Lacrosse Masters: Both Day Standouts "The Overall Stars"

Lacrosse Masters, hosted by Tim McDonnell, kicked off its girls lacrosse camp series on June 9 in Farmington, Connecticut, with the 6th Annual Girls High Academic Division I Summer Recruiting Prospect Camp. Representing some of the nation's most selective universities, coaches from Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Duke, Harvard, Michigan, Notre Dame, Princeton, Stanford, Penn, Vanderbilt, and Yale were in attendance. Every school represented has an acceptance rate below 20%, with most admitting fewer than 10% of applicants each year.    The Prime Time, Deerfield Academy (Mass.) midfielder just wrapped up her freshman year of high school. One of my favorite players from the event. She sets up her defenders very well and knows where she wants to attack them from. Dance has a quick first step and will blow by her defender. Her initial dodge is successful because of her quick feet. This allows her to draw slides and find her open teammates, and she has good vision. She is scrappy and will fight for ground balls. Dance will push the pace. She has a high IQ, so she can play fast and under control. In one of her games, she got downhill quickly and rifled an overhand shot. In another game, she had a great hitch-and-go. Her roll back is great, and she will fight through contact and doubles on the way to the goal.     Zukauskas has really quick hand speed. She switches hands so quickly. The midfielder made some difficult catches and displayed her stick skills. She's extremely comfortable when she plays. Zukauskas is a great dodger and feeder. On one offensive set, she came up from “X” and finished with barely an angle.     Berzins is a midfielder who plays high school ball in Florida, and flies on a plane to play club ball for Coppermine in Maryland. She was one of the best players at this Lacrosse Masters event. She is a dominant draw taker and can easily win the ball to herself. Berzins can rip shots from the outside. She can also finish inside and has a quick release on her shot. Berzins is a strong and tough player. She works great off-ball. Her face dodge is lethal, which allows her to get by her defender. Berzins' change of speed running the floor mixed with her 6'1” frame makes her extremely dangerous.     Ruscitti stands at 6'1” and attends The Taft School in Connecticut. She is a natural lefty attacker, so she already brings lots of value to a college team. Ruscitti can rip the ball from the outside and finish it in close. She is a really good feeder; she reads the defense well. She has a box lacrosse background. The box game is tighter and more congested. Playing on an outdoor field is wider, which gives her more space. This gives Ruscitti an advantage with her vision. Ruscitti can pass the ball from all over the field. Using her in different situations can benefit a team.     She goes by Apple, but her first name is Apollonia. She hails from San Jose, California, and made the journey to the East Coast for The High Academic D1 Summer Recruiting Prospect Camp by Lacrosse Masters in Farmington, Connecticut. The midfielder plays good lockdown 1v1 defense and can drive her matchup out. She clears the ball well and makes good heads-up passes. Cortese can get ground balls and push the tempo. On offense, she has great vision. She can read slides and make the right play.

Lacrosse Masters, hosted by Tim McDonnell, kicked off its girls lacrosse camp series on June 9 in Farmington, Connecticut, with the 6th Annual Girls High Academic Division I Summer Recruiting Prospect Camp. Representing some of the nation's most selective universities, coaches from Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Duke, Harvard, Michigan, Notre Dame, Princeton, Stanford, Penn, Vanderbilt, and Yale were in attendance. Every school represented has an acceptance rate below 20%, with most admitting fewer than 10% of applicants each year.