45 percent. I went to Notre Dame for lacrosse camp and I did the Keystone Games this past summer in State College, Pa. I have improved alot. Do you guys think it is possible for me to get to a D2 school or D3?

[EHSLAX12]

Yorktown hasn't been doing too hot lately either...Don't bash the kid for being loyal to his hometown and not shipping off to an elite private school.

EHS, what high school you go to really doesn't matter that much, it's the summer team that you play on that really counts. This past year there was a truly incredible defenseman from New Fairfield High School in CT (a less than average program until recently) who played for the Connecticut Hurricanes, probably the most elite club team in Connecticut. He verbally committed to Duke last year, and made Team USA for the 2009 World Games.

As far as summer teams that are available to you that I know of, the most prestigious is probably Hudson Valley Empire. If you don't make that team (unfortunately the team selection process is so political you pretty much have to be from John Jay, Yorktown, or Somers to make the team) there are lots of options in the area. There's West Rock, North County, the Renegades, or No Limit, all quality Westchester-area teams.

Good luck, and always remember to stay loyal to your coaches, they can get you far places.
our asst coach owns westrock and coaches a team and then our head coach is the coach of the u-18 or u-19 team. im not sure if they dont like me or anything but they wouldnt let me play last year.

[CelticLaxer]

Quick recruiting note- much more important that going to recruiting camps is this: call, write, or email the coach at a school you are interested in. He (or she) can then tell you where he (or she) may be going to watch games/camps/etc. that year, or you may be able to avoid going to an extra recruiting event that could end up not being too valuable.

Bottom line- first & foremost, take the intitiative & contact the coach yourself!

[lsilaxer131]

well it would be awesome to get input.

so last season was good for me, not for my team. we went 7-10. my issue is that my stats werent as good as i wanted because of a sub-par defensive group. almost every goal scored on me was a 1 on 1 if i didnt save it. i ended up with an 8.6 gaa because of it. but that looks bad against my other high stat of an average of 22 saves per game over 17 games with close to 300 saves on the season i had a few important games that i broke out with 25+ and 1 with 30+. my coach has confidence i can get a scholarship or grant or somethin, but im new to the process and dont know how to approach it because of that blemish stat and the fact that im at a new program in an area where lax is huge but im not in the part of the area that its so big...im like 30 minutes from john jay but we dont play them, were class c, theyre b and much better than us, although my coach has confidence i can play their level. my quesiton is how to i go about contacting coaches and stuff like that from my area....im currently a junior.


i just looked up ur stats EHSLAX12...if by close to 300 saves you mean 212 then fine...and if your by "70ish" save percentage you mean 63% then good for u...

i dont know why you would embellish your stats those are both good numbers in themselves i dont see why you need to up your numbers to look good when they are already really good as it is

[EHSLAX12]

they didnt record about 3 games and a few of the games were incorrect. im not lying with my stats, theres no reason to do so.