Class of 2025 Midfield Standouts at the Long Island Summer Showdown

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Moving over to the top middies from LI Summer Showdown, let's look at a trio of Top 50 recruits, a dynamic face-off specialist who can stay on and play offense, and an uncommitted '25 from out west. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["14540"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66a1b9f25070f"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Merrill had quite a week on his home turf, dazzling at the NLF National Championships and Summer Showdown. Quite frankly, he made it look downright effortless at times. A ridiculous athlete, Merrill scored in bunches for Team 91 LI and continued to show his willingness to attack longpoles out of the midfield. At NLF, while he was still scoring off the dodge regularly, I felt like some of his best plays were when he was dodging to feed, feasting on defenses that played him as a shooter. At Summer Showdown, he scored the kind of goals that reminded everyone why he's ranked as the top midfielder in the entire class, torching opponents with his shot on the run. His fast-twitch ability and competitive edge always show through, but it felt like he kicked his game off up a notch during this six-day stretch on Long Island. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["14546"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66a1b9f250793"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">After racking up 30 goals and 22 assists to earn All-ISL honors for the second consecutive season, Price has been consistently excellent this summer. Compared to his peers, he just does more at an exceptional level and makes a full-field impact. He's so good when going from defense to offense, gobbling up hard-nosed groundballs and flying upfield, or providing a boost off the wings of face-offs. Price has upped his game in 6-on-6 offense, scoring off a re-dodge and on a jumper into the low corner on a sweep in one of the games I watched. I'll be fascinated to see what kind of role he takes on at Georgetown. He's talented enough to play offense, but he might make an even bigger impact as a d-mid and in the Hoyas' transition game, a la Dylan Hess. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["14547"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66a1b9f2507ed"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">No midfielder in the Class of 2025 had as strong of a junior season as Raio. The two-sport standout was named the Suffolk County Player of the Year after posting a 75-goal, 44-assist stat line for a team that didn't lose a game until May and will return the lion's share of its starting lineup heading into next year. For Team 91 Long Island, Raio and Merrill make up one of the better midfield tandems in recent memory and each showed their ability to score in a variety of ways. Raio posted two goals in a Wednesday morning game, including a goal off of Team 91's Nations look. He's clearly taken his game to another level as of late, and he looks every bit of a player who could wind up as the No. 1 midfielder in the class when it's all said and done. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["52842"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66a1b9f250849"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">It didn't take long to gain appreciation for what Blais brought to the table. There's no doubt that he's undersized, but he plays bigger than he is and makes it work for him, sometimes even to his advantage. He's exceptionally quick and frequently beats his man down the alley before getting his hands free to showcase his snappy release and overall range. Blais has a high motor and is a smooth shooter on the run, and while his size might be one of the main reasons he's being overlooked up to this point, there's no denying his game. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["52847"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66a1b9f25089e"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">In a lot of ways, Ramirez is an outlier. Leave him on the field after a face-off win and there's a good chance you'll see him creating offense in settled situations. Each time I made my way over to watch BBL, it felt like Ramirez was doing exactly that. At the face-off X, his hand speed is up there with some of the best I've seen in the class, and that's without talking about the high-level athleticism he displays. On one rare occasion in which he lost the draw cleanly, he was running off the field and found himself in a position where he was able to push the ball carrier out of bounds to award them possession. I've seen BU thrive with face-off specialists of his stature as of late, and I'm even more bullish about Ramirez's upside there considering how much he does do with the ball in his stick. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block -->