The Cali*Lax ALL-STARS continue their winning ways as the Bantam (U14) and Pee Wee (U12) team find success in Everett Washington this past weekend.

The Bantam (U14) team went 4-0 beating the Jr Stealth twice and Canadian Box teams Kamloops and Langley in some hard fought battles. The Bantam team was lead by strong offensive performances by Canadians Ty Yanko and Tre LeClair, with some great defense by California’s Brock Bauer, Zak Zemel and new comer Kevin Jaggers.

“It’s great for our California offensive guys to play with a few of these high level Canadians. It gives our boys a better sense of this unique game and the finesse needed in the offensive zone” says Shaydon Santos the Cali*Lax ALL-STARS director. “Our local boys did great, we’re real tough out the back end which started with solid goaltending. We still have some work to do before we hit Canada this summer but that’s what these developmental series are all about. I like where we’re at”.

The Cali*Lax ALL-STARS Pee Wee team (U12) went 2-2 against the Jr Stealth, losing the tournament in a shootout. “It’s not the outcome right now with this age group, it’s seeing our players buy into Box. I was really impressed with a number of our boys who are dodging with 2 hands on the stick, carrying the ball on their shoulder and playing with some patience and playmaking ability around the net. Also had a few of our players drop a toe drag that would have made Rhys Dutch or Mark Matthews happy. Our boys battled extremely hard for each other. I was proud of them” says Santos. “We’ve got some work to do before our Canadian tour but loved seeing a number of our players with confidence in their stick and that’s the real key to being successful in this age group”.

These Box Development Series were developed by Shaydon Santos, Matt Brown, the Associate Head Coach of Denver University and Lewis Ratcliff, one of the NLL’s top players in order to build homegrown Box skilled players. The three US based Box programs meet three times over the course of the year in preparation for their Canadian Box tours. The three directors Brown, Ratcliff and Santos have over 80 years of combined Box Lacrosse experience.

“We’re doing this, Cali*Lax ALL-STARS, Denver Elite and the US Box Lacrosse Association to develop those special players that we’re currently recruiting from Canada. Canadian Box players aren’t a secret anymore, DI, II, and III coaches are all looking north of the border for that special player. We are creating those types of players right here.” says Matt Brown, one of the most talked about coaches in Division One NCAA lacrosse.

The Jr Stealth, Denver University Elite and the Cali*Lax ALL-STARS will all play in the same Canadian tournament this summer in June. Denver University Elite and the Jr Stealth will play in the ‘B’ level in Canada while Cali*Lax ALL-STARS will be fielding its teams in the ‘A’ level. The three programs meet again in August for more elite level lacrosse action.