We have another major commitment from one of the top juniors in the Hudson Valley/Long Island/Connecticut region, folks.

Bronxville standout midfielder Jack Near, who starred this past summer for Prime Time Lacrosse, just called me moments ago from Colorado, where he is enjoying some skiing during winter break, to inform me that he has verbally committed to accept a scholarship offer from Notre Dame.

Near (pictured above in a file photo by Jim Stout/MaxPreps.com) was also recruited by Syracuse, Georgetown, Hofstra, Colgate and Brown.

• Updated recruiting review and commitment rundown

Near was one of the standouts at this past summer’s Maverick Showtime Lacrosse National Recruiting Showcase.

“Jack is  an extremely athletic, two-way midfielder who is scrappy and can dominate dodging down the alleys,” Prime Time coach Nick Daniello said. “He has the ability to take over games and can shoot on the run with the best of them. He will be an impact player at the next level and has a bright future at Notre Dame.”

Near is the second heavily recruited Bronxville player to commit to a major D-I program. Classmate Charlie McCormick committed to Georgetown late last month, deciding on the Hoyas after visiting Syracuse, Johns Hopkins, Cornell, Notre Dame, Penn State and Hofstra. Near and McCormack, now teammates, will soon be rivals in the newly launched Big East Lacrosse Conference.

Here’s a Q&A on Jack’s commitment that I just completed with him:

What were the main factors in your decision to attend Notre Dame?
In large part what the school had to offer me academically and, of course, athletically. The turning point was their commitment to be No. 1  in everything that the institution is associated with.

What other schools were you considering and what schools did you visit?

Other schools I considered were Syracuse, Georgetown, Colgate, Hofstra and Brown. I visited all those schools as well as Notre Dame.

What adjustments do you think you will need to make to play at the next level?
Before I reach the next level, I want to improve my shooting accuracy and velocity on the run. There is always room for improvement of stick skills and finishing in close.

What are your strengths as a player and how would you describe your style of play?
Dodging, clearing, and creating offense in transition as well as in 6 vs. 6. I would describe myself as an athletic, two-way midfielder.

When did you first realize you had the potential to play at the D-I level?
I first realized I had the potential to play at the D-I level going into my freshman summer.

* For more on Jack Near, check his recruit profile by clicking here.

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11 Responses to “Bronxville’s Near picks Notre Dame”

  1. Bronco Bob says:

    WOW! Congrats Jack! Exciting times for BHS lax with Charlie McCormick committed to Gtown and now Jack to UND. Can you say junior achievement?

  2. slacrosse says:

    Congrats. Good for Bville again, Class C and Section 1

  3. reader4000 says:

    great news coming out of BHS – lots of momentum coming out of the program

  4. nuts says:

    Holy cow I dont think Bronxville will lose a game this year.

  5. vin savastano says:

    We wanted to thank everyone who already gave us donations. We really appreciate your support.

    We first wanted to wish the players at John Jay good luck this season and in the future and wanted to thank all the people on the blog and in the community for the nice comments you have given to us. We also wanted to congratulate Coach Schurr and wish him well with his new position.

    As many of you already know, we will co-head coaches at Kennedy Catholic. We are very excited for this new opportunity and feel that it is a ‘Hidden Gem’. We feel this is the start of something special and look forward to the new challenge ahead of us.

    We wanted to reach out to all of you that we got to know and have supported us over the past 20 years. As most of you know, we were fired as coaches after building the John Jay program and having a lot of success. We always tried to do the right thing by kids and felt we were wrongfully let go, but with that being said – we wanted to ask for your help.

    The kids at Kennedy Catholic have to pay to play and have limited uniforms and funds. What we are asking of you is for any donations you might be able to afford. It could be as little as a donating a few dollars to buying anything that may help our new program succeed. If you do want to donate – please email us for details. Again, thank you so much for your nice comments and we wish all of you well.

    Thank you,
    The Savastano’s

    Vinny Savastano – vsavastano@brewsterschools.org
    or
    Nick Savastano – nicksav31@aol.com

  6. slacrosse says:

    Aside from McCormick and Near who will make up Bxville’s team?

  7. westchesterlax says:

    Bville has a ton of talent this year. along with Jack and Charlie, two of the most talented players in the section no doubt, there are attackmen Chris Walsh and Joe Wood who are commited to play for Wesleyan and Washington and Lee. They also have a very talented freshman whom I don’t know the name of but he played last year as an 8th grader and was successful. Gregory Poorman is also a talented midfielder who will probably get some d3 looks. along with that bronxville’s defensemen have been receiving divison 3 looks as well from decent schools. The only question mark is goalie, but with offensive talent like Near and McCormick they surely won’t have a problem going goal for goal with anyone they face.

  8. slacrosse says:

    Thx westchesterlax

  9. Sect1Fan says:

    Wow. Just got back from break and am reading about all these huge commitments. Way to rep Section 1!!!

  10. LaxerFan says:

    Near is quick and with his speed and ability to shoot on the run puts a lot of pressure on defenses. McCormick is a strong, fast athlete with a terrific shot. Wood and Walsh are seniors and both are talented: Walsh is a skilled player who can score in bunches and Wood is the ultimate team player and is fast and a great passer and scorer. With McCormick out Wood played midfield much of the latter part of last season. Over the last two years Walsh has had 46 goals and 43 assists (28 and 21 last year) and Wood 71 goals and 43 assists (37 and 22 last year) and last year Near had 45 goals and 15 assists. These four will be tough for a lot of teams to handle. Defenders are Casperson, Dutton and Grunseich, with von Mehren at long-stick. All are juniors who played solidly and at times very well last year and have continued their development. David McCann, a senior, is back at goalie. The issues are who will step up to fill the other midfield and attack positions and how the players click in a team offense.

  11. brandon merlino says:

    yea jack man thats awesome we need to have a lil team primetime reunion soon bro good luck this season nd tear it up lyk always..

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