New Alignments and Two New Teams for 2009

January 5, 2009 - - There are interesting changes in league and sectional alignments for the 2009 season.

In the Monroe County League, Irondequoit moves from Division 1 to Division 2. In Finger Lakes, Victor has moved from the Finger Lakes League and will play a D-2 schedule in the Monroe County League.

Gates Chili moves from D-3 to D-1 this year and Churchville-Chili moves from D-3 to D-2. Hilton moves from D-2 to D-1 and Brighton moves from D-2 to D-3.

Two new teams join Section Five Lacrosse this Spring. East Rochester, coached by Mike Domm, will play a Monroe County D-3 schedule and will be added to the Class C tournament. Marcus Whitman will be coached by Bruce Teague Jr. They will play a Finger Lakes D-2 schedule and will also be entered in the Class C sectional tournament.

New York State has changed the student "population thresholds" for the three class system in lacrosse. Class C remains the same with schools under 650 students. Class B will now include schools with at least 650 students and less than 1,100 students. and Class A schools will have at least 1,100 students. All populations are based on the annual school census (BEDS).

As a result of the reconfigurations, Irondequoit, Canandaigua and McQuaid Jesuit move from Class A to Class B. Geneva and Aquinas who have, for a number of years, petitions to move up from Class C to Class B have decided to stay in Class C this year.

So, what do all these changes mean? Although league championships probably are most meaningful to the teams that win them, moving Irondequoit out of Monroe County D-1 makes them a strong contender for a league title, without having to beat teams like Fairport, Penfield and Schroeder who will probably be happy to have the Eagles out of their league title hunt. Thomas, who won the D-2 title for the last three years will now have some additional competition and an opportunity for improved bragging rights if they can make it four in a row.

The Section Five Tournament alignment will see a much stronger Class B tournament as Canandaigua, Irondequoit and McQuaid Jesuit move from Class A. Geneva and Aquinas, who have been strong contenders in past few years, after moving up from Class C, will stay in Class C this year, giving Penn Yan and Waterloo more competition than they have seen in a number of years.

Although Section Five will host three open tournaments again this year (every team will play), seeding is always a concern and the new alignments could have an effect on seeding as they are based on wins and losses. Rules on how teams schedule league vs non-league games different in each of the leagues. The strength of out of league wins can make a significant difference in seeding. In addition, both Finger Lakes and GRALL teams are allowed 18 games while Monroe County teams remain max ed out at 16 games which also puts their teams at a disadvantage in scheduling non-league games. In the end, however, every team has a chance to win a championship.

Alignment Changes