Jackson Barton '22 Recruiting Profile

I fell in love with lacrosse in 5th grade and have not looked back since.  While I have played multiple sports including football, basketball, baseball, and golf, lacrosse has gradually become my main sport.  I primarily played as an attackman early on and was able to garner lead scorer status on multiple championship teams including my travel team, True Lacrosse Idaho.  As a freshman in spring 2019, I made it onto the Eagle High School Varsity Lacrosse Team which won the 2019 Idaho State Championships.  On the Eagle High School Varsity team, I was asked to transition to playing midfield and was the only freshman placed on the man-up team. 

Transitioning from attack to midfield has taught me to be flexible as an athlete and to use my skills to fit the needs of my team overall.  Playing at a high level as a freshman helped me understand the team-related and individual work ethic requisite for attaining excellence.  The most important and unique circumstance I experienced as an athlete occurred when I was a 7th grader.  In early spring practice, I broke my right clavicle which is on the side of my dominant hand.  I missed most of the season but kept with my individual practice using only my non-dominant hand.  I not only improved my left-hand skills to the point of essentially becoming ambidextrous but also came to understand the value of individual practice with a particular focus on weaknesses.  I continue daily lacrosse and strength specific workouts to this day. 

In the short to medium term, my goals are to continue supporting Eagle High School and win the Idaho State Championships every year until graduation.  As I approach upperclassman status, I hope to become a lead scorer for Eagle High lacrosse as I have done on many other teams.  I view lacrosse as an avenue to offer unique academic opportunities and achieve my higher education goals: my plan is to play lacrosse in college on a level commensurate with my abilities and ultimately obtaining a degree in business.  Post-graduation, I hope to enter public service.