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West Coast Best Coast? Adrenaline All America Game
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Adrenaline All-American Games: 2018 Preview

Nine years ago West Coast lacrosse players rarely got invited to showcases back East. The talent and athleticism may have been there, but the invites weren’t. Jono Zissi and other Western region coaches wanted to honor the players who deserved recognition, and the Adrenaline All-American Games were born.

None of the players from Torrey Pines, the high school team I coach, ever got a look. We knew we needed to do something to pave a way for them.

– Jono Zissi, Adrenaline Recruiting Director

Eight years ago, the first Adrenaline All-American Game was played in front of a small crowd at Rancho Bernardo High School in San Diego. The turf was hot. There was swag, but of a different kind. Gear wasn’t nearly as shiny and “advanced” as it is today.

When we first launched Adrenaline in 2001, the goal was never to make money. It’s about empowering the player. We started the Adrenaline All-American Games because we felt like the players deserved it, and an event like this was missing. It’s true to our mission of empowering lacrosse players and making them into the best people they can be.

– Alex Cade, Adrenaline CEO

2014 Adrenaline All American Game
AAA Game in 2014

A lot has evolved between then and now, but the event’s best qualities remain consistent. The best players, the best coaches and the best style West of the Mississippi are always showcased in one intimate, all-inclusive setting.

This time around The Star, a 91-acre campus that hosts the Dallas Cowboys’ world headquarters, is set to shine brightly with lacrosse all weekend long in tandem with Western Prime. For the second straight year, hundreds of avid high school lacrosse players and their families have arrived in Frisco, Texas, to take part in a world-class experience.

The Adrenaline All-American rosters include thirty-nine girls and fifty-five boys lacrosse players from the Western region of the United States who are all headed to play college ball next year. Every athlete, from Washington to Texas, earned his/her respective spot through hard work and commitment to the craft. Many also have roots with the club programs attending Western Prime – maybe even a sibling or two playing in it.

Zissi remarks:

Many of these kids have played together on-and-off their whole life and this is really the last run they’ll get as teammates. It’s really special to reward them in a setting like The Star. The event as a whole kind of has a graduation feel.

Cade adds:

It’s honestly an honor for us to be able to dedicate our resources to paying tribute to these players, and I am thankful the event has garnered so much media attention over the years. The more eyes on these kids the better, they deserve it!

A handful of well-known current NCAA lacrosse stars are also returning to their roots this weekend to join Zissi, Cade, and the rest of the Adrenaline staff in giving back. West Coast Starz and All-American Game alumni Bubba Fairman (Maryland), Justin Anderson (UNC), Tucker Dordevic (Syracuse), and Cade Van Raaphorst (Duke) are onsite and each assigned to assistant coach an All-American team. These guys are dedicated to showing each All-American the Adrenaline treatment.

FridayAdrenaline Treatment

The Boys and Girls All-Americans arrive for check-in on Friday morning. They’ll check out the locker rooms (which look insane), plus families and players get to go on an entire facilities tour of Cowboys World Headquarters.

Adrenaline All-American treatment - locker roomsThe All-American athletes receive new Adrenaline Lacrosse gear no one has ever seen before and attend a special banquet to celebrate with each other on Friday evening.

Each year Adrenaline aligns a guest speaker to share wisdom with the All-Americans at the banquet. It’s rarely a lacrosse player and always someone who will inspire. This year’s speaker is Jacob Schick, a former American sniper.

Jacob Schick is founder and CEO of 22KILL, an organization on mission to raise awareness for suicide prevention. A third generation Marine who epitomizes service and sacrifice, Schick was injured in battle in 2004. He has become widely known for speaking first-hand about his experiences and using his wisdom to maximize the potential in people from all walks of life.

Following the banquet, the rest of the night is likely dedicated to texting significant others and team bonding at the hotel. Obviously that means Fortnite and then straight to bed to rest up for the big show.

SaturdayThe Big Show

Adrenaline All-American GameSaturday goes by fast, so if you’re a player reading this, remember: it’s important to live in the moment. This could turn out being one of the most memorable days of your life.

The All-American squads come together at the Ford Center Locker Rooms in the morning. They gel quickly and rise to the occasion, striving for a North or South victory.

This year the games take place back-to-back beginning at 12:00PM CT, and Western Prime takes a pause so everyone at The Star can watch the big show. My favorite part is that parents get the best seats in the house: sideline chairs.

  • 12:00PM CT – Boys All-America Game
  • 2:00PM CT – Girls All-America Game
Lauren Lea - Philadelphia Fire
Lauren Lea on the mic!

LaxAllStars is pleased to have one of our very own commentate the Adrenaline All-American Games in addition to our team’s role streaming the Western Prime Championships. Lauren Lea, a new addition to LaxAllStars, joins West Coast Starz director Jono Zissi and Matt Kinnear from Inside Lacrosse on the call during both All-American Games

Lauren is currently a midfielder for the Philadelphia Fire in the Women’s Professional Lacrosse League, and we couldn’t be more excited to have her player perspective on board!

Each game airs on TLN.

Boys Adrenaline All-American Rosters

Players to watch: Isaiah Dawson (Harvard), Quentin Buchman (Notre Dame), Evan Egan (North Carlina), Drew Erickson (Denver), Justin Cheng (Notre Dame)

North

Jersey # First Last Position High School College Committed
1 Jack Crockett Attack Sacred Heart Prep Princeton University
2 Jack Collins Attack Avon Old Farms Boston University
3 Drew Erickson Attack San Ramon Valley University of Denver
4 Joshua James Attack WJ Palmer Towson University
5 Samuel Handley Attack Jesuit Portland University of Pennsylvania
6 Patrick English Attack Forest Hills Central Marquette University
7 Beau Pederson Attack Park City High School Princeton University
8 Nicholas Williams Midfield Conifer High School Hofstra University
9 JR Armistead Midfield Bellarmine College Prep University of Richmond
10 Mason Bonnie Midfield Lawrenceville School/Deerfield Academy Georgetown University
11 Brett Boos Midfield Chaparral University of Denver
12 Cole Daninger Midfield O’Dea High School Rutgers University
13 Jadon Kerry Midfield Chanhassen High School Duke University
14 George Pike Midfield Avon Old Farms School Brown University
15 Samuel Dracobly Midfield O’Dea Naval Academy
16 Jackson Harvey Midfield Arapahoe High School University of Denver
17 Jack Sercu Midfield Eastside Catholic High School Williams College
18 Matt Marino Midfield Bellevue High School University of Denver
19 Emmett Jones Defense Lakeridge Highschool High Point University
20 Will Carson Defense Skyline Boston University
21 Cathal Roberts Defense San Ramon Valley High School Princeton University
22 Brody LaPorte Defense Menlo School Villanova
23 Ross Buchmann Defense MICDS University of Vermont
24 Mark Rakowski Defense Lawrenceville School University of Pennsylvania
25 Drake Schaffner Defense Gonzaga College High School Dartmouth
26 Mac Gates Goalie Saint Ignatius College Preparatory Hofstra University
27 Jack Schlendorf Goalie Oregon Episcopal School (OES) Harvard
28 Cole French Goalie San Ramon Valley High School University of Denver

North Coaches:

  • Gary Campo – Palo Verde HS Head Coach, Vegas Starz Director
  • Bubba Fairman – University of Maryland, Starting Midfielder, Big 10 Rookie of the Week, WCS & Adrln AA alum
  • Tucker Dordevic – Syracuse University, ACC Rookie of the Week 2X, WCS & Adrln AA alum

South

Jersey # First Last Position High School College Committed
1 Nicholas Demaio Attack Coronado Boston University
2 Paul Rodriguez Attack Harvard Westlake University of Virginia
3 Brandon Meaux Attack Episcopal School of Dallas Georgetown University
4 Chase Taylor Attack Great Oak High School United States Military Academy, West Point
5 Ramsey McCreary Attack The Woodlands High School Notre Dame
6 Ellis Geis Attack Foothill Santa Ana Denver University
7 Tate Young Midfield Westlake High School Notre Dame
8 Josh Tauss Attack Cathedral Catholic US Air Force Academy
9 Ryan Ramirez Midfield Torrey Pines High School Bryant University
10 David Sprock Midfield Jesuit College Prep Rutgers University
11 Spencer Grant Faceoff Torrey Pines High School Univeristy of Michigan
12 Shayne Grant Midfield Torrey Pines High School Univeristy of Richmond
13 Aidan Hesse Faceoff Loyola High School Tufts University
14 Jake Brophy Midfield Coronado High School UCLA
15 Isaiah Dawson Midfield The Bishops School Harvard
16 Quentin Buchman Midfield Santa Margarita Catholic Notre Dame
17 Trent Pernell Midfield Palo Verde High School Colorado Mesa University
18 Aidan Johnston Defense Dallas Jesuit The University of Michigan
19 Hayden Rodenbeck Defense Servite High School University of Utah
20 Cade Saustad Defense Highland Park High School University of Virginia
21 Justin Cheng Defense Beckman Notre Dame
22 Blake Gagen Defense Torrey Pines High School University of Delaware
23 Evan Egan Defense Torrey Pines High School UNC
24 Greyson Mokarow Defense Dallas Jesuit University of Denver
25 Jonathan Ford LSM Torrey Pines High School University of Notre Dame
26 Makail Fraboni Goalie Torrey Pines High School US Naval Academy
27 Carver Skarnulis Goalie Anderson High School Marquette

South Coaches:

  • Jason Gildea – Roanoke College, Chaos Director
  • Jason Griggs – Coronado HS (NV) Head Coach, Movin’ Up Director
  • Cade Van Raaphorst – Duke University, 2X All American, 3 year starter, 2018 Final 4/ WCS & AA game alum

Girls Adrenaline All-American Rosters

North

# First Name Last Name Position High School College Committed
2 Tessa Guerra Attack Mercer Island High School Claremont McKenna College
12 Madison Souza Attack San Ramon Valley Vanderbiilt University
14 Charlie Rudy Attack Novato High School University of Colorado, Boulder
17 Hannah Mill Attack Chaparral High School Stetson University
1 Anna Clarke Midfield Saint Ignatius College Prep Tufts University
4 Brianne Gross Midfield Oak Ridge High School Vanderbilt University
6 Jamie Level Midfield Novato High School University of Oregon
7 Katie Brodsky Midfield Mercer Island High School Arizona State University
8 Kennedy Mealhow Midfield Ponderosa High School University of Tampa
9 Jazmyne Ward Midfield Vimy Ridge Academy Dartmouth College
10 Lydia Foust Midfield Saint Francis High School Marquette University
11 Gabby Nixon Midfield Park City High School Marist College
15 Gabriella Abbadessa Midfield Desert Vista High School Stony Brook University
16 Erin Schafer Midfield Foothill High School Brown University
3 Arianna Crusha Defense Glacier Peak High School Cascadia Community College
5 Hailee Andry Defense Mater Dei High School Kent State University
27 Katie McGrath Goalie Novato High School Butler University
28 Abbigale Young Goalie Carondelet High School United States Naval Academy

North Coaches:

  • Lyndsey Gillis- Bowdoin College, Mercer Island Director/Coach, Seattle Starz Director
  • Kassandra Lemons- St. Mary’s College (CA), Park City HS Coach, West Coast Starz Coach

South

# First Name Last Name Position High School College Committed
8 Coco Creedon Attack McKinney Boyd High School Babson College
9 Cate Mackel Attack Chaminade College Prep Elon University
17 Megan Carney Attack John Paul II High School Syracuse University
1 Bailee Monjazeb Midfield Torrey Pines High School University of California, Berkeley
2 Hayley Reardon Midfield The Woodlands High School University of Oregon
5 Lizzie Benedict Midfield The Hockaday School University of North Carolina
6 Morgan McCaffrey Midfield Keller High School Arizona State University
7 Kelli McKinnon Midfield Torrey Pines High School San Diego State University
10 Sydney Lawrence Midfield Plano Senior High School University of Oregon
11 Zoe Durham Midfield Highland Park High School Yale University
14 Quinnlyn Mason Midfield Aliso Niguel High School University of California, Berkeley
16 Natalie Wilson Midfield Coronado High School University of California, Davis
18 Cailin Young Midfield St. Margaret’s Episcopal San Diego State University
20 Caitlin Jones Midfield La Costa Canyon High School San Diego State University
21 Gabrielle Coben Midfield Greenhill School University of Pennsylvania
12 Courtney Anderson Defense Coppell High School Stanford University
15 Sydney Payne Defense Mater Dei High School Arizona State University
27 Sophia LeRose Goalie Torrey Pines High School Duke University
28 Rachel Hall Goalie Cypress Woods High School University of Oregon

South Coaches:

  • Molly Ford – Georgetown University, US Team Member ’11-’14, The Hockaday School HC/Director, GRIT Program Director
  • Alyssa Murray – Syracuse University, UWLX Philly Force, Team USA ’14- Present, Vandegrift HS Director/Coach, Iron Horse Girls Director

2017 Adrenaline All-American Game Highlights