ISL

[Laxxal22]

I saw that Torrey had 15 saves for Belmont Hill and Williamson had 8 for Seb's. Torrey has been constantly excellent in net this season for BH.

[Laxxal22]

Big Wednesday as we move into the final four rounds of ISL play before playoffs. Without thinking about it too much, it seems like a 7-4 ISL record will get teams into the top eight bracket. Some teams are dangerously close to the line already, others are jockeying for position.

Belmont Hill (7-0) @ Govs (3-4): The playoffs essentially start today for the Red Dogs as they try to take down the leader of the pack. BH in good position for the top seed.

Nobles (5-1) @ Tabor (6-1): Both teams should win out after this game so the winner will pretty much have the 2nd seed on lock.

St. Seb's (5-2) @ Rivers (5-2): Final tough game of the regular season for Seb's. Rivers still have to play Thayer, Belmont Hill, and St. George's so a win today would be huge for playoff security.

Lawrence (5-2) @ Milton (3-3): LA with quality wins over St. G's and Middlesex. Now have to face a real up and down Milton squad on short rest.

St. George's (4-3) @ Groton (1-4): St. G's who were the feel good team two weeks ago now need a win for some breathing room. They need the W as they still face Rivers and Middlesex before then end of regular season play.

Brooks (1-5) @ Thayer (3-4): In addition to being young Thayer is pretty banged up with three starters missing over half of their games. They probably need to win out and should stay on track today.

BB&N (1-6) @ RL (2-4): Just about improving and hoping for a lower bracket playoff run. Is Porell going to play at all for BB&N this spring?

Middlesex (2-5) @ St. Mark's (0-6): It's hard to believe that Middlesex is probably already out of it. They for sure need to run the table going forward and should be able to get it going today.

[Can Opener]

Here is a dupe of something I posted on the Ivy League thread.

As a biased New Englander, I was happy to see the geographic breakdown of the All Ivy selections. Based on the home towns listed in the league’s press release – which seem like a pretty accurate reflection of where they played HS ball – the boys from north of NYC did pretty well for themselves. I didn’t do the research on this statement, but off the top of my head, I think that New England’s share of the All Ivy selections is higher than its share of the overall Ivy rosters. In other words, they may not fare as well in recruiting, but they perform at a high level once they matriculate. In particular, the ISL has four alums on the list, which may be the highest All Ivy representation of any HS league in the country. (Again, without doing the research.)

The other two facts that jump out from this data are: (1) Upstate NY had no representatives on the list; and (2) the Academic All Ivy list is very heavily weighted toward NE with 43% representation and 29% from the ISL alone.

All Ivy Players by Region
New England - 10 (23%)
Maryland - 7 (16%)
Long Island - 7 (16%)
NJ - 6 (14%)
Penn - 2 (5%)
Calif - 2 (5%)
Other - 10 (23%)
Total: 44

https://ivyleague.com/news/2022/5/4/men ... -year.aspx

[Laxxal22]

In particular, the ISL has four alums on the list, which may be the highest All Ivy representation of any HS league in the country. (Again, without doing the research.)

https://ivyleague.com/news/2022/5/4/men ... -year.aspx

John Piatelli (Cornell/St. Seb's 2017) - First Team Attack
Andrew Song (Princeton/RL 2017) - Second Team LSM
Daniel Hincks (Dartmouth/Belmont Hill - Second Team Goalie - Will be taking grad year at Georgetown
Peter Blake (Penn/St. Seb's 2019) - Honorable Mention Defense

ISL generally sends kids to northern schools with good academic reputations. I think if you looked in the Ivy, Patriot, NESCAC, Centennial, and Liberty league alone you'd find at least 50% of the ISL grads currently playing college lacrosse.

[Laxxal22]

The ISL season has always felt short and never more than this year as only two rounds of games remain before the first-ever playoff. Though a lot could still change, here's how the playoff hunt is shaking out.

Heading for home field advantage
Belmont Hill (9-0 ISL - average goals per game for 14.77, against 7.55): Seb’s had them on the ropes but couldn’t close and now the Sextants have the top seed all but locked up. Rivers and Milton are good tune ups for the playoffs, and I’m pretty sure they could drop one and still be #1. Good balance of contributors on offense, deep midfield, defense isn’t as intimidating as 2021 but probably has better feet. Goalie is having a breakout year.

The Locks
Tabor (8-1 ISL - average goals per game for 15.11, against 8): The surprise team of the season, and a real threat in May, with a starting attack averaging 9 goals per game in league play. They had an 8-7 near hiccup against Milton Academy, but if they can keep a desperate Middlesex team at bay today they close with BB&N and the opportunity to secure the 2nd seed. I don’t know the seeding criteria but since BH owns the head-to-head win I assume the #1 is basically out of reach.

Nobles (7-2 ISL - average goals per game for 15.55, against 11): A very strong and deep team offensively with 10 players at 5 points or more in ISL play. Based on my math they’re league leader in goals per game while facing a pretty tough schedule. They finish up hosting a potential track meet against St. George’s this afternoon and at RL Saturday. The Dawgs look like the 3rd seed as they lost to BH and Tabor but beat Seb’s.

Lawrence Academy (7-3 ISL average goals per game for 12.8, against 13.2): LA has already played their 10th league game. Even if they lose at Govs on Saturday they can’t fall below the 8th seed. They have a potent top six on offense but a steep drop after that. Goalie and faceoff are strengths as well. They’ll definitely be on the road and have their work cut out for them in the playoffs, but they’ll be in.

St. Sebs (6-3 ISL average goals per game for 14.88, against 7.55): Finishing with BB&N and Groton, the Arrows are already in imo. The young attack group has had some ups and downs, but after 14 games plus a few weeks of practices and scrimmages, they should be ready to roll next week. Seb’s could end up #4 which, with a Round 1 win, would put them at BH for the semis. Tough draw but it may be better to (attempt) to rip the band aid off then than the final.

Control Their Own Destiny
Rivers (6-3 ISL average goals per game for 11.44, against 9.44): Strange to put them here as they have the same record as Seb’s and own the head to head, but finishing with Belmont Hill and St. George’s is tough sledding.

St. George’s (6-3 ISL average goals per game for 11.33, against 10): The Dragons face a similar task as they go to Nobles today and host Rivers Saturday but could be a de facto playoff game based on both of their opponents today. St. George’s isn’t deep but there’s a strong group of seniors which is what you want for postseason runs.

Thayer (5-4 ISL average goals per game for 11, against 9.33): There’s no room for error but they’re in the top eight as of now and finish with two games in which they’d be favored - at RL and hosting St. Mark’s. It looks like they’ve had injuries, but they’re coming off of a huge win against Rivers with potentially five wins in a row heading into the playoffs.

Need Some Help
Govs (4-5 ISL average goals per game for 10.88, against 10.11): I don’t know how the seeding process works, but I think at least one 6-5 team will make it in. Govs has a good shot, closing with Brooks and Lawrence as well as having head to head wins over other coaches who will probably be on the bubble.

Middlesex (4-5 ISL average goals per game for 11.11, against 9): The Zebras have a taller task as they travel to Tabor today before hosting Brooks on Saturday. Thayer is their only ISL win against a playoff caliber team.

[Flag Down]

Belmont Hill at Rivers is canceled for today. I have heard Covid protocol issues with Rivers players and or coaches.

[Laxxal22]

Belmont Hill at Rivers is canceled for today. I have heard Covid protocol issues with Rivers players and or coaches.

Large number of players infected but all are doing well and should clear protocol by the end of the weekend. St. George's game on Saturday is canceled as well though and there is conflicting chatter on whether or not they'll try to get it rescheduled and played before the playoffs begin.

Apparently the missed games will go as "no contest" and playoffs go by winning percentage. Rivers would be judged on a 6-3 record and St. G's on either 7-3 or 6-4 based on today's outcome with Nobles. All of those outcomes would get both teams into the top eight playoff, and deal a major blow to five-loss Middlesex and Govs who will probably need one of those teams to get to five losses to keep playoff hopes alive.

Covid is really prevalent in the northeast at the moment, and I hope the rest of the league takes their precautions into high gear with this news. A few outbreaks over the next few days would put the two tournaments in jeopardy.

[Laxboy78]

I really hope they make these teams reschedule. That is really unfair you can just not play and get a no contest instead of a forfeit.

[Farfromgeneva]

In particular, the ISL has four alums on the list, which may be the highest All Ivy representation of any HS league in the country. (Again, without doing the research.)

https://ivyleague.com/news/2022/5/4/men ... -year.aspx

John Piatelli (Cornell/St. Seb's 2017) - First Team Attack
Andrew Song (Princeton/RL 2017) - Second Team LSM
Daniel Hincks (Dartmouth/Belmont Hill - Second Team Goalie - Will be taking grad year at Georgetown
Peter Blake (Penn/St. Seb's 2019) - Honorable Mention Defense

ISL generally sends kids to northern schools with good academic reputations. I think if you looked in the Ivy, Patriot, NESCAC, Centennial, and Liberty league alone you'd find at least 50% of the ISL grads currently playing college lacrosse.

Wish Hobart got more lacrosse players from the league. We recruit it well for football (in Liberty league) but struggle to draw interest from lacrosse players. Why I’m excited for Tim Evnin and Anthony Stilwell coming the next two years.

[eumanne]

I really hope they make these teams reschedule. That is really unfair you can just not play and get a no contest instead of a forfeit.

I 100% agree! Especially, with the inequity in some of these schedules. Some teams have loaded schedules while others not so much.

[Floyd]

I heard St. George's/Rivers were trying to reschedule for Mon, not sure if that's finalized. BH/Rivers won't happen. Sucks for all involved. I'm sure BH would have welcomed a competitive game before the playoffs, and I don't doubt that Rivers was looking forward to trying to take them down.

It will be interesting to see if the system sticks as is. It's surprising to see Lawrence at 7-3 and likely to finish as a 4/5 seed, until you look at who they played. On the other hand they won a lot of close games vs opponents similar to them, so in that sense that sense they earned it. But there will be some in that 9-12 group feeling slighted for sure when comparing schedules.

[Laxboy78]

They based the schedules off of the standings from 2019. It will be a little more back to normal next year, with schedules based off of 2022 results. Like with any new system, some fine tuning might be needed .

[Can Opener]

The ISL really should post the playoff and tiebreaker criteria on their website. The lack of clarity only causes friction. Having said that, it is very cool that the ISL has a playoff at all.

[Floyd]

Having said that, it is very cool that the ISL has a playoff at all.

100% this

[Laxxal22]

They based the schedules off of the standings from 2019. It will be a little more back to normal next year, with schedules based off of 2022 results. Like with any new system, some fine tuning might be needed .

Totally. I think Seb's ended up with the easiest of the schedules that was supposed to be harder in part because they got St. Mark's, Brooks, and RL. Those three teams were all much better in 2019 than this year. The opposite is true for Lawrence, Milton, St. G's who were all much weaker in 2019 than this season. The swings won't be as bad when there aren't two year gaps in between seasons.

[Laxxal22]

I saw that Zach Geddes (Belmont Hill '17, Georgetown) got drafted #8 to the Chaos. Obviously there were ISL guys in the MLL over the years, but is this the first ISL alum to get picked for the PLL?

[eumanne]

They based the schedules off of the standings from 2019. It will be a little more back to normal next year, with schedules based off of 2022 results. Like with any new system, some fine tuning might be needed .

Totally. I think Seb's ended up with the easiest of the schedules that was supposed to be harder in part because they got St. Mark's, Brooks, and RL. Those three teams were all much better in 2019 than this year. The opposite is true for Lawrence, Milton, St. G's who were all much weaker in 2019 than this season. The swings won't be as bad when there aren't two year gaps in between seasons.

Take a look at Gov’s schedule- Gauntlet

[eumanne]

ISl individual stats: lot of familiar names on leader boards - great work Lax22 in preseason predictions:
https://www.islsports.org/page/2907

[Family]

ISl individual stats: lot of familiar names on leader boards - great work Lax22 in preseason predictions:
https://www.islsports.org/page/2907

Also nice to see some under-the-radar guys producing a ton on there as well.

[eumanne]

ISl individual stats: lot of familiar names on leader boards - great work Lax22 in preseason predictions:
https://www.islsports.org/page/2907

Also nice to see some under-the-radar guys producing a ton on there as well.

Absolutely! A lot of great young talent out there.