2028 West Rankings: Top 75 Juniors + Watchlist (FREE)
After posting a National Top 100 on 9/2, we've since published extensive rankings for the Midwest and South as recruiting starts to heat up for the Class of 2028.
Now, it's time to shine a light on the Western states. For the full Top 75 and 40-man Watch List, head to the rankings page. For 30% off your first payment, use the code 'PREP30' at checkout.
Of course, the rise of lacrosse out West has been well-documented. While California and Colorado may be the first states that come to mind, the Pacific Northwest (Oregon and Washington) and Utah have also produced their fair share of high-level college talent.
With this 2028 class in particular, there's an interesting caveat, even if the trend of players from non-traditional hotbeds playing high school ball on the East Coast is nothing new. While the following Top 30 recruits all grew up out West, they'll now be included in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic rankings set to be posted this week: Harrison Tyler (Lawrenceville, N.J.), Ben Smith (Garden City, N.Y.), Austin Tuttle (Brunswick, Conn.), Sawyer Bligh (Brunswick, Conn.), Weston Guerra (McDonogh, Md.), and OJ Ika (Loomis Chaffee, Conn.).
Four of the six were born and raised in California, while Ika grew up in Utah and Tuttle grew up in Colorado before each headed to New England powerhouses for high school. Bligh, Ika, and Tuttle have also suited up together on the West Coast Starz attack for the last few summers, while Smith and Tyler team up for LI Express, and fellow five-star Guerra excels for Mad Dog.
That being said, there's no shortage of promising talent choosing to stay home. Ranked ninth nationally, St. Ignatius Prep (Calif.) two-way midfielder Hawkes Pawkard is the No. 1 prospect out West, having come up under the tutelage of his father, longtime SI head coach Chris Packard, while thriving for XLC on the club circuit. He's drawn comparisons to Max Seibald and Chris LaPierre on the lacrosse field and is also an outstanding football player for the Wildcats.
Mad Dog and Santa Margarita Catholic (Calif.) faceoff specialist and recent Notre Dame commit Karl Robison checks in at No. 2, while Georgetown-bound lefty attackman Parker Old, a recent transfer to Seattle Prep (Wash.), rounds out the top three after a huge spring with Upper Arlington (Ohio) and a strong summer with Resolute and Project Midwest. Two more National Top 100 recruits, offensive weapons Ramsey Peterson and Will Cornell, find themselves in the top five, with a bevy of players who just missed out on the national rankings checking in behind them.
