Chris Rotelli is co-founder of Golden State Lacrosse Academy in San Francisco, CA (http://www.gs-lax.com/). Golden State Lacrosse offers clinics, camps, workshops, and private lessons as well as community outreach programs to bring lacrosse to new people. SportsForce caught up with Chris to find out what it’s like to play professional lacrosse, share his story and much more. Chris is a three time MLL All Star, winner of the Tewaaraton Award, and was named ACC Male Athlete of the Year (2003) among other honors.

When did you start playing lax? How and why did you get started?

I started playing in 3rd grade. My dad gave me a stick and taught me how to throw, and I feel in love with it instantly.

What caused you to make lacrosse your sport? What do you love about it?

I love the speed of the game, and the teamwork. It is extremely fast, and a total adrenaline rush the whole time you are on the field. Unlike other sports where only a couple people are involved with each play; in lacrosse every person on the field is involved in the game at all times, and that keeps it mentally engaging. Since everyone is always involved, it makes teamwork and communication huge parts of the game, and I love it.

How has lacrosse impacted your life?

Lacrosse has completely shaped my life. It gave me focus growing up, and taught me how to pursue my goals. It helped me get into a great college and gave me a career working with a sport that I love. Through lacrosse I’ve met so many amazing people, and now I have friends all over the world that I have either played with or against at some time in my life. I’ve been able to travel the country, and now I get to teach young kids that same way my role models taught me how to play the game growing up. I feel pretty lucky, and lacrosse has definitely given me a lot.

What advice would you give to young lax players hoping to play in college or beyond?

Shoot on a goal, and pass on a wall as much as possible.

You were a highly decorated player in great programs in both high school and college. What advice would you have for athletes who are trying to make themselves stand out at schools without such great programs, or those just playing club?

I came from Rhode Island where lacrosse at the time was only played in five schools, so I understand what it is like coming from a ’small pond.’ My advice is to use that as motivation and work harder than everyone. If you are coming from an area where lacrosse is young, but you want to play with the best, you have to keep raising the bar for yourself, and out-work not only your teammates, but also every kid playing in Baltimore, Long Island, etc.

You were drafted first overall in the MLL college draft, tell us what that experience was like.

That was very exciting. We had just won the National Championship four days earlier, so it was truly an amazing week for me, and actually very humbling.

What is the life of a professional lacrosse player like?

It is very fun. We’re fortunate to get paid to play a game we love, and do it with our friends. I love it.

When did you start to think about “going pro?” What was that decision process like?

I honestly didn’t think about it much until after the National Championship. I was in my senior season in 2003 at UVA, and was only focused on winning a championship. Fortunately we did, and then I could think about the MLL. But the draft was three days after that game, so I really didn’t have much time to think about the MLL until I was in it. I played my first game six days later.

Explain a little bit about the mission of Golden State Lax Academy. Could you highlight some of the programs you offer?

Our mission is to create better players, and increase their enjoyment of the game. We teach them the right way to play, but also keep it as fun as possible. For us, practice was always fun because we loved lacrosse. So we really try to show kids that hard work not only can be fun, but should be fun. We do day camps, overnight camps, and clinics throughout the year. www.gs-lax.com

What is your favorite part about working with young and up and coming lacrosse players?

Seeing their excitement, and making a positive difference in their lives.

What do you think about lacrosse being the fastest growing sport in the country? Why do you think it is growing so fast?

I love that the sport is taking off. Lacrosse is addictive, and the most fun team sport you will ever play. In my humble opinion, it will not stop growing.

How did you land in California?

My favorite activities have always been lacrosse, surfing, and skiing. I moved to CA so that I could have easier access to surf and snow. In the northeast, you have to drop everything you’re doing to get the small windows of good surf or good snow, and I wanted to live somewhere it would be easier to work those into my daily routine.  When I got here, I fell in love with all of it. San Francisco is the friendliest city you’ll ever see. People here are so fun and cool; it’s hard not to love living here.

The San Diego Section’s all-time rushing leader will be heading to the Bay Area to play football. Escondido’s Ricky Seale signed his letter of intent to attend Stanford University in the fall, and to play for coach Jim Harbaugh on the football team. Seale’s signing, which took place today at the Escondido High School Learning Center, capped months of speculation as to where Seale would land.

“Thank God, it’s finally all over,” said Seale after putting ink to paper.

Seale was one of four Escondido athletes signing letters of intent on Wednesday, a banner day for the North County school. Tim Zier signed a baseball scholarship with SDSU, while Joe Morton signed to play basketball at Wyoming, and Mala Lemay accepted a softball scholarship from Hawaii.

How close did the Aztecs come to landing Seale?

“It was a 50-50 deal all the way,” said Seale, “but Stanford was always my first choice.”

After the jump, watch video of Seale and Tim Zier answering questions on Signing Day:

Seale didn’t know for sure if he would be admitted into Stanford until late last night, when Harbaugh called his house.

“I was just, Oh My God,” said Seale, “I was actually surprised I got in, but I’ve been working so hard for it so I was really happy it all worked out.”

Seale was receiving pressure from inside his own school and to the west as well. Over at Oceanside, the five Pirates who are coming as a group to play under Brady Hoke were reaching out to Zier, asking him to help recruit Seale to SDSU. Meanwhile, the Pirates were trying to keep mammoth defensive tackle Thomas Molesi in town as well; Molesi said he came “this close” to switching, but instead honored his commitment to Oregon State.

Watch Ricky Seale and Tim Zier answer questions from 619 Sports and the assembled media in Escondido:

Seale finished his prep career with 6,694 yards, averaging 7.9 yards per carry. He will compete for playing time in the Cardinal backfield with another San Diego prep phenom, the former section rushing leader (and state player of the year) Tyler Gaffney.

Zier, meanwhile, is excited to begin a baseball career under Tony Gwynn at San Diego State, but admitted that “football is always in the back of my mind.” Zier teamed with Seale to form a lethal combination the past two years in the Cougars’ backfield.

–Story and video courtesy 619Sports.net

–View Ricky’s full SportsForce profile: http://www.sportsforceonline.com/athletes/rseale

Brandon Johnson came back from a major achilles injury to play a 5th year with the Toreros.  In the process he has become USD’s all-time leading scorer, but a 9-18 season has put a sour edge to what should be a season of celebration.  Brandon joined 619 Sports after USD practice at Jenny Craig Pavilion to reflect on his career and the challenges he has faced:

–Story and video courtesy 619Sports.net

Sport: Basketball Positions: Forward, Guard Height: 6’4” Class: 2010 School: Eastlake High School, Chula Vista, CA

The Eastlake Boys Basketball team is currently in first place in the Mesa League with help from senior guard, Dillon Doria. The Eastlake Titans beat out Hilltop High School last week while Doria led his team with 20 points in the win. “We showed that we’re the dominant team in the South Bay,” Doria told the San Diego Reader. Doria also scored an impressive 23 points and had 10 rebounds in a win over Mater Dei Catholic. In the Coaches vs. Cancer event, Doria contributed 11 points and 8 rebounds to help his team over take Horizon High School.  Eastlake now leads the league by two games.

To view Dillon’s complete SportsForce profile click here – http://www.sportsforceonline.com/athletes/ddoria

Scouting report courtesy of SportsForce – Home for college Sports Recruiting Videos, Tips, Tools and Premium Services – www.sportsforceonline.com

Sport: Basketball Position: Forward Height: 6’6” Class: 2012 School: La Jolla Country Day, La Jolla, CA

Frankie Bamford is an extremely talented sophomore forward at La Jolla Country Day. Consistently putting up double digits, Bamford is fast becoming the go to player for his team. In a tough loss to the Francis Parker, Bamford had a double- double leading his team with 25 points and 11 rebounds. Bamford followed up one double-double game with another. In a win over Santa Fe Christian, Bamford finished with 24 points, 12 rebounds and eight blocked shots while he helped his team to another win by finishing with 14 points and seven rebounds to beat out Clairemont. Bamford also led his team with 17 points in a loss to the Bishop’s School.

To view Frankie’s complete SportsForce profile click here – http://www.sportsforceonline.com/athletes/fbamford

Scouting report courtesy of SportsForce – Home for college Sports Recruiting Videos, Tips, Tools and Premium Services – www.sportsforceonline.com

The Arizona Burn Program brought the heat to the beaches of San Diego, where there wasn’t anything that could cool them off. Arizona began the tournament as the no.7 seed in a field of twenty-four total teams in the Elite Division. Despite a tough loss early on, the team was able to gather itself and finish strong against the LaxDawgs Brown Elite of San Diego. It was a one-sided affair as the Arizona Burn Elite Orange captured an 8-1 victory, a game in which six different Burn players scored at least one goal. Goalie Brett Lawless (Desert Vista) had a strong showing Sunday as he only allowed seven total goals on the day.

Starting from a young age, Coach Chris Malone, of both MCLA’s Arizona State and the Arizona Burn teams, has instilled his players with a high level of lacrosse IQ.

In the South Swell High School Division, consisting of 9^th and 10^th grade students, yet another Arizona Burn team took home a trophy.

The Warrior Elite Division was taken by the Norcal Pups in a 7-4 defeat of the LaxDawgs Royal team. However the LaxDawgs Program did not go home empty-handed, their ladies team won the Women’s Elite Division in an 11-6 contest against the Coastal Cougars.

Watch out for these Arizona Burn players: Brock Ghelfi [M/So./Brophy Prep], Charlie Hushek [D/So./Brophy Prep], Rockne Repp [A/Jr./Saguaro], Brandon Moranz [M/Jr./Chandler], Ramie Arbid [D/Jr./Mesa Heat]

Sport: Boys Basketball Positions: Forward Height: 6’ 8” Weight: 245 lbs Class: 2011 School: Maranatha Christian High School San Diego, CA

Junior forward Chen Cai of Maranatha High School helped propel his team to a 3-1 record at the Torrey Pines Holiday Classic.  The 6’8” 245 lb big man scratched, clawed and pounded the competition in route to 102 points over a 4 game stretch.  Cai is averaging an impressive 27.6 points and 17.8 rebounds through 14 games this season. Cai was named to the all-tournament team for his performance in the Holiday Classic.  The Chinese born player has been a dominant force in the paint since he arrived in the United States as a freshman and looks to continue his stellar play for the Eagles this season.

To view Chen’s complete SportsForce profile click here – http://www.sportsforceonline.com/athletes/ccai

Highlight video and scouting report courtesy of SportsForce – Home for college Sports Recruiting Videos, Tips, Tools and Premium Services – www.sportsforceonline.com

Maybe someday Brady Hoke will throw that proverbial “fence around the county” and get the top prospects in San Diego County to come to SDSU.  Before he builds that fence, though, Hoke will need to first interrupt the pipeline.

You know, the one Bob Stoops has built between San Diego and Norman, Oklahoma.

Stoops, looking to restore Oklahoma to national title contention in 2010, will do so with the help of a trio of San Diego talents.  All-time San Diego section receiving leader Kenny Stills and hard-hitting Eastlake star

Tony Jefferson both announced on Friday night that they will attend the University of Oklahoma next year, joining Scripps Ranch star Brennan Clay.  The threesome made their announcements at the KUSI Prep Pigskin Gala at the Hall of Champions.

Clay, who had committed months before to the Sooners, was thrilled to have his two talented Silver Pigskin finalists (Mission Bay’s Dillon Baxter won the trophy) join him in Norman:

Hear from all three of the newest Sooners after the jump:

Brennan Clay(full SportsForce profile here) was the first to commit to Oklahoma.  He joined 619 Sports immediately after the announcement of the Silver Pigskin award to talk about the honor of the evening and the process of luring Jefferson and Stills to join him in Norman:

Kenny Stills (full SportsForce profile here) had been heavily recruited by USC but wound up narrowing his choices to Florida, Michigan and Oklahoma.  In the end, Stills told 619 Sports the chance to team up with Jefferson and Clay, and to participate in the Sooners’ vaunted passing attack, was too much to pass up:

Tony Jefferson angered the Arroyo Seco when he first committed to UCLA, only to show up at the UCLA-USC game wearing Trojans garb.  After hearing the barbs from the Bruins, Jefferson withdrew his commitment to the Bruins and took a campus trip to Norman.  The rest was history, as he told 619 Sports:

With Jefferson in the secondary and Clay and Stills in the OU backfield, Boomer Sooner is picking up speed heading into 2010.

–Courtesy 619Sports.net

The 20^th Annual MaxPreps Holiday Classic is taking place in Torrey Pines this year from December 26-30^th. As all years prior, the tournament promises top teams and coaches from around the country. Every year, nearly 20,000 fans turn out for the tournament as well as many college coaches and recruiters to see the best young basketball talent. Brackets for teams have been broken into National Division, American Division, Governors Division, Mayors Division and Senators Division.

Among the players to watch out for at the tournament are power forward Jvonte Brooks, shooting guard Troy Leaf and point guard Kalob Hatcher. Together they have gotten Foothill Christians to a hot 6-0 start on the season. Each member of this trio is averaging twenty points or more and Jvonte is hauling in over 15 rebounds a contest, while Kalob is impressively dishing out over 8 assist per game. Troy has recently committed to the University of California, Santa Barbara after drawing interest from schools such as SDSU, Washington State, Nevada, Portland, SMU and UNLV ever since his freshman year. Also be on the lookout for Chen Cai, a 6′8 junior forward from Maranatha Christian, who is averaging 25.7 points, 16.7 rebounds and 4 blocks per game. Coming straight from the Torrey Pine Falcons (5-0) is Nick Kerr, a 6′3 junior guard, averaging over 25 points per game and shooting an astounding 43% from beyond the arc.

Making a trip all the way from New Jersey are the St. Patrick Celtics, ranked No.1 in the nation by MaxPreps and No.2 by rivals. The Celtics will be lead by two top 100 prospects in combo guard Kyrie Irving and small forward Julian Washburn. Kyrie recently completed his letter of intent during the early signing period to become a Duke Blue Devil. Competition from out of state will continue to heat up as the Mesa Jackrabbits, ranked No.1 in Arizona and No. 75 nationally by MaxPreps, come to town to try and stake their claim at the title. They’ll have to contend with the Taft Toreadors of Los Angeles who are lead by De Andre Daniels and Bryce Jones. The Toreadors are nationally ranked No.18 by MaxPreps and No.31 by Rivals. Center Greg Leslie bring his Chaparral Pumas in with a perfect 9-0 record on the year and are looking to take down the top contenders.

Seventy five teams are going to be on hand and each one is out to prove that they’re better than the rest. With the exceptional level of talent in this year’s tournament, fans are guaranteed exciting match-ups and plenty of surprises. For a full list of match-ups and locations please visit http://www.torreypinesbasketball.com/ .

Sport: Football Positions: WR / FS Height: 6’1” Weight: 185 Class: 2010 School: Oceanside High School Oceanside, CA

The Oceanside Pirates struggled to find any production on offense in the CIF San Diego Section DII Championship game, so they turned to their defense and Devin Taverna.  Taverna single-handily secured Oceanside’s sixth straight division title.  The 6’1 senior free safety recorded two interceptions, one returned for a 47-yard touchdown, and recovered a fumble in the end zone for another touchdown.   Oceanside coach John Carroll took notice telling the North County Times, “thank God our defense and special teams came to play.”  With the victory the Pirates have now won a remarkable 38 games in a row and will face San Jose Bellarmine Prep in the state D1 game this Friday at the Home Depot Center in Carson, CA.  Regardless of how the Pirates fair in the state playoffs, they can look back at this game as the day Devin Taverna rallied his team from certain defeat and willed his team to victory. Visit Devin’s SportsForce profile to learn more about this star athlete.

Scouting report courtesy of SportsForce – Home for college Sports Recruiting Videos, Tips, Tools and Premium Services – www.sportsforceonline.com