Hilltopper Tryout Information

Tryouts for our High School program are being held on February 10th at N.C. Central University in Durham. Players who are interested in participating in the tryouts need to REGISTER HERE.

Tryouts for our U-13 and U-15 teams will be held on Sunday, February 3rd at N.C. Central University in Durham. The tryouts begin at 1:30 p.m. and end at 3:30 p.m. Players who are interested in participating in the tryouts need to REGISTER HERE.

The Elite Team will attend tournaments and hopefully several scrimmages during the 2013 summer season. There will be extensive practice time and we are committed to teaching the fundamentals and helping our Elite team members elevate their game. The Elite team will continue to practice in Graham unless we need to schedule a practice on turf in either Durham or Greensboro.

We will also field two other high school teams, the Rams and Big Horns. Practices will begin in May and continue through the end of June. The practices will be held on Sunday nights in Durham on the turf at N.C. Central.

The Hilltopper staff has been in contact with high school coaches to seek nominations for players to attend practices for roster consideration.

how it works

    Once a coach has recommended a potential player, the player will be contacted by Coach Zirkle and invited to attend a Hilltopper practice. Players are also able to register for the tryouts, please provide detailed information on the registration form about your background.
    Before practicing, the player must go online and REGISTER HERE.
    As part of registration, you will be able to upload a signed release form which must be on file prior to participating in any Hilltopper events.

The selection process

While excellent play is of primary consideration, the staff is also looking at the intangibles of hustle, communication, understanding of our team concepts, execution and overall attitude. We will also speak with the player's high school coach to gain their insights when necessary. We are looking for players of character -- players who bring positive recognition to our program and carry themselves in a respectful manner that will attract college coaches.

Once a player has been selected to join either roster, a Hilltopper Coach will contact the player or his parents to provide the official invitation.

To accept a roster spot, a deposit of $175.00 must be made within seven days of the invitation. We have elected to offer a flexible installment-based payment program for the fees. Elite team members also need to pay for Champ Camp individually online. All payments must be made according to the tournament and Hilltopper deadlines as we do not want to have a player closed out of an event. We will provide players and parents with exact details and ask that they send us confirmation in the summer when they register for the tournaments. The Hilltoppers will provide the travel, housing, and meals for our Ram and Elite teams. All of our high school teams have a team fee and a tournament fee, a list of these charges is sent to interested families once they have registered online.

As a Hilltopper, you will be expected to comply with our rules and code of conduct. The players and their parents will sign a player contract that reflects their commitment of playing lacrosse the Hilltopper way. A copy of the player/parent rules and expectations can be found HERE. Failure to comply with the rules and code of conduct will result in the termination of the non-compliant player or parent from the Hilltopper program. A copy of our partial refund policy can be found at the bottom of the rules and code of conduct page.

To be added to the roster, we are asking that you make a commitment to this program. We must know in the spring if there are any conflicts that will prevent you from attending any of our tournaments. We also ask that you make attending practice an absolute priority. Players who cannot attend at least 80% of the practices jeopardize our chances for success, so please make sure you can attend the practices and tournaments when you commit to accept a roster spot. We need high attendance at practices to teach and compete. We understand that summer schedules are hectic, so please communicate directly with the Hilltopper staff. If you are unable to attend a practice, game, or tournament, please contact Coach Z as early as possible.