Freedom and John Champe are about 10 minutes apart, so the rivalry in all sports is intense. It reaches a fever pitch by the time the track and field calendar turns to lacrosse.

As Posey and Young took their games to the next level and became Division I players, the showdown between the two made for a lacrosse match not to be missed.

“When Dalton had the ball and Jack tapped him,” Ohri said, “everyone stopped — the coaches, referees, players on the field, parents — and watched the two go at each other.”

Although Posey was injured in their sophomore year, the final two seasons of their high school career were memorable.

“I remember my junior year, we played in a packed stadium,” Posey said. “I think that was the most packed high school game I’ve ever played in. Both grandstands were packed. The fence that went around the court was all the way around the concession stands. I remember walking out of the locker room and thinking, ‘Oh, this is what it’s like to be big.’

“I remember scoring in that game and the ground shaking. It was just absurd.”

As seniors, the two experienced another memorable moment: a thrilling match that ended in overtime, but was delayed an hour due to rain before overtime started.

When the teams returned to the field, Young did not keep them waiting long for the result.

“Fifteen seconds into an hour of rain delay, he takes a backhand shot from 50 feet and scores the game-winning goal,” Danzenbaker said. “I think that’s just typical Dalton. He’s the only one who can do that kind of stuff.”

The match ended 6-5 in favor of John Champe, which Young said was a testament to the impact Posey’s defense had on the match.

“That game senior year, I remember it mostly because of the 12 years leading up to it,” Young said. “We kind of knew it was going to be one of the last times we’d play each other in any sport, so it was a pretty memorable moment.”

They both went on to make their mark at the Division I level.

With Richmond, Young played in 65 games and started 62, including every game from 2022-24. He finished his career with a 57-game point streak and was twice selected for the USA Lacrosse Honorable Mention.

Posey was a USA Lacrosse All-American honorable mention in 2023, starting all 15 games he played in, despite suffering a knee injury in the team’s NCAA Tournament quarterfinal win over Army. While recovering from surgery, he played in seven games in 2024.

Just like they did when they were in elementary school, they spent their summers playing sports together, doing one-on-one drills against each other or training with Carolina Chaos star Jack Rowlett, who grew up in Burke, Virginia, and attended Robinson Secondary School, less than 20 miles from where Posey and Young grew up.

While neither was selected in the 2024 PLL Draft — nicknamed “The Greatest Draft” for the depth of talent — they were both claimed via waivers, with Young going to the Outlaws and Posey going to the Carolina Chaos.

Once again they have proven that they can play at another level.

Young earned a spot on Denver’s active roster in Week 2 due to an injury to Logan Wisnauskas. Head coach Tim Soudan was so pleased with his effort that he began looking for ways to get the ball to Young more often in Week 7. Young delivered, leading the team with five points on three goals and two assists in a win over the Philadelphia Waterdogs.

“Every time we put him on the field, he does something really well,” Soudan said. “He got limited runs when he was just coming out of center field with Handley and the rest of the crew coming out of the box. This week I thought, every short-clock faceoff wing, we’re going to send Dalton Young out there, and we’re going to give him a chance, low-clock, just to create.”

Later that night in Connecticut, the Chaos defeated the Maryland Whipsnakes 10-9. Posey had earned his second start in the PLL and head coach Andy Towers spoke highly of him after the game.

“Jack Posey is a beast,” Towers said. “That kid is as good as you need him to be. He’s as tough as you need him to be. He’s as obsessed with this team as anyone I’ve ever been around.”

Towers said Posey paid his own travel expenses to all the games he didn’t play in to cheer on his teammates from the sidelines.

“He’s humble,” Towers said. “All he cares about is winning. He’s tough as shit.”

Posey and Young continue to work toward becoming fixtures in the game-day lineup, and they do it together.

After both having successful nights with their teams in Fairfield, they were back on the fields at Freedom High to shoot and work together. The next morning, they drove together to Dulles International Airport for their flights west for PLL weekend in San Diego.

Their path to the pros hasn’t always been easy, but they’re both convinced they’ve become better for it. They hope it’s an example to other public school players in areas that aren’t considered hotbeds.

“I really hope that people see Dalton and I and see that they can choose to choose their own path, and they don’t have to take the route that they think is the only way,” Posey said. “You can choose your own path in this sport, and it’s open to anyone from any background if you’re willing to work and you’re willing to dedicate yourself and work at your craft.”

The two have come a long way in the sport of lacrosse. Young was a small and inexperienced high school junior, and Posey was a midfielder on their club team who nearly got fired before they gave him a long stick to try.

Now they are the head coaches at a clinic for players in Northern Virginia, which also features local players such as Angelus, Will Barnes (Boston U), Carson Boyle (Stony Brook) and Matthew Dineen (Utah).

They grew up together through lacrosse, with their fathers as coaches and mentors. They were grateful to have each other then, and that bond still exists today.

“It’s a beautiful game, and it brings us our friendships and our relationships,” Posey said. “One of the beautiful things about it is just the people that it brings into your life and how we can relate to them and connect with them. This is a really beautiful game, and it’s really different than a lot of other sports that I’ve seen, just the relationships that you can really nurture and cultivate. So yeah, it’s been an honor to walk this path with Dalton.”