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[


BOYLE POINT] editorial


Trouble with Labels A


Shopping for a lacrosse experience? Make sure you pay for what you get.


ccording to a Natural Foods Merchandiser survey, organic


foods enjoyed a 12-percent


sales increase in 2013. Eight in 10 parents purchased organic products when buying groceries, and 42 percent of parents trusted the USDA Organic seal.


Simply put, organics are crushing it. Yet despite increased awareness of organic options, just 33 percent of consumers actually recognize and understand the USDA Organic seal. Paradoxically, as interest in organic products has exploded, the general public is more confused about this category of products. Not all organics are made alike. There’s 100-percent organic, organic, “made with” organic and specific organic ingredients. These terms represent very different classifications.


Lacrosse has problems with labels too.


According to the Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA), lacrosse participation skyrocketed 158 percent between 2008 and 2012. Like organics, lacrosse is trending, and increased awareness has come with increased confusion in the marketplace.


When shopping organic, people must understand the actual value to justify the higher price. Organic users cite reasons like better health and fewer pesticides, fertilizers, antibiotics and growth hormones.


In lacrosse, events can be tournaments, round robins, camps, clinics, showcases, prospect days, tryouts or jamborees. Common


42 LACROSSE MAGAZINE April 2014>>


labels include elite, select, blue chip and All-American. The structure follows an age or graduation-year format. Numbers — New England 150, National Invitational 175, Elite 180, Top 205, and Blue Chip 225 — can reflect participation or the event’s branding.


In 1989, my older brother attended Top 205, which at the time may have actually represented the top 205 players. In 2014, Top 205 has six events with numbers exceeding its numeric label.


Like organics, lacrosse is trending, and increased awareness has come with increased


confusion in the marketplace.


Here are some tips to help you navigate the terms:


1. Know the facts. In men’s lacrosse, there are 67 Division I, 57 Division II, and 215 Division III programs in the NCAA. Roughly 25 to 30 Division I programs are fully funded (12.6 scholarships). Typically, most programs split up three scholarships per class.


2. Shop seasonal. Tomatoes are not ripe for the full year, nor are recruiting opportunities. Peak times are the spring scholastic schedule, the summer tournament and showcase circuit and limited


fall weekends. Dead periods are just that, except for on- campus prospect days.


3. More expensive does not mean more value. A 100-percent organic product is better than one “made with” organic ingredients, and the price should reflect the discrepancy. A food made with “specific organic ingredients” may not provide more benefit than a non-organic option and is not worth the added expense. While lacrosse labels are not as cut and dry, select events that match your specific need and determine if the value reflects the cost. “Instruction” corresponds with camps and clinics that typically provide skills improvement. For competition and exposure, “clubs” and individual “showcases” are labels you should seek. Explore regional club


options and look for those with strong leadership that steer all aspects of the program’s structure and services. Individual exposure events have various configurations, including those run on-campus by college coaches and those run by third-party companies. On-campus “prospect days” have an obvious appeal: The college’s coaches are onsite evaluating players. Due to NCAA rules, however, they can’t turn away players. But third-party companies often make marketing claims that may not represent the truth. Within each of these categories, you should properly identify the value to justify the purchase. Buyers beware.


— Ryan Boyle


Ryan Boyle is a six-time MLL All-Star and three-time Team USA attackman, the co-founder and CEO of Trilogy Lacrosse and an ESPN college lacrosse analyst.


A Publication of US Lacrosse


©JOHN MECIONIS


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