Finland Files: U.S. Men's U19 Tryouts Open

Tryout Program (includes candidates and times) - PDF

The countdown clock on the 2012 Federation of International Lacrosse Men’s U19 World Championship page says it all – 368 days.

That’s how long the United States has to get ready to before it begins defending its world championship in Finland, but in many ways, the next four days could be the most important of those 368 days.

More than 120 of the nation’s best young men’s lacrosse players will be in Baltimore this week for the tryouts for the 2012 U.S. men’s U19 lacrosse team. The tryouts begin on Thursday afternoon and run through Sunday morning at the University of Maryland-Baltimore County. The players will each play in eight games over the four days, hoping to stand out amongst the talented field.

At stake is a spot on the 23-man roster that will attempt to keep the United States perfect in men’s U19 competition. The U.S. has never lost an international game at this level, compiling a perfect 36-0 record, while winning world championships in 1988 (Adelaide, Australia), 1992 (Long Island, N.Y.), 1996 (Tokyo, Japan), 1999 (Adelaide, Australia), 2003 (Towson, Md.) and 2008 (Coquitlam, Canada).

Some notes for the tryouts:

• The U.S. head coach is Tim Flynn. He’s the legendary head coach at Mountain Lakes and was an assistant coach for the 2008 U.S. team that won the gold medal.
• The pool of 123 players in the tryout includes players from 20 states. New York is by far the most represented state in the tryouts with 42 players participating. Other states with double-digit tryout candidates include Pennsylvania (18), Maryland (16) and New Jersey (10).
• Seven players played collegiately last year, but are still young enough to compete at the U19 level: Zachary Brown (A, Towson), Peter DeLuca (G, Jacksonville), Daniel Eipp (A, Harvard), Christopher Piccinilli (D, Villanova), Shane Sturgis (A, Penn State), Ty Souders (D, Lehigh) and Robert Zoppo (M, Towson).
• A total of 21 referees are also trying out for the right to be selected to work at the 2012 FIL Men’s U19 World Championship – which will be held in Turku, Finland.