Lucas Carpenter '12 Recruiting Profile

I have been involved in athletics all of my life, playing multiple sports and still keeping excellent grades. I became interested in lacrosse several years ago, while visiting my step-brother and my family in New Jersey. A main influence in my interest in lacrosse has been my Uncle, Gary Moorehead, who played lacrosse at Denison University in Ohio. Although I always played catch with my family, and attended a couple of developmental camps, I really began playing competitive lacrosse in my freshman year of high school. I have been playing at the high school level in MHSAA Division 1A for the past three years, and have been a Varsity starter for Canton High School, in Canton, Michigan, for the past two years.

I currently stand at 5’6” (and am still growing) at around 145 lbs. I am constantly getting stronger, as this is my first year of working out consistently. In addition to my physical strength, my confidence, game experience, and field awareness is increasing dramatically. My former soccer coach always considered my field awareness to be one of my strengths, and I feel this has transferred well to the lacrosse field, and has added to my playmaking ability. My high school lacrosse coach would state that my leadership, quickness and explosiveness are my biggest strengths. I am dominantly left-handed, but I have a usable off-hand that I am constantly working to improve. I am a strong leader on the team, giving advice and encouragement to help others and am not afraid to share my opinion about what we are doing right and wrong, and how we can get better.

During my freshman year I played JV lacrosse as an attackman, and recorded four goals and several assists. Soon after starting to play for my high school, lacrosse became my favorite sport. For my sophomore season, it was planned that I would be a captain on the JV team, but before the season began I was moved up to Varsity and earned a starting spot on our first midfield line. About three-fourths of the way through the season I sprained my clavicle and was forced to sit out a few games due to the injury. I finished the season with two
goals as our team finished with a record of 8-8. I was one of two players that my coach nominated for the US Lacrosse Select Camp at Denison University in the summer. Also that summer I attended the University of Michigan Lacrosse Camp, directed by head coach John Paul. In the off-season I played in the High School
Varsity Fall league at Total Sports, coordinated by Michigan State coach Dwayne Hicks.

Most recently, I completed my junior season of high school lacrosse. I gave up ice hockey and soccer this year in order to focus on the sport that I have come to love; lacrosse.  I was a Varsity starter at midfield, and also played attack in man-up situations.  We finished with a record of 8-7 and I had 8 goals and 15 assists, with 32 ground balls. I helped our team to make it to the second round of the Michigan high school state playoffs.  At our year-end banquet I learned that I had earned the 2011 Canton High School Coach’s Award –
the player most exemplifying our team motto “Head, Heart, Hustle”.  In addition, I was named to the 2011 All-Area team (honorable mention), and to the 2011 MHSAA Academic All-State team.

I attended the University of Delaware Blue Hen Lacrosse Camp in mid-June to participate in their High School Challenge Recruiting Camp, which is a competitive high school tournament with college coaches attending.  I also just attended a similar event, the Southern States Elite Recruiting Camp, at Washington College in Chestertown, MD.  Additionally, I attended a local camp at the end of June which was instructed by head coach Ed Anderson (http://www.tricountylacrosse.com), a current high school coach, former D1 player at Penn, and two-time captain at the University of Michigan.  I am continuing to work with Coach Anderson, who has coordinated a nine month training program for me, and is guiding me through it for the remainder of the year. Coach Anderson is also a Nordic ski racer and is incorporating Norwegian training theory into my workout plan. I am very excited about it, since the plan has me peaking in quickness, strength and endurance just as the 2012 lacrosse season is set to start.

This fall I am playing Fall Ball with True Lacrosse - Ann Arbor, and also with Tricounty Lacrosse in Canton, MI.  I am attending the Clark University Recruit ID Camp the weekend of October 15th and 16th.  In November I will be attending the Philly Lacrosse Showcase Invitation, having been nominated by my high school coach.  I will be participating in the Senior Day activities on November 20th which is at the Episcopal Academy in Newmarket, Mass.

As a student, I have excellent grades and I work extremely hard to stay at my current GPA of 3.88/4.00. I have achieved this, while at the same time participating in high school soccer and lacrosse, and club-level travel hockey. I was named a Michigan High School Scholar Athlete for my sophomore and junior years. I am a member of my high school Honor Roll, the National Society of High School Scholars, and attended the National Youth Leadership Conference in Washington, D.C. in the Fall of 2009. I was nominated to attend this by my high school history teacher. I scored a 27 on the ACT.

I have always wanted to play sports in college, and playing lacrosse in high school has only increased this desire. My goal is to attend a college with a respectable athletic program, and a strong academic reputation. Although I’ve grown up in the mid-west and would certainly feel comfortable at a large mid-western university, I have also spent a considerable amount of time in the East where my mother and step-family live, and can see myself at a mid-size east coast college, as well. I wish to pursue a career in medicine after college, so a school offering an accredited pre-medicine curriculum is a top priority.