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Message: [QUOTE="Powellfan, post: 3725786, member: 4819"] Sorry I am late to this - great discussion topic. I have only watched 2 and a half Culver games, so not many full high school games, and my comments are mostly about Hiltz. In the first game and half I saw of his, you could see the talent Hiltz displayed, but he wasn't lighting up the scoreboard. I watched the game he played against the Hill Academy in 2018 and it seemed like Alex Simmons, now of Denver got most of the scoring done for them that day. From watching Culver, it was much like watching a college program in the sense that every one seemed to get a touch and they moved the ball around pretty unselfishly. Also, it shouldn't surprise since they are a military school, but Culver are really discipled and take a lot of time to run their offensive sets. I don't think there was a shot clock in any of the games I watched, so possessions lasted quite a while. In the games I saw Hiltz he was mostly at midfield, and Culver seemed to run only one line so he was out there for every shift. I think the pace of the game made this doable. In the McDonough game you really see his talent - sharp passes to the crease, good decision making and a wicked shot. I think he led his team in scoring with 2 goals and 2 assists in a low scoring game that finished 8-7. He probably could have had one or two more goals and a few more assists. His passing was accurate but also risky, he can throw fast skip passes that remind me of the some of the passes I saw from Chase Scanlan last year. They come fast and almost out of nowhere. I didn't see Michael Sowers like dodging and he's certainly not built like a Brennan O'Neil, but he's smart and fast enough where he keeps defenses on their toes. I was struck by how economical his movement was, he's not going to shimey and shake his defender but he's also not stationary, he just knows how to plant his foot correctly, or the correct and efficient angle to take on a dodge. I think he'll fit in well with the offense, whether he's at attack or midfield. So, long winded answer about Hiltz, but my take away was that at least at Culver, it seemed like it was about the structure of the offense, and the amount of talent that Culver had. This is a tough question to answer since it would involve watching lots of high school lacrosse film, but I wonder if it has something to do with specialization? If coaches see a player with a good shot and just tell him to focus on that to make it really stand out? I know high school lacrosse can be a small world where most of the top teams have multiple high level division 1 bound kids on their team, so coaches might also feel pressure to get everyone noticed. I like how you used McGuire as an example to counterbalance Hiltz since one goes to a bellwether program and another that is not. But part of me thinks that even the kids coming from Oregon or Texas are still going to high schools with a lot of talent concentrated at just a few schools, and those teams have to learn the share the ball just as much as a Culver or Boy's Latin. Sorry such a long response, and there are probably examples that disprove this, but I think it has to do with lots of talent out there concentrated at a few high schools and coaches trying to get everyone involved as much as possible. [/QUOTE]

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