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Lake Placid Summit Lacrosse Classic Update

A good number of the #LASNation is either heading up to Lake Placid today, or already up there. The Lake Placid Summit Lacrosse Classic is THE Upstate New York lacrosse event of the Summer, and we’ll be bringing you updates if you’re not fortunate enough to be there yourself.

All info below is from Lake Placid Summit Press Releases, and photos are credited to the Lake Placid Summit Lacrosse Classic. Be sure to follow @LakePlacidLax on Twitter, @LakePlacidLax on Instagram and Lake Placid Lacrosse on Facebook for additional content and coverage of this year’s Lake Placid Summit Classic.

The 24th annual Lake Placid Summit Lacrosse Tournament kicked off Monday morning with play in the youth divisions getting underway and thousands of lacrosse players and fans already making their way to the Olympic Region for the summer’s most anticipated lacrosse event. Sponsored by Warrior and Brine, this year’s Summit Classic features several new divisions, including the Girls 2017-2018 bracket in the scholastic divisions.

In total, 224 teams will be on hand to compete in this year’s Summit Classic, according to tournament founder George Leveille. At Monday’s new conference, held at the tournament headquarters in conjunction with the first games of 2013, Leveille explained to members of the local media that the Lake Placid Summit Classic, which started in 1990 with about ten teams, has grown to become a draw for lacrosse players and families from across the continent.

We’ve got players from all over the country,” Leveille said. “Teams range from Florida to Kansas and Missouri in the midwest, we’ve got Canadians, folks from all over the place. … We’ve got geographic diversity.”

The 24th annual Lake Placid Summit Lacrosse Classic continues to grow, and this summer’s event features a new scholastic girls division for players in the high school classes of 2017 and 2018.

Six teams comprise the first ever 2017-2018 girls division: the Outlaw Ladies (from Central New York), Bethlem (from New York’s Capital Region), the Lady Eagles from Long Island, the Dazzling Divas (also from Long Island) and two Star Riders squads, Star Riders Red and Star Riders Blue, made up girls from Central New York, the Southern Tier and beyond.

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Daily Updates – Day 1

U-19 Boys

After the first day, five teams in the highly anticipated U-19 boys bracket were unscathed. The Buffalo Soldiers out of Western New York, the Long Island Express, the Baltimore Crabs, Lax World (made up of players from Western New York and the Rochester area) and Central New York-based Liberty were all 2-0 after Monday’s action wrapped up. Two of the most notable games Monday were the Buffalo Soldiers’ 9-8 win over Ithaca and the Long Island Express’ 12-11 victory over the Coldbrook Laxers. A marquee matchup is on tap for Tuesday as Liberty and Lax World are scheduled to face-off at 10:15 a.m.

U-18 Boys Gold

Five teams in the U-18 Gold boys bracket made it through Monday with two wins and no losses to sit atop the standings heading into Tuesday’s action. The FCA National HS team (last year’s U-18 Gold champion), Long Island powerhouse Shoreham-Wading River, the Buffalo Soldiers from Western New York, the Coldbrook Laxers from Central New York and Be the Best, a program from the New York City area, each were 2-0 after the first day. In a couple notable contests, Coldbrook scored a big win in downing the Baltimore Crabs 2014 squad 8-6 and Shoreham-Wading River earned a 6-3 win against Ithaca Varsity. Two of these so-far undefeated teams meet Tuesday as the FCA National HS Team will meet Be The Best at 12:45 p.m.

U-18 Boys Silver

The U-18 Boys Silver division also saw five teams come away from their pair of games Monday with 2-0 records and in good position heading into Tuesday. Bar Down Lacrosse (a team of players from New England), Fighting Four 2014 from New York’s Southern Tier, the Spencerport Rangers from near Rochester, the FCA squad, the Rocky Point Swag from Long Island and the Western Royals from Missouri were atop the bracket Monday evening. At 11:30 Tuesday, two important games are scheduled, with Bar Down Lacrosse taking on the Rocky Point Swag and the Fighting Four facing off against the Western Royals.

U-16 Boys

Four squads got off to 2-0 starts in the Boys U-16 bracket on Monday. Academy Mortgage out of Maryland, the Flyers out of Rochester, and two Long Island teams — the Long Island Express 2017 and Long Island Outlaws 2016 — each won both of their first-day contests, setting up what should be an exciting second day in the youngest boys’ bracket. Academy Mortgage and Flyers squads showed excellent defense, allowing a total of just two and four goals, respectively, in their two games.

2014-2016 Girls

Mass Elite Red and FCA’s 2014-2016 team both finished Monday with 2-0 records, as both teams cruised through a pair of convincing wins. Mass Elite Red outscored the competition 42-7 on day one, while the FCA squad registered 31 goals and allowed just six in two victories.

2017-2018 Girls 

Two Long Island based squads sit at the top of the standings, as the Lady Eagles and the Dazzling Divas both finished the day at 2-0 with considerable scoring margins after day one. The Lady Eagles scored 29 goals, while allowing just 11. And the Dazzling Divas put up 23 goals while allowing just 12. These two undefeated teams will face two other squads before meeting Wednesday afternoon.

Daily Updates – Day 2

U-19 Boys

The Baltimore Crabs and the Central New York-based Liberty were each still undefeated as of Tuesday evening with 4-0 records. The Crabs earned wins over the CNY Roadhawks and the Long Island Express, while Liberty took victories over the Buffalo Soldiers and Lax World Tuesday. The Crabs and Liberty will meet each other in the U-19 boys title game on North Elba Field 1 at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday. The Crabs scored 47 goals and allowed only 13 in their first four contests, while Liberty put up 55 goals and gave up 23. Four teams finished round-robin play and the semifinals at 3-1: the Coldbrook Laxers, the Buffalo Soldiers, the Long Island Express and Lax World, comprised of players from Buffalo and Rochester, N.Y.

U-18 Gold Boys

The defending champion FCA National High School Team remained undefeated at 4-0 Tuesday along with the Buffalo Soldiers with a record of 5-0. The FCA squad took wins over Be The Best from New York City/Long Island and Shoreham-Wading River from Suffolk County on Long Island, while the Buffalo Soldiers earned victories over VTribe Gold out of Vermont and two against the Coldbrook Laxers from Central New York. Those wins set up a championship between the FCA National squad and the Buffalo Soldiers, while is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Wednesday on North Elba Field 5. The FCA team has scored 51 goals and allowed only 10, while the Buffalo Soldiers have scored 54 and allowed 25 through five games. The Baltimore Crabs 2014 team, Be The Best out of New York City/Long Island and the Coldbrook Laxers head into Wednesday at 3-1.

U-18 Silver Boys

A second FCA team — a team of players from the 2015 high school class — and Bar Down Lacrosse from New Hampshire were atop the U-18 silver standings Tuesday evening with 4-0 records. FCA defeated North Country Lax — an team from Upstate New York — and the Fighting Four 2014 squad out of New York’s Southern Tier. Bar Down Lacrosse earned a pair of hard-fought two-goal victories against the Rocky Point Swag from Long Island and the Western Royals from Rochester, N.Y., to remain unbeaten heading into the Wednesday playoffs. FCA and Bar Down Lacrosse will meet in Wednesday’s U-18 silver boys title game, scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on North Elba Field 4. Through Tuesday, the FCA 2015 team had scored 62 times and given up only 18 tallies, while Bar Down Lacrosse had put up 37 goals and allowed 20.

U-16 Boys 

The Long Island Outlaws 2016 team and the Academy Mortgage squad, an Annapolis, Md.-based program, won two more games to remain 4-0 Tuesday. The Outlaws beat the Fighting 4 2016 team and later the Flyers team out of Rochester, while Academy Mortgage earned victories over the Battenkill Blazers from Greenwich, N.Y., and the Long Island Express 2017 team. The Outlaws 2016 squad and Academy Mortgage are set to face-off for the U-16 boys championship on North Elba Field 3 at 1:30 p.m. The Outlaws scored 39 goals and gave up 15 through the first four games, and Academy Mortgage scored 50 and allowed only 11 through round-robin and semifinal play.

2014-2016 Girls

Mass Elite Red and the FCA 2014-2016 girls squad made it through Tuesday’s action with no losses to keep their perfect records, sitting at 4-0 heading into Wednesday. To get there, Mass Elite Red got past the Star Riders from Central New York and later BLA Team Buffalo, while FCA earned wins over BLA Team Buffalo 2 and Balston Spa from New York’s Capital Region. Through Tuesday, Mass Elite Red has outscored the competition 74-14 and FCA has scored 72 goals and allowed only six. These two teams meet in the 2014-2016 girls championship on North Elba Field 6 at 1:30 p.m. Wednesday.

2017-2018 Girls

The Dazzling Divas from Long Island were the only undefeated squad left in the 2017-2018 girls division after Tuesday’s action. The Divas earned wins against the Star Riders Red team and Bethlehem from near Albany, N.Y., to earn their spot in the first 2017-2018 girls championship at the Lake Placid Summit Classic. The victory also sets up a Long Island showdown, as the Dazzling Divas will face the Lady Eagles (3-1) out of Rocky Point on North Elba Field 6 at 12:15 p.m. Wednesday in the title matchup. The Lady Eagles’ only loss was a 9-8 decision to the Outlaws from Central New York, a team that the Divas edged 11-10 on Monday. The Dazzling Divas gave up just 18 goals while scoring 49 in round-robin play, while the Eagles scored 48 and allowed 26.

Daily Updates – Day 3

Baltimore Crabs Win U-19 Boys Championship at Summit Classic

The Baltimore Crabs won the U-19 boys division at the 24th annual Lake Placid Summit Lacrosse Classic with a 9-6 victory over Liberty from Central New York Wednesday afternoon at the North Elba Athletic Fields. A graduate of Garden City on Long Island who is committed to play at Duke University after a post-graduate year at the Salisbury School, Justin Guterding led the team’s offense with a goal and four assists in the final.

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FCA National HS Team Wins Third Consecutive U-18 Gold Championship at Summit Classic

The FCA National High School Team won its third consecutive U-18 Gold boys division championship with a hard-fought 9-7 victory over the Buffalo Soldiers, a team made up of players from Buffalo and Rochester.

Joel Tinney, a midfielder at the Culver Academy in Indiana who hails from Guelph, Ont., led the FCA squad with four goals in the win, capping his outstanding performance this week by earning MVP honors after the title matchup. Glen Miles, who has coached the FCA National HS team that has traveled to Lake Placid for the past six summers, had high praise for Tinney, who will attend Johns Hopkins in the fall of 2014.

FCA 2015 Wins Boys U-18 Silver Championship at Summit Classic

The Fellowship of Christian Athletes 2015 team won the U-18 silver boys championship with a dominating 11-2 win over New Hampshire-based Bar Down Lacrosse.

“It was close through the first half and their defense was tough,” said Dean Curtis, who has coached the FCA 2015 squad that last two summers at the Summit Classic. “But we started to figure things out and made some offensive chance and started to push the field a bit, which gave us opportunities.”

Leading the way for FCA was Grant Ament (Haverford School/Penn State), Alec Orazietti (Mountain Lakes), Colton Rupp (Landon/Cornell) and Henry Grass (Bronxville/Johns Hopkins). Ament and Rupp finished with two goals and an assist, while Orazietti finished with two goals and Grass registered a goal and an assist.

Long Island Outlaws Win Boys U-16 Championship at Lake Placid

The Long Island Outlaws 2016 team won the boys U-16 championship at the Summit Classic Wednesday with a 6-3 victory over Academy Mortgage out of Annapolis, Md. Leading the way for the Outlaws was Jack Hannigan, who scored three times and assisted on another goal in the title matchup.

“Today I just thought we played good all around,” said Pat Brennan, the co-founder and director of the Huntington-based Outlaws program. “We’re a very, very good team, but we’ve had a so-so summer. I actually felt like we’d underperformed a bit this summer. So to win this at the end like this, I thought that was great.

Brennan credited several of his players for helping the team to an undefeated 5-0 run to the championship. Shane Brennan (Walt Whitman/Binghamton) had a terrific showing in the cage throughout the tournament, while Hannigan, Matt Stockfedder, Josh Goldblatt, Scott Manning and Chris Abbey all made key contributions this week. Face-off man Jack Brewer was better than 60 percent at the X throughout the week and was named co-MVP along with goalie Christian Carlino.

Grand Masters, Super Grand Masters, Ultra Grand Masters Get Underway in Lake Placid

It’s out with the new and in with the old at the 24th annual Lake Placid Summit Lacrosse Classic as the scholastic tournament wrapped up Wednesday just in time for the men’s Grand Masters (45 and older), Super Grand Masters (50 and older) and Ultra Grand Masters (55 and older) divisions to kick off play early in the evening.

In total, 35 teams from all over the country — and one from Canada — are set to compete in the “old men” divisions with rosters filled by lifelong lacrosse players who get a chance to wipe the dust off their equipment for the annual event.

Indoor Action Sports Brings A Record 11 Teams to Lake Placid

Jeff Coulson has been coming to Lake Placid since 1995, right around the time he founded Indoor Action Sports in Greenfield, Mass. Soon after creating IAS, Coulson began bringing youth teams to the Lake Placid Summit Classic.

Nearly 20 years later, Coulson — a graduate of Ohio Wesleyan University who now has more than 30 years of coaching and playing experience — has organized a record 11 teams that have traveled to Lake Placid to compete this week in the 24th annual Lake Placid Summit Classic.

“IAS is located in Western Massachusetts, and the irony is that there’s really not any lacrosse in our county, in that part of Mass,” said Coulson, who still takes the field at the Summit Classic, set this year to compete in the men’s grand masters 3 division. “We draw players from all over New England and all over the country. I have players up here right now now from St. Louis, Georgia and Ohio. I have men coming in from California and women from Virginia.”

What’s even more ironic is that Coulson, through IAS, was able to field more teams at this year’s Summit Classic than any single organization has ever brought to the tournament. IAS has teams competing in numerous scholastic tournaments: two Team IAS Breakaway squads (one competing in the U-19 boys bracket and one in the U-18 Gold boys division), the Team IAS Catamounts in the boys U-18 gold bracket, the Team IAS Cougars in the U-18 silver boys division, the IAS Jaguars in the U-16 boys division, the IAS Lady Catamounts and the IAS Lady Jaguars, both competing in the girls 2014-2016 bracket.

And in the adult tournament, Team IAS is competing in the men’s open 1 division, the Team IAS Catamounts are in the men’s open 2 division, the IAS Women Catamounts are in the women’s open 1 bracket and the IAS Women Jaguars are competing in the women’s open 2 division.

“I get so many kids who want to play, and Lake Placid is at the end of our season,” Coulson said. “When (Lake Placid) added the scholastic division, we put in teams. And then they added the U-16 boys, so we put in a team. They added the girls divisions, so we put in a team. It’s just kept growing.”

Coulson and his staff have had no problem putting together an increasing number of teams. Coulson pointed out that some of the players on his men’s squads have bee involved with IAS for 15 to 17 years.

“We’re to a point where players find us. We have a website, but we’re not actively recruiting players. I want players come to us because they want to play.”

Coulson said he’s committed to continue the Lake Placid tradition, and as long as he can get a team into one of the growing number of scholastic and adult brackets, he plans to guide players and their families to the Summit Classic.

“I tout this as the most prestigious tournament to attend,” Coulson said. “I’ve been to Vail, I’ve been to them all, and they are good. But to me, this is the one.”