Re: ISL Lacrosse
Posted: Thu Dec 26, 2019 9:24 am
Long read.
With a long holiday break I’ve had some time to start shaping the bits and pieces of information collected throughout the year into a cohesive 16-team season preview. While that will come closer to the season, here are some end of year thoughts I have after starting that process. Those, plus my preseason top units for 2020 and a list of 2021 D1 commits after almost four months of open recruiting.
A deeper and more balanced league
While the ISL isn’t at the level (and perhaps never will) of the MIAA A, NE West 1, or the best NY has to offer, I believe the quality of the league has taken another step up. Many teams that traditionally fall in the middle or bottom of the standings seem much stronger than even just two years ago.
The usual suspects at the top (Belmont Hill, Govs, Nobles, Rivers, St. Seb’s) seem about the same, and probably none look as strong on paper for 2020 as Govs or Seb’s looked last preseason. But Groton, Middlesex, Roxbury Latin, St. Mark’s, Tabor, and potentially Thayer all will have rosters that could knock off anyone in the playoffs – largely due to fantastic junior classes. That’s 11 teams, which means some talented squads won’t make the top-eight bracket of the ISL Tournament.
Even the traditional cellar of the league looms with BB&N placing three 2022s and a 2021 on the Bostonlax.net’s future stars list, and Lawrence Academy had three 2022s play on the New England Under Armour underclass team. Both squads were more competitive than usual last year, despite being very young, and could surprise some people in 2020.
Playoffs baby
After 30 years of no playoffs the ISL champ finally gets settled on the field in a winner-take-all match up. Love it. In the past some very strong teams were essentially relegated to playing spoiler by mid-April after a second loss in league play. I think fear of that fate often led to tight coaching and play. Now the reins are off as coaches and teams are building towards and end of season peak instead of stressing out over every possession.
Weighted scheduling and a separate tournament for the bottom half finishers are smart ideas. The 16 ISL schools are so varied in size, athletic focus, and lacrosse tradition that some schools have no shot at being ISL champs without a massive shift in priorities. Limiting the potential for blowouts, and giving teams something to improve and play for in May, should invigorate the traditionally weaker programs.
Non-league play
The shortened ISL schedule will allow more out of conference play, including after the playoffs, giving everyone the opportunity to find 1-2 additional challenges on their level. That doesn’t seem like a lot, but multiplied by 16 and it’s significant. Andover, Exeter, Dexter, Pingree, etc. will be getting a lot of calls.
Impact Transfers
Tabor, Middlesex, Nobles, Rivers (not sure on anyone else) have all added some very strong players coming in, mostly after 2 years somewhere else. Some reclassed, some did not, but all have All-ISL potential before graduating and are joining teams in the title hunt.
Top Units - My perceived 1-6 at each position group
Attack - Belmont Hill, Tabor, Groton, Roxbury Latin, St. Seb’s, St. Mark’s*
Middies - Govs, St. Seb’s, Nobles, Rivers, MIddlesex, Tabor, St. Mark’s
Longsticks - Roxbury Latin, Belmont Hill, Rivers, Groton, St. Seb’s, Tabor
Goalie - Belmont Hill, Middlesex, Govs, Nobles, St. Mark’s, Brooks
*2 of 3 returning starters are big-time hockey prospects and it wouldn’t be surprising if they don’t play this spring.
2021 Commits (please lmk if I’m missing anyone)
Blake Weldon - Attack, Govs - UMass: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIgUY7TOH7c&t=
Zach Travaglini - Attack, Belmont Hill - BU: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ZzJdgp-wDs&t=
Theo Kostakos - Attack, Thayer - Jacksonville: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYXrZwrYIOY
Will Hoyt - Midfield, Tabor - Colgate: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DkuJ0x0sxCY&t=
Peyton O’Leary - Midfield, Govs - UMass: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9f0jbn8UsY
CJ Monturio - Midfield, Thayer - Army: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1S-ZUxD5Sy4
Cole Van Meter - Midfield, Nobles - BU: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGVbwvi2kAQ
Jackson Coutu - Midfield, St. Mark’s - Providence: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70xayCD0lAM
Quinn McConnaughey - Fogo, Thayer - Providence: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThRshauiieM&t
Bryan Anderson - LSM, Roxbury Latin - Brown: https://www.hudl.com/video/3/10903486/5 ... 0e2ccfd2e7
Ronan Doherty - LSM, Groton - Notre Dame: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYbH3tgYqHo
Grant Litchfield - Defense, Belmont Hill - Johns Hopkins
Trey Brown - Defense/LSM, Belmont Hill - BU: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYd0HKuo_u0&t=
Anthony Romano - Defense, Groton - Richmond: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwVaa3pf3UY
Gregg Dennison - Defense, Rivers - Providence: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsLTjQ_hUQo
Jimmy Freehill - Defense, St. Sebastian’s - Denver: (2018 highlights) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BON5l8Rsg1E&t=
Sean Henderson - Goalie, Lawrence Academy - Hofstra: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyAxTKBPwaI
Pretty good results so far. There are another 12-13 guys that seem like they’ll have D1 opportunities, but history says a good number of ISL guys will opt for the chance to be day one contributors in the NESCAC. There’s another 25 or so players that look like solid D2/D3 prospects, and as always some guys who will play college hockey or college football (a number that’s really grown as the ISL has become the arguably the top football league in MA). Fewer Ivy and ACC commits than the past few classes (especially 2017 & 2019) but the number of total recruits and D1 recruits from this class will be noticeably higher and more evenly distributed throughout the league than recent years.
With a long holiday break I’ve had some time to start shaping the bits and pieces of information collected throughout the year into a cohesive 16-team season preview. While that will come closer to the season, here are some end of year thoughts I have after starting that process. Those, plus my preseason top units for 2020 and a list of 2021 D1 commits after almost four months of open recruiting.
A deeper and more balanced league
While the ISL isn’t at the level (and perhaps never will) of the MIAA A, NE West 1, or the best NY has to offer, I believe the quality of the league has taken another step up. Many teams that traditionally fall in the middle or bottom of the standings seem much stronger than even just two years ago.
The usual suspects at the top (Belmont Hill, Govs, Nobles, Rivers, St. Seb’s) seem about the same, and probably none look as strong on paper for 2020 as Govs or Seb’s looked last preseason. But Groton, Middlesex, Roxbury Latin, St. Mark’s, Tabor, and potentially Thayer all will have rosters that could knock off anyone in the playoffs – largely due to fantastic junior classes. That’s 11 teams, which means some talented squads won’t make the top-eight bracket of the ISL Tournament.
Even the traditional cellar of the league looms with BB&N placing three 2022s and a 2021 on the Bostonlax.net’s future stars list, and Lawrence Academy had three 2022s play on the New England Under Armour underclass team. Both squads were more competitive than usual last year, despite being very young, and could surprise some people in 2020.
Playoffs baby
After 30 years of no playoffs the ISL champ finally gets settled on the field in a winner-take-all match up. Love it. In the past some very strong teams were essentially relegated to playing spoiler by mid-April after a second loss in league play. I think fear of that fate often led to tight coaching and play. Now the reins are off as coaches and teams are building towards and end of season peak instead of stressing out over every possession.
Weighted scheduling and a separate tournament for the bottom half finishers are smart ideas. The 16 ISL schools are so varied in size, athletic focus, and lacrosse tradition that some schools have no shot at being ISL champs without a massive shift in priorities. Limiting the potential for blowouts, and giving teams something to improve and play for in May, should invigorate the traditionally weaker programs.
Non-league play
The shortened ISL schedule will allow more out of conference play, including after the playoffs, giving everyone the opportunity to find 1-2 additional challenges on their level. That doesn’t seem like a lot, but multiplied by 16 and it’s significant. Andover, Exeter, Dexter, Pingree, etc. will be getting a lot of calls.
Impact Transfers
Tabor, Middlesex, Nobles, Rivers (not sure on anyone else) have all added some very strong players coming in, mostly after 2 years somewhere else. Some reclassed, some did not, but all have All-ISL potential before graduating and are joining teams in the title hunt.
Top Units - My perceived 1-6 at each position group
Attack - Belmont Hill, Tabor, Groton, Roxbury Latin, St. Seb’s, St. Mark’s*
Middies - Govs, St. Seb’s, Nobles, Rivers, MIddlesex, Tabor, St. Mark’s
Longsticks - Roxbury Latin, Belmont Hill, Rivers, Groton, St. Seb’s, Tabor
Goalie - Belmont Hill, Middlesex, Govs, Nobles, St. Mark’s, Brooks
*2 of 3 returning starters are big-time hockey prospects and it wouldn’t be surprising if they don’t play this spring.
2021 Commits (please lmk if I’m missing anyone)
Blake Weldon - Attack, Govs - UMass: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIgUY7TOH7c&t=
Zach Travaglini - Attack, Belmont Hill - BU: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ZzJdgp-wDs&t=
Theo Kostakos - Attack, Thayer - Jacksonville: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYXrZwrYIOY
Will Hoyt - Midfield, Tabor - Colgate: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DkuJ0x0sxCY&t=
Peyton O’Leary - Midfield, Govs - UMass: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9f0jbn8UsY
CJ Monturio - Midfield, Thayer - Army: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1S-ZUxD5Sy4
Cole Van Meter - Midfield, Nobles - BU: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGVbwvi2kAQ
Jackson Coutu - Midfield, St. Mark’s - Providence: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70xayCD0lAM
Quinn McConnaughey - Fogo, Thayer - Providence: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThRshauiieM&t
Bryan Anderson - LSM, Roxbury Latin - Brown: https://www.hudl.com/video/3/10903486/5 ... 0e2ccfd2e7
Ronan Doherty - LSM, Groton - Notre Dame: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYbH3tgYqHo
Grant Litchfield - Defense, Belmont Hill - Johns Hopkins
Trey Brown - Defense/LSM, Belmont Hill - BU: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYd0HKuo_u0&t=
Anthony Romano - Defense, Groton - Richmond: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwVaa3pf3UY
Gregg Dennison - Defense, Rivers - Providence: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsLTjQ_hUQo
Jimmy Freehill - Defense, St. Sebastian’s - Denver: (2018 highlights) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BON5l8Rsg1E&t=
Sean Henderson - Goalie, Lawrence Academy - Hofstra: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyAxTKBPwaI
Pretty good results so far. There are another 12-13 guys that seem like they’ll have D1 opportunities, but history says a good number of ISL guys will opt for the chance to be day one contributors in the NESCAC. There’s another 25 or so players that look like solid D2/D3 prospects, and as always some guys who will play college hockey or college football (a number that’s really grown as the ISL has become the arguably the top football league in MA). Fewer Ivy and ACC commits than the past few classes (especially 2017 & 2019) but the number of total recruits and D1 recruits from this class will be noticeably higher and more evenly distributed throughout the league than recent years.