THE LAX PLUS CALENDAR YEAR
- Fall Tournament Season (Sept-November)
- "SWAG" Winter Conditioning and Skills Clinic - www.lpswag.com (November - March)
- Youth Only: Spring Northeast Club Lacrosse League "NECLL" (April-June)
- Summer Tournament Season (June&July)
- Lax Plus Tryouts (July)
- OFF TIME (August)
The Lax Plus year is divided into two distinct Fall and Summer tournament seasons, along with a Winter Training Program and a spring Youth NECLL League. Tryouts are held in July, and are for the following Fall, Spring NECLL, and Summer Seasons. Our Winter Clinic is open to both club and non-club players. In order to get a better idea of our fall and summer schedules please visit our Calendar page.
**High School Tournament Focus: Maximum Exposure for Recruiting and Preparation for the College Level
**Youth Tournament Focus: Elite Competition in Order to Prepare Players for the Next Level
We also encourage all of our players to compete with their town teams in the winter lacrosse leagues at SportsWorld, and there are a number of additional recruiting opportunities for our high school players over the course of the winter season. Opportunites open to all players are posted directly on our Recruiting Opportunities Page, whereas some opportunities are invite only.
Tournament Schedule
The fall season typically consists of at least three to four, one-day tournaments, within driving distance, that follow a variety of 3v3, 7v7, or 12v12 formats. The Summer season on the other hand consists of three to four, one to two-day tournaments, 12 vs. 12 format, and may require hotel accommodations.
The tournament schedule can vary slightly from year to year. In order to get an idea of which tournaments our teams attend, you can refer to the prior seasons schedule found on our Calendar page.
We as the Lax Plus staff, feel confident that the tournaments we choose expose our players to top levels of competition. We also strategically choose tournaments that showcase the talents of our high school players in front of 100's of college coaches from all levels of play.
How are teams chosen for the tournaments?
The majority of tournaments arrange their schedule based on an athlete’s year of graduation. As a result, our teams are typically formed using this format. However, there may be tournaments where players find themselves on a team with a mix of players graduating the year directly before or after them. In addition, there may also be tournaments in which there are more than one team per graduation year. This varies depending on the Lax Plus season, and each given tournament.
At Lax Plus we try to keep our teams and coaches as consistent as possible in a given season. However, players and staff are always subject to change. Lax Plus reserves the right to switch players from one team to another at any time. Just as players benefit from consistency, players also benefit from flexibility, and learning how to adjust to different playing and coaching situations.
In addition, when and if an opportunity arises for a player to compete with an older or more advanced team, players will generally be chosen because they demonstrate a willingness to play any position, a positive attitude, a strong work ethic, and encompass a sense of team play. These are the same qualities that college coaches will be looking for as they are recruiting.
Practice Schedule
Each season coincides with a practice schedule. The Fall practice schedule is limited to late Saturday or Sunday afternoons as to not interfere with Fall Sports and other school activities, whereas the summer tends to be more intensive with multiple practices a week.
Why don't we practice more often?
There are a number of reasons why do not practice more often. We feel it is important for our players to participate in a variety of activities and are very supportive of their schedules. During the Fall season, many of our athletes are involved with other fall sports, and as a result it limits their ability to practice with us. A similar issue arises in the summer with sports camps, work schedules, and family vacation time. As a result we try to keep the schedule reasonable in order to get as many players as possible to each practice.
Why do practices start in June for the summer season?
We start practices in June in order for our players to be able to focus on their town rec and high school seasons. CT rules also prohibit high school players from partaking in practices or games with any other lacrosse organizations until their high school seasons have come to a close.
Are practices mandatory?
We encourage all of our players to attend the scheduled practices. It is difficult to continue to work on team concepts throughout the season when players do not show up for practices on a regular basis. In addition, players who do not attend practices, face the challenge of having to familiarize themselves with their teammates and coaches at the tournaments. We truly feel that in order to get the most out of your experience with Lax Plus, it is imperative that you attend all practices.
SWAG TEAM CAMP (Entering 9th-12th Grade)
Since we do not have the opportunity to practice with our teams during the spring, we now have an two-day team camp at Springfield College for our older Lax teams. This camp is designated for our staff and players to work on building the foundation for our Lax culture as we move into the summer tournament play. It also provides our players with the opportunity to work directly with D1-D3 college coaches, and play against other clubs programs in the area.
