Congratulations to Jimmy on his college choice and good luck in the future!   Name Jimmy Stifler High School Berkeley Preparatory School Graduation Year 2020 College Choice Swarthmore College Club Affiliations 3d New England and 3d Florida Why did you choose this college? Most important to me was finding the best fit academically. Swarthmore has everything I am looking for including excellent math and science programs, small class sizes taught by professors, and tremendous success placing graduates into careers that interest me and top graduate schools. Additionally, the Quaker Consortium will allow me to take classes at UPenn / Wharton School of Business. Coach Gress is awesome and I feel very comfortable with the coaching staff and players. The fact that Swarthmore plays in the highly competitive Centennial Conference where all games mean something and are only a bus ride away is also very attractive to me. Finally, the campus is spectacular and only a few miles from Philadelphia.     What are your first memories of the sport? My earliest lacrosse memory is when my dad gave me my first stick. An old STX shaft and head guided me through my first few years of lacrosse, and eventually I tried stringing a new pocket on the stick but with no success. Playing lacrosse with my dad in the backyard with that stick and taking it to practices and games for STS lacrosse are some of my first memories of the sport. What part of the process was most surprising to you about the recruiting process and what would you like to pass on to those who are going to face it in the future? The process was pretty straightforward. My Freshman year I identified five colleges that looked to be a great fit academically. These colleges prioritize academics and play competitive lacrosse. Over the summers I would play club lacrosse for 3d and go to prospect camps at these colleges to learn more. By my Junior year, I narrowed it down to three schools that had everything I was looking for academically, and where I really liked the coaching staffs and players. I knew I could be very happy at all three; however, Swarthmore was the best fit and checked all the boxes. Don’t be afraid to focus your search on a few target schools early in the process. This approach allowed me to spend my time in training and on campus learning about colleges and building relationships with coaches, versus attending showcases and playing lots of tournaments. Who would you like to thank for helping you get here? I would like to thank God and my family. Berkeley Prep and my teachers for providing an amazing education. 3d lacrosse and specifically Coaches Jernigan, Sessa, and Ryder taught me how to play and compete. And Coaches Whipple, Seivold, Quinlan, and Grant helped me train to be the best I can be.