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The 2011 Champions were Pittsford, Irondequoit and Penn Yan. How many teams do you think will repeat in 2012?
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Coach Wilson on issues of the day
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Blogging selected games from the game site
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2011
Another Successful Season
The 2011 regular season is now officially over and so are the New York State Tournaments. Although there were lots of weather issues this year and a few games were cancelled there were 335 games played by 1,076 players on 36 teams.
Year End Summary: From tournament reports and brackets to the hundreds of awards given, you can find links to the year-end information in our 2011 Wrap-Up article.
Player Profiles: There are still interesting stories occurring in the Section Five lacrosse world. As the result of NCAA rule changes a few years ago, we are now seeing significant number of "verbal commitments" by sophomores and juniors to their future college teams. There are lots of players on summer teams. Coaches, players and parents should update their player profiles as decisions are made and as off-season events have finished.
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Two Locals Selected in MLL Draft
January 14, 2012 - Last night's college draft placed sixty-four players on MLL team. Mike Manley, Duke University red shirt defenseman, was the third pick, overall and was taken by Rochester. Of the other eight Section Five players, looking for a spot, only Kevin Randall (Notre Dame) was selected (by Charlotte). The defenseman form Penfield was the first pick of the seventh round (#49).
The Top pick in the draft was by Long Island, who selected Cornell attackman Rob Pannell. Ohio chose the second pick, Virginia attackman Steele Stanwick.
The MLL season start on April 28th.
SportsFive.NET - High School Lacrosse in Upstate New York
Make that Nine Local Players in MLL Draft
January 12, 2012 - Make that nine current college seniors, former Section Five stars, who have announced their plans to enter the MLL college draft on Friday. Duke University star defenseman, Mike Manley has added his name to the list.
Manley, who was a five time letter winner for Coach Brian Hobart, played on Penn Yan teams that ended up in the New York State Final Four every year. He was named Defensive Player of the Year in Section Five in both his junior and senior years and was named a US Lacrosse All-American after his senior year.
While at Duke, Manley was named ACC Rookie of the Year and started in eighteen games in his first year. In his sophomore year he was named to the All-ACC Tournament Team. In his junior year he was a third team USILA All-American. After an injury before the 2011 season, he sat out last year (medical red shirt) and will finish his college career this spring.
The Major League Lacrosse Entry Draft will be broadcast via streaming video on the MLL's web site www.majorleaguelacrosse.com from 8:30PM to 11:00PM. The Rochester Rattlers have the third overall pick in the draft.
SportsFive.NET - High School Lacrosse in Upstate New York
Eight Local Players in MLL Draft
January 11, 2012 - Eight current college seniors, former Section Five stars, have announced their plans to enter the MLL draft which will be held in Philadelphia on Friday, January 13, 2012.
All eight are NCAA Division I players with exciting records at their colleges.
From the University of Hartford are Ben Knapton (LSM) and goalie Scott Bement, both from Canandaigua Academy. Knapton was a member of the Class B All Tournament team and a captain for the Braves in his senior year. He went on to Hartford, where he was a starter as a freshman and was named to the America East All-Conference Second team in his last season. He will graduate in the spring with a Biomedical Engineering degree. Bement also was named All Conference (First Team) as well as to the All-Championship team after helping the Hawks to win their first (ever) American East title and qualify for their first NCAA tournament appearance. A Criminal Justice major, Bement has been named a captain for the Hawks this year. While at Canandaigua he was a four year varsity player and was named a U.S. Lacrosse All-American. He also was honored as the Section V Defensive Player of the Year, the Daily Messenger Player of the Year, and the All-Greater Rochester
Player of the Year.
Notre Dame senior and Penfield all-star defenseman, Kevin Randall has been a large part of the highly successful defensive unit. Playing all three years, he has been a part of the defensive unit that has held opponents to 6.19 goals against as a freshman, 7.53 as a sophomore and 6.56 last year when the Irish was ranked second in the nation in defense. His defensive coach, Gerry Byrne, recently named National Assistant Coach of the Year, also has ties to Section Five. He was a Volunteer Coach at Pittsford under Coach Paul Wilson. Randall earned letters in four sports while at Penfield and was a lacrosse captain in his senior year.
Drew Palmer, a graduate of Webster Schroeder High School where, in his senior year, was the team's MVP and a first team Greater All-Rochester pick. A two year captain for the Warriors, he also played on the ESG team where he won a silver medal. At the end of his senior year he played in the high school North/South Senior Showcase. As a senior defenseman at Fairfield University, he leads the team in ground ball production and forced turnovers after two years with the Stags. He is a Communications Major, playing for former Pittsford standout, Andy Copelan and has been a two year captain.
The Major League Lacrosse Entry Draft will be broadcast via streaming video on the MLL's web site www.majorleaguelacrosse.com from 8:30PM to 11:00PM. The Rochester Rattlers have the third overall pick in the draft.
SportsFive.NET - High School Lacrosse in Upstate New York
Brogden Cup to be Played at Tampa January 6th-8th
January 9, 2012 - From official release -
[Editor's note: - The Rochester team won both games and, as a result won the cup. The score in the first game was 15-11. The score in the second game was 15-8. A post-tournament report is available in PDF form here. ]
Level 2 Sports has announced that teams from the United States and Canada will compete for the Brogden Cup at the U19 International Field Lacrosse Series at the University of Tampa Stadium, in Tampa, Florida, January 6-8, 2012. This three game event is open to the public. Admission and parking is free.
The United States will be represented by some of the most talented high school lacrosse players from the Upstate New York region. Team Rochester qualified to play for the Brogden Cup by winning the Brine National Lacrosse Classic this past summer in Maryland. "To be able to tie in an International lacrosse competition with the Brine National Lacrosse Classic is very unique and exciting." says event director Joel Franklin.
Derek DeJoe, a standout attackman from Fairport High School is headed to Syracuse University along with Duxbury High defender, Jay McDermott and Honeoye Falls midfielder Nick Weston. This team is rich with talent. Midfielders Tyler Aycock from Pittsford High School and John Maloney, Victor High School along with Goalie Blaze Riorden, Fairport High School will be joining the Albany Great Danes next fall. Pittsford defensemen Derek Jamison and Irondequoit midfielder Connor Enright have committed to attend NCAA National Champion Mercyhurst College next fall. Binghamton University will have Irondequoit High School goalie Eric Fischer on the roster next year. Defender Nathan Gowen will be attending Rutgers while Irondequoit midfielder Gunnar Miller and Aquinas Institute defender Marc Pettrone have are committed to Army-West Point. Georgetown recruit Conor Whipple, standout player at Saint Andrews has been added to the USA roster. Duxbury High midfielder Chris Williams is headed to Quinnipiac and Penfield High School defensive standout Justin Rehm will play his collegiate lacrosse at Siena College.
The United States team will be coached by Brothers Craig Whipple, Irondequoit High School and Andrew Whipple, Pittsford High School. The Whipple brothers are not strangers to the Brogden Cup. Their teams have qualified to play in this competition three of the past 4 years. Canada will be represented by all-star players from the Ontario Junior Men's Field Lacrosse League.
The Ontario Junior Men's Field Lacrosse League began in 1980 with 3 Ontario teams. Since that inception, the league has grown from 3 to 22 teams. The 2012 Brogden Cup Canadian squad features NCAA Division One recruits as well. Attack man Joe French will be entering Georgetown University next fall. Upstart Michigan has signed midfielder Kyle Jackson from The Hill Academy. Another Division One upstart, High Point, has Nelson High attack man Dan Lomas committed, while brothers Nicholas and Sebastien Beaudoin are to Robert Morris University.
The Brogden Cup International Field Lacrosse Series provides players with an opportunity to experience international field lacrosse competition on an annual basis. The games create an international atmosphere that bridges communities and fosters friendship.
The teams will face-off for game one on Friday, January 6th at 7:30 pm. Game two will begin on Saturday, January 7th at 12:00 noon. If both teams win, game three will decide the Championship on Sunday, January 8th at 9:00 am. All games will be played at the University of Tampa, Pepin Stadium located on North Boulevard.
More information at http://www.nationallacrosseclassic.com/2011_2012_brogden_cup
SportsFive.NET - High School Lacrosse in Upstate New York
Officials Looking for New Members
'If you ever played or are a lacrosse player why not consider giving something back to the game. If you are a parent who wants to develop a better understanding of the game, the association can help you make a significant contribution to the sport.'
GVLOA has an excellent training program that will assist new officials with learning the rules, mechanics, judgment and on field communications. There are three meetings scheduled. Check out their flyer (PDF) for complete information.
SportsFive.NET - High School Lacrosse in Upstate New York
Some of the Public NLI Signings in 2011
December 1, 2011 - There were lots of Section Five players signing National Letters of Intent to play at D-1 and D-2 college programs next year and SportsFive.NET covered a number of the public one.
Rob Kitchen Signs NLI for VMI - November 14, 2011 - "When I took an official visit on September 1st the brotherhood and comradery that I saw and the honor of attending really got to me and when Left I knew it was where I wanted to go. More. . .
Six Players at Irondequoit sign NLI - November 15, 2011 - November 15, 2011 - Academics and
athletics were celebrated today at Irondequoit High School as six seniors, who have been playing lacrosse together since the third grade, picked up their pens and signed their way to the next phase of their lives. More. . .
Alex Paroda Signs NLI for Mount St. Mary's - November 15, 2011 - "The main thing was the coach," explained Alex Paroda when asked why he decided to sign his National Letter of Intent to play at Mount St. Mary's University in Maryland. "Tom Gravante displayed a lot of character and a lot of things I look for in a coach. He seemed to take the players under his wing and treat them as more than just lacrosse players." More. . .
Mitch Rupp Signs NLI for Albany - November 15, 2011 - Playing in the attack, Victor senior Mitch Rupp knows how to set goals. "When I was younger, my goal was always to play at Division I so I wanted to make sure I got there. More. . .
TJ DiSanto Selects Binghamton and Signs NLI - November 15, 2011 - The University of Binghamton has a long history of recruiting Section Five players and Head Coach Scott Nelson has picked up four more from this year's seniors, including Victor midfielder TJ DiSanto, who signed his National Letter of Intent on Tuesday. More. . .
John Maloney Junior Signs NLI for Albany - November 15, 2011 - In his two years on Varsity, John Maloney has amassed 92 points (54g-40a) and last summer he played for the Brine All-American Lacrosse National Classic (champions) and the Nike Upstate Rising Senior team (champions) along with a trip to the 205 Camp where he made the all-star team. More. . .
Chris Bechle Signs NLI for Binghamton - November 22, 2011 - "Right en I got on the Binghamton campus, I got that feeling," says senior defenseman Chris Bechle, about his choice to go to Binghamton University. "This is where I want to spent the next four years of my life. It's the perfect fit for me." More. . .
Brian Martin Signs NLI for Binghamton - November 22, 2011 - Fairport senior midfielder Brian Martin knew right away that he wanted to go to college in New York State and so after some investigation it was not difficult to find his match at Binghamton University. "I knew once I started my recruiting that I wanted to stay in New York. More. . .
Blaze Riorden Signs NLI for Albany - November 22, 2011 - "Albany offered everything I was looking at in a college," says Fairport senior goalie Blaze Riorden. "Great academic program. . . I love the
coaching staff and I'm going to have a good opportunity to play." The All Section and Class A All-Tournament player also looked at Maryland, Drexel, Hobart, Loyola and others, but "Albany was the one for me. As soon as I stepped on campus I knew it was the spot for me." More. . .
Derek DeJoe Signs NLI for Syracuse - November 22, 2011 - When he was in seventh grade, Derek DeJoe got a poster of Joe Walters (Irondequoit) while playing at Maryland. "He signed the poster and it said 'Dream Big' and I have always just thought about that. At the same time my Dad said that I could do it too. Watching Syracuse and other big schools play on TV, encouraged me to just 'Dream Big'". More. . .
Dylan Yonts Signs NLI for St. Leo University - November 23, 2011 - Penn Yan senior midfielder Dylan Yonts will be heading south a year from now, as the result of his signing a National Letter of Intent to play lacrosse at St. Leo University in central Florida. "It's a small campus. It's very, very nice. The weather is nice, the academics are good and they play good lacrosse down there." More. . .
Tyler Aycock Off to Albany - November 30, 2011 - Pittsford senior Tyler Aycock recently signed his National Letter of Intent to play at the University at Albany next year. He is one of four currently planning on playing for Head Coach Scott Marr. "I know a bunch of the guys going out there. I'm really excited. They are really great players and I've played with them for a couple of years now. I'm very excited to head down there." More. . .
Kevin Sanna Signs NLI for Hartford - November 30, 2011 - "It is a great school. I loved the coach. I like their business school a lot. It's very nice," stated Pittsford senior defenseman Kevin Sanna about his decision to sign his National Letter of Intent to play at Hartford University. His top four schools were Hartford, Fairfield, Cornell and Delaware. "I picked Hartford because I loved the coach and the school. It was the best school [for me] that I looked at." More. . .
Corey Parke Signs NLI for Georgetown - November 30, 2011 - "It was a top Division I program and great academics and I really liked being near Washington DC. I liked how you could walk everywhere," said Corey Parke of his decision to sign National Letter of Intent to play at Georgetown next year. More. . .
Derek Jamison Signs for Mercyhurst - November 30, 2011 - Pittsford senior defenseman Derek Jamison knew from the moment he stepped on campus that he wanted to attend Mercyhurst College after high school. "I had my choices between Cortland and a lot of other SUNY schools as well as Mercyhurst and Le Moyne. I saw the campus and it was beautiful. I love the coach and everything." More. . .
Penfield Lacrosse Celebrates Two College Signings - November 30, 2011 - Penfield Head Coach John Schembri recently sent along pictures of two more players in his program signing National Letters of Intent at a signing ceremony last month. More. . .
SportsFive.NET - High School Lacrosse in Upstate New York
November 25, 2011 - Announcements made during the summer months (and before) are available in the news archive. Early fall announcements and the late fall commitments are also available.
A list of recruits from last year is available from the "Player Section" links where you can also find information on any of the players in Section Five.
SportsFive.NET - High School Lacrosse in Upstate New York
Lacrosse Scholarships
September 8, 2011 - Back in February of 2007, Coach Wilson posted a blog story called “Doing The Scholarship Math”.
The article pointed out the somewhat often misconception that scholarships in lacrosse were easy to find and get. In fact, the story demonstrated that a player would need to be among the top two percent of players to receive, in most cases, a partial scholarship.
Since 2007, the number of lacrosse teams at both the High School and College levels have increased greatly. Reports by the NCAA and the National Federation of High School Athletic Association showed in 2011 a growth of (226 to 262 team in college) and (1,588 to 2,192 teams in high school) in the period from 2007 to 2010. In the twenty-five years from 1985 to 2010 the number of college teams grew from 144 to 262 (82%) and the number of high school team increased from 488 to 2,068 (324%).
So, with the large increases it’s time to review the math.
The whole updated story is available here.
SportsFive.NET - High School Lacrosse in Upstate New York
Hall of Fame Dinner - The Class of 2011
With another "record" set for attendance, almost one hundred and fifty lacrosse fans and celebrities gathered to honor this year's class.
The evening started with Chapter President Al Kerstein welcoming the fans and family and helping Al McLiverty to present a National USLacrosse Chapter Grant to the ROC E6 program which teaches lacrosse to City of Rochester youth. Art Alvut and Arkee Allen, along with three players from the program accepted the $2,500 grant after which Kerstein brought out a second check of $1,500 from the local chapter. Just before the end of dinner, there was a third announcement. Knighthawks owner, Curt Styres, who was contacted by phone, asked Team President Lewis Staats to announce that the organization would match the amounts, giving the ROC E6 program a total of $8,000.
Brighton women's lacrosse coach Rich Curtis, who was inducted in 2009 and was presented by Jeanne DelSignore, returned the favor this year, speaking about the well-known hand surgeon and "lax fanatic". He was assisted by Jeanne's daughters Sarah and Rachel who made the trip from out of town to surprise their mother. Bates College Head Coach and popular columnist for Inside Lacrosse magazine, Peter Lasagna was presented by his wife Holly and Inside Lacrosse Editor, John Jiloty. Current Towson Head Coach and championship player, Shawn Nadelen was introduced by his brother Chris, and several generations of Nadelens looked on. Nazareth College Sports Information Director and Assistant Athletic Director, Joe Seil presented long-time friend, colleague and current Head Coach Rob Randall.
Read the rest of the story here.
SportsFive.NET - High School Lacrosse in Upstate New York
New Rules for 2012 HS Lacrosse
August 21, 2011 - At its annual meeting, held this year from July 12-13, the National Federation of State
High School Associations (NFHS) Boys Lacrosse Rules Committee adopted a number of new rules for the 2012 season.
Perhaps the highlight of the new changes includes a new way to handle getting the ball into the offensive end of the field (Rule 4-15-1). For a number of years offensive players had ten seconds to take the ball from the midline and step into the restraining box or lose the ball on a technical foul. Any time the ball would come out of the restraining area the offensive team would have ten seconds to move the ball into the box coaches and players would often be heard yelling out "Touch It In".
Read the full story here.
SportsFive.NET - High School Lacrosse in Upstate New York
Post-Season 2011 - Section V lacrosse added another team (Gananda) to its roster which now totals thirty-six teams and 1,076 players.
The top three seeds won Section V Championships this year with Pittsford's 8-5 win over #2, Fairport, Irondequoit's 18-8 win over #2, Churchville-Chili and Penn Yan's 12-6 win over #2 Bath. Pittsford capped a phenomenal undefeated regular season, the only undefeated team in the Section this year. It was their first sectional championship since 1999. The Eagles, on the other hand, returned for their second championship in a row. Penn Yan returned for their 16th championship, but was a bit disappointed that their win was not against Aquinas, who dethroned them last year.
The first games this year were played on March 26th and the last
regular season games were played on May 21st and the 296 games played set up the league championships. In Monroe County it was Pittsford (MC1), Churchville-Chili (MC2) and Brighton (MC3). Geneva won the FL title and Bath won the GRALL title.
A new procedure brought together the Section Five Head Coaches to select the USLacrosse awards. After selecting ten All American, three of them, with outstanding academic credentials were selected as Academic All-Americans. They were Jake Bailey (McQuaid Jesuit), Greg Coholan (Irondequoit) and Steven Cregan (Brighton).
The seven remaining All-American were James Burke (Pittsford), Nick Doktor (Irondequoit), JT Hauck (Thomas), Drew Hays (Fairport, Mike Messina (Aquinas), Zach Reed (Bath) and Ryan Yunker (Churchville-Chili).
Another new procedure led to the selection of "All Section" players. The ten All-Americans were joined by nine others on the first team and eighteen others were selected to the second team.
The Monroe County Players of the Year were James Burke, Ryan Yunker and Steven Cregan. The GRALL selected both Zach Reed and Jake Bailey as Co-Players of the Year. McQuaid Jesuit won the GRALL team sportsmanship award and Geneva was awarded the Steve Morgan Sportsmanship Award by the Genesee Valley Lacrosse Officials Association.
After the regular season, there are several championship opportunities for teams that qualify. Pittsford (Class A), Irondequoit (Class B) and Penn Yan (Class C) were the Sectional Champions in 2011.
All Tournament teams were selected for each Class. The MVPs for A, B and C were Matt Gold (Pittsford), Greg Coholan (Irondequoit) and Dylan Yonts (Penn Yan).
The SportsFive Players of the Year were James Burke in offense and Jake Bailey in Defense. The Sportsman of the Year was Zach Reed.
The Western Regionals of the NYS tournament were hosted by Section Five at St. John Fisher College. Pittsford beat Clarence 6-5, Irondequoit beat Niagara-Wheatfield (20-7) but Penn Yan fell to Silver Creek (15-8). In the semi finals, also held at Fisher, Pittsford lost to Ithaca (6-5) in a thrilling double overtime game. Irondequoit lost (9-6) to Jamesville-DeWitt (Section 3) who won their second NYS championship in a row later in the tournament. Cazenovia (Section 3) beat Silver Creek (Section 6) 15-13.
SportsFive.NET - High School Lacrosse in Upstate New York
Sign up on from the "Features" page and you will receive in your email box each week, information on what's happened.
A quick look at the weekly rankings, perhaps the "Games of the Week" or a quick look at some of the "hidden treasures on your favorite Section Five Boys Lacrosse site. It's a great reminder of all things in Section Five Lacrosse. Sign up for your subscription here.
SportsFive.NET - High School Lacrosse in Upstate New York
January 11, 2012 - Eight current college seniors, former Section Five stars, have announced their plans to enter the MLL draft which will be held in Philadelphia on Friday, January 13, 2012. Full Report
January 3, 2012 - From official release - Level 2 Sports has announced that teams from the United States and Canada will compete for the Brogden Cup at the U19 International Field Lacrosse Series at the University of Tampa Stadium, in Tampa, Florida, January 6-8, 2012. This three game event is open to the public. Admission and parking is free. Full Report
December 14, 2011 - The Genesee Valley Lacrosse OfficialsAssociation (GVLOA) is currently recruiting officials for the upcoming spring season. The association is responsible for officiating boys` Section V high school lacrosse. As the sport continues to grow there is a great demand for officials Full Report
December 1, 2011 - There were lots of Section Five players signing National Letters of Intent to play at D-1 and D-2 college programs next year and SportsFive.NET covered a number of the public one. Full Report
November 30, 2011 - Pittsford senior Tyler Aycock recently signed his National Letter of Intent to play at the University at Albany next year. He is one of four currently planning on playing for Head Coach Scott Marr. "I know a bunch of the guys going out there. I'm really excited. Full Report
November 30, 2011 - "It is a great school. I loved the coach. I like their business school a lot. It's very nice," stated Pittsford seniordefenseman Kevin Sanna about his decision to sign his National Letter of Intent to play at Hartford University. Full Report
November 30, 2011 - "It was a top Division I program and great academics and I really liked being near Washington DC. I liked how you could walk everywhere," said Corey Parke of his decision to sign a National Letterof Intent to play at Georgetown next year. Full Report