3D Denver Shootout report

Here are some excerpts about NorCal laxers from Inside Lacrosse write-ups on the Denver Team Camp:


Class of 2014
Joe Rodriguez, Attack, Team NorCal Elite (Bellarmine Prep, Cali.) – Fast, aggressive and working well from X, this kid stood out as a quarterback-type attackman who was the best creator from the attack position on his team, and then went on to look solid the All-Star game. A righty with nice vision, good feeding abilities, athleticism 
and able to go right and left, he’s another Cali kid to watch.


Class of 2013
Eric Stagg, Midfield, Team NorCal Elite (Canyon Crest, Calif.) - A prototypical future Division I midfielder, Stagg's got all the tools to excel at the next level of play. Tall (estimating about 6-2), athletic, and a strong dodger, showing some great speed down the lanes, Stagg is an example of the players coming out of the West these days, especially, California. He's also got a nice long-range shot, scoring on a big righty blast in the All-Star contest. He drew top long-stick middies throughout the first couple of days, and really looks the part of and plays like a 
Division I midfielder.


Class of 2012
Mike Hernandez, Midfield, Brady’s Bunch (2012/Michigan) - A tall (6-3), strong, fast midfielder, Mike Hernandez turned a lot of heads throughout the weekend, but broke a lot of hearts, too, when coaches learned he was already committed to Michigan. He had a tough game against Claremont, as the Canadians devoted lots of attention to him when he was on the field after scoring with ease at first. But the Michigan-bound California native is one to watch. Dodging from up top, he’s got a tremendous face-dodge and can finish down the lane with a hard, accurate shot. A real athlete from the midfield.


U13 AllStar selections:
Graham Blake Attack 3D California
Ryan Emerson Attack 3D California


2013 AllStar selections:
Max Kreig M NorCal
Eric Stagg M NorCal


2014 AllStar selections:
Joe Rodriques A NorCal
Henry Armistead M NorCal


Congrats to the guys for the great performances!
You can read an article on the Denver shootout at:
http://insidelacrosse.com/news/2012/06/17/recruiting-roundup-3d-lacrosse-denver-shootout-standouts

North Coast Section – playoff results & Championship games

Division I Friday, May 18th:
San Ramon Valley 13 Acalanes 8
Monte Vista 6 Davis 2*
Redwood 11 Foothill 10
Division I Saturday, May 19th:
De La Salle 13 Las Lomas 8

Wednesday, May 23rd:
San Ramon Valley prevails in its Semi-Final game with Monte Vista 12
De La Salle pulls out a squeaker  in its Semi-Final match with Redwood, 7-6

Division I Championship, May 25th
San Ramon Valley vs. De La Salle 8PM at Dublin Stadium

*Davis' magnificent season comes to and end. They were 20-1 on the year. Congrats to them!
_______________________________________________________________________
Division II Friday, May 18th:
Piedmont 14 Campolindo 7
Novato 8 Miramonte 6
Division II Saturday, May 19th:
Marin Academy 10 University HS 6
Marin Catholic 14 Tamalpais 4

Division II Tuesday, May 22nd
Marin Catholic prevails against Novato in a Semi-Final game, 14-10
Marin Academy defeats Piedmont in a Semi-Final game, 15-13

Division II Championship, May 26th
Marin Catholic vs Marin Academy at Marin Catholic, 2 PM

Wednesday, May 23rd:
Piedmont faces Marin Academy in a semi-final match at Redhill Field, Wednesday May 23rd, time TBA
Marin Catholic hosts Novato in a semi-final match on Wednesday May 23rd, time TBA

Division II Championship, Saturday May 26th:

Marin Catholic hosts Marin Academy at 2PM

NorCal players named to Adrenaline All-American game

Will McKee

Fifty graduating Seniors from the Western United States have been named to the Adrenaline All-American game on June 2nd, 2012 at  Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, CA. Divided into two squads of twenty-five, the North team includes six players from NorCal. They are:

Chad Cohan A St. Ignatius Duke

Michael Hernandez M Piedmont Michigan

JW McGovern A St. Ignatius Yale

Will McKee M/FO St. Ignatius Lehigh

Michael Tagliaferri M San Ramon North Carolina

Patrick Worstell M San Ramon Syracuse

The complete list of invited players was sent out this afternoon. Each player will receive Maverik gloves, a Cascade Helment with a custom All-American Head Wrap and Adrenaline Movment will be outfitting each All-American with custom uniforms and apparel packages. GameTime Footage, the offical game film and highlight provider of Adrenaline, will be providing each player with a free copy of the game and the Adrenaline All-American MVP will be awarded a free highlight reel of his performance.


I know that graduation day for the SI players occurs on June 2nd, so that's a conflict for the three of them. I do not know how they will resolve it. In any event, these six are all wonderful players and Adrenaline is, in my opinion, on the money in naming them to their Western All-American team!. Congrats to all these players!  

West Side Lax ranks NorCal teams and players

West Side Lax has produced its annual boys'  lax projections for NorCal. Here are the highlights:

Pre-Season Top NorCal teams:

1. St. Ignatius Prep

2. San Ramon Valley

3. De La Salle

4. Monte Vista Danville

5. Bellarmine

6. Berkeley

7. Acalanes

8. Foothill-Pleasanton

9. Amador Valley

10. Piedmont

Pre-Season Top NorCal Players:

1. Michael Tagliaferri, San Ramon Valley (2013) M: UNC
Senior midfielder who has been selected to play for the U-19 National team. Great dodger who can score from almost anywhere.

2. Matt Emery, St. Ignatius (2013) M: Virginia
Younger brother of UVA standout Rob Emery. Matt is a midfielder with great speed and athleticism with a fast shot. A 2 time Under Armour all American.

3. Mike Schlosser, Davis (2013) M: Michigan
Selected to play on the Under Armour All-American underclass team. Great midfielder who can dodge and finish with both hands.

4. Patrick Worstell, St. Ignatius (2012) A/M: Syracuse
Senior midfielder/attackman was an All American last season who is comfortable initiating from all over the field.

5. Wiley Osborne, Menlo (2013) A: Dartmouth
Crafty attackman who isn’t afraid to turn the corner and bury shots.

6. Charlie Ford, St. Ignatius (2013) D: Georgetown
Junior long stick midfielder who makes his living shutting down the opposition’s key players.

7. Spencer Evans, St. Ignatius (2013) M: Harvard
Great dodging midfielder with a powerful shot on the run.

8. Jack McCormick, De la Salle (2013) A: Dartmouth
Crafty left handed attack man. Jack is a great feeder and finisher.

9. Michael Hernandez, Piedmont (2012) M: Michigan
Tall, athletic midfielder with great clearing ability and good vision.

10. JW McGovern, St. Ignatius (2013) M: Yale
Athletic midfielder who is a key part of Saint Ignatius' strong offense.

Other Players to Watch:

Chad Cohan (St. Ignatius), Griffin Goudreau (Bellarmine Prep), Chad Bell (St. Ignatius), Joe Lang (St. Ignatius), Cyrus Scott (St. Ignatius), Gus Gradinger (Monte Vista Danville), Will Ernst (University), Will McKee (St. Ignatius),

So far, so good. WSL is offering up opinions, and opinions are subjective. All eighteen players on the list are fine  players and WSL can slice and dice them any way they please. We can all have opinions, but as I have said before with regard to WSL, "EVERYONE IS ENTITLED TO THEIR OWN OPINIONS, BUT THEY ARE NOT ENTITLED TO THEIR OWN FACTS." Here's the issue: WSL doesn't really know anything about  NorCal lax. They don't know the players, they don't know their positions, they don't know their grade levels, they don't know their bios,  they don't know what schools they attend or whom to believe and that's why their write-ups always seem so goofy.

A few examples should suffice:

• In the body of WSL's NorCal write-up they assert: "San Ramon Valley possesses the most talented individual in the WSL coverage area in senor[sic] Michael Tagliafrerri. Tagliaferri, the UNC commit and US Under-19 team member, is undoubtedly on[sic] of the top players in the country." Michael is a fine player. He MAY be the best player in the WSL area, but Matt Florence, a Senior Midfielder from Kent Denver in Colorado (a UVA commit) is also a member of the National U19 team. Last time I checked, Colorado was in the WSL coverage area.

• Michael Tags and JW McGovern are listed as Class of 2013, when they are Class of 2012

• Patrick Worstell, a wonderful player, is not an A/M. In SRV's offensive scheme he often "rests" at Attack, but he is a Midfielder through and through.

• Similarly, JW McGovern is an Attack through and through - not a midfielder as WSL lists him.
• Patrick Worstell plays for San Ramon Valley, not St. Ignatius as WSL writes.

I'll leave it at that – though I could easily go on.

Every one of the players listed is a fine lacrosse player and they deserve all the accolades they receive. One just wishes for a more knowledgable and reliable commenter than West Side Lax.

But read the entire article yourself at:
http://www.westsidelax.com/wsl-presents-2012-california-boys-preview-north-central-coast

Michael Hernandez 2011 Highlights

Michael Hernandez, the fine 2012 Piedmont Middie, has committed to the University of Michigan. He played for the Alcatraz Outlaws this past summer, where he tore it up at the Gait Cup and King of the Hill. Here are his Junior year highlights.