Spike Malangone

Attempting to judge high school lacrosse team is akin to trying to navigate the New York City subway system with no experience or HopStop app. There are so many variables at the high school level that make this task so daunting that seldom exist as you move to the NCAA, from player X missing a game for a college visit to player Y missing a game to make up an exam. Attempting to rank high school teams is to wade further into these murky waters. Forget the inherent capricious nature of high school athletics. There is just so much lacrosse being played, in so many areas, that it is nearly impossible to see each team play. While at the college level there is at least usually the "luxury" of a webcast – which in 2013 basically allows you to watch almost any game – save for a few televised games here or there, one simply can’t see even half of the teams playing high school lacrosse. Ranking them is then reliant upon observations of the teams you have been able to see personally, and second-hand feedback from a variety of sources for the others. It’s an entertaining exercise, but far from a perfect science. In this ilk, we thought it would be fun (it’s Friday, after all) to discuss two teams we have actually seen live this season and by our eye-test (and corroborated by most other accounts) are two of the best in country this year: Boys’ Latin (MD) and Ward Melville (NY). So, what would happen if they were to play? Let’s discuss. ...