Team 91 Lacrosse Player Spotlight
2022 Matt Lutzel
Learn more about the top High School lacrosse players in the Carolinas with the Team 91 Lacrosse Player Spotlights
Getting to know Matt Lutzel
Player Name: Matt Lutzel
College Commitment: High Point University
High School: Southlake Christian
Position: Attack
Graduating Class: 2022

What other schools did you consider?
Bellarmine, Bryant, Richmond, Air Force.
How did the school you chose separate itself from the others you considered?
The quality of the education in the business school at High Point really stood out to me. Coach Torpey and the rest of the staff gave me a sense of family within the team that I immediately wanted to become a part of. The competitive schedule that they play and the vision that Coach Torpey had for me ultimately led me to my decision of High Point. 
 
How would you describe your recruiting process overall?
Due to COVID my process was very non-traditional. With coaches not being allowed to watch us live during the summer before my Junior year, the process started very slow for me. It became very stressful at times but I always knew God had a plan for me. The delay in my process also allowed me to really narrow down what I was looking for in a school. I also learned a lot as I became more patient and began to work even harder towards my goals. It was a little bit of an eye opener and a reminder that I can always improve as a player.
 
What was your favorite part of the recruiting process? 
I would say my favorite part of the process was making the phone call to Coach Torpey to let him know that I would like to commit to High Point. Hearing the excitement on the other side of the phone was one of the best feelings I’ve ever had as I realized that all those years of hard work were paying off. Coach Torpey also continued to say his vision for the future of the program that gave me an unexplainable excitement for the future. 
 
What opportunities and information assisted you during your recruiting process?
The opportunity that helped me most was the never ending help and guidance from my coaches at Team 91, especially Coach Flanagan. It wasn't necessarily something on the field. Coach Flanagan consistently reached out to me to see where I was at in the process and how he could help me. Every week he reached out to every single coach that I had mentioned I was interested in and then some. Coach Flanagan was a resource unlike any other and had connections everywhere that created tremendous opportunities for me. 
 
Did you feel like you had support from the Team 91 staff during your process? If so, how?
I feel like the support I received from the Team 91 staff was unlike any other. Every coach in the program constantly let me know that if I ever needed anything or needed them to reach out to someone they would in a heartbeat. I not only feel like the 91 staff was very helpful in my recruiting process, but I wouldn’t be the player I am today without them. The coaches (especially Coach Flanagan, Werhane, Hannan, and Farmer) were instrumental in my development as a player. Between the countless years of experience between them at every level, they helped me become the best player I could be and always supported me in any decision I made.
 
What individual or showcase events, if any, did you find the most beneficial during your process?
I found that Showcases such as Maverik Showtime and individual prospect days were the most helpful during my process. These showcases allowed for me to play directly in front of coaches at the specific schools I was interested in and allowed for them to see me specifically as well.
 
What would you tell younger players or parents to help them prepare for the recruiting process?
I would tell younger players to not get discouraged if their process takes longer than others. Everyone’s process is very different and it can be a roller coaster. They should remember to just keep working hard and their opportunity will eventually come.
Coach Flanagan on Matt
We have been fortunate to coach Matt and know his family for the last 6-7 years and we have loved every second of it. They are another one of those families that has been extremely supportive of everything we have done. They are the type of family that you only hear from when they are asking how they can help or what they can do for us. We’ll forever be grateful for their unwavering support over the years.
There is an old myth in the recruiting process that “if you are a good player, they will find you” when referring to college coaches finding the best high school lacrosse players. Nothing proves how false that is more than Matt’s recruiting process.
 
If you ask anyone associated with our program over the last few years if Matt Lutzel is a good lacrosse player, you will get an emphatic “yes” in response. Whether it is a practice or a game, Matt has always stood out as one of the best players on the field. We were fortunate to have 6 very good defenseman on our 2021 team who were all going on to play college lacrosse. For years, Matt would compete against them in practice and have success. All of the coaches in our program believed he was a good player and that he would have an opportunity to play college lacrosse at a high level, if he wanted. He is also someone that we LOVED to coach because of how hard he practices and how he gives 100% effort all the time.
 
Then COVID hit. The High School season was cut short, the summer recruiting season was condensed into about 3 weeks and coaches had to do all of their recruiting on film. Matt’s rising Junior summer basically came down to 3 events in 10 days after not playing a real lacrosse game in almost 3 months. While he played well, there were very few opportunities that made sense for him come September 1st. 
 
He shifted his focus to playing well in the Fall. He worked extremely hard in our Academy programs and in practice to become more explosive and to improve as a dodger. Come November, he helped lead our 2022 team to two wins over some of the top clubs in the country in the Baltimore Crabs and Philadelphia Freedom. He was arguably one of the best players on the field against teams loaded with committed players but again, there were very few opportunities for a guy that we knew was a good player, good teammate and a great person. He was a good player but the coaches weren’t finding him.
 
Our coaches continued to pound the table on him. We sent film to any coach that would listen and got on the phone to tell the story of what type of player he is, what type of student he is and how well liked he is by everyone affiliated with our program. We knew he could play at a high level and just needed someone to listen and give him an opportunity. As we got closer to the 2021 Summer and coaches began to prepare for the upcoming recruiting circuit, more and more coaches started to listen. They watched the film we had provided and they liked the attributes he had off the field. 
 
Just before the 2021 Summer, Matt was invited to a prospect day event that would allow the High Point coaches to see updated film of him. As expected, he tore it up at the event and looked great on film! The feedback from the coaches who were able to work with him at the event was the same thing that we had been saying for months… he is a good player and a great kid! He finally had his opportunity to play at the next level and it was at the perfect place for him - a High Point program with a tight family culture, a good business school and an opportunity to compete at the highest level. 
 
The best part? A few months later when we hit the Summer event circuit, all of those coaches we had been pounding the table about Matt to for a year had a chance to see him live. They all agreed with what we had been saying the whole time. The kid can play! He consistently made plays all over the field against the best competition at the biggest events. We just needed to get coaches eyes on him. Once they saw him, they loved him. 
 
We are fortunate to have been able to coach Matt for as long as we have and to have the support of his family along the way. He is a kid everyone roots for and we cannot wait to see what he does at the next level. 
Get Involved with Team 91 This Spring
2022 Charlotte Spring Youth Lacrosse League
The Charlotte Spring Youth Lacrosse League is open to boys in grad years 2033-2026; no prior playing experience is required.

The season will run from February through May with a built in "off" period around school spring breaks.

The Charlotte Spring Youth Lacrosse League is operated by Team 91 Charlotte Lacrosse.
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