Henry Niehaus is a midfielder on the ADVNC SF ‘21 team who is committed to play lacrosse at Brown University.

Niehaus grew up in San Francisco playing soccer, basketball and lacrosse. He played all three sports until lacrosse fully captured his attention in the 7th grade. “I was starting to think about where to go to High School,” said Henry. “My older brother (Colin) was then a freshman at St Ignatius, and I learned from him how great SI's lacrosse program is. My interest in the sport got super piqued then. I started telling myself, I could really do this. I could play for a top tier program, challenge myself to be one of the better players on the team, and lift everyone up.”

Henry went ahead and did just that. He became an integral member of SI’s midfield, even joining his older brother for one year before Colin graduated. Colin now plays lacrosse at Amherst College, where he is completing his freshman year.

Henry joined the ADVNC SF ‘21 team in the summer before his sophomore year in High School. 

“Joining ADVNC from my previous club team was a hard decision,” Henry said. “but I wanted to play with the best athletes and play for coaches who wanted to win tournaments while caring about my development as a player. Right off the bat I felt a different kind of energy with ADVNC. The first couple of practices combined high level lacrosse with crazy physicality; they felt the way practices should feel. I knew then I had made the right decision.”

Niehaus joined an extremely talented first midfield line that already included Billy Barnds, who has since committed to Princeton, and Ben Ramsey, who has since committed to Notre Dame. Both Barnds and Ramsey play for Sacred Heart Prep, the arch-rival to Henry’s SI team.

“I was surprised by how well we got along and how well they accepted me,” said Henry. “You have guys like Ben and Billy, we play the same position, and right away we started to become good friends. They pushed me hard, both in practices and games. To have peers that you respect, and then have it become mutual respect .. that just brings out the best in everyone.”

“SI and SHP have a great rivalry, but I hadn't met any of the SHP guys before and was expecting them to treat me like an enemy,” Henry said. “But it turned out that no one on the team cared about that petty stuff. Everyone was super down to earth, we all got along right away. The coaches on the team, Jack Huber and Max Feely promoted a really good environment.”

Henry’s father, Matt Niehaus shared his son’s enthusiasm for the ADVNC Program. “After having 2 sons play select club lacrosse, I came to learn that as a parent, you want your son to play for the most talented club team in your area for their age group,” Matt said. “When you do that, you not only get to practice with the top players your age, you get to play in the most competitive tournaments against the highest possible level of talent. And the best college coaches are often there to watch. It's the ultimate experience for a young athlete, so for that reason, joining ADVNC was a great decision for Henry and our family.”

“Top college coaches would come to our games at tournaments and say, who are these Bay Area kids?” Henry said. “Many coaches weren’t expecting much from us, but we kept winning and kept beating most of the top tier east coast clubs. That’s why so many guys on our ADVNC team got a ton of looks and then offers from the best college programs.” 

(editor’s note: the ADVNC SF ‘21 team has 8 players committed to play DI lacrosse as of May 1, 2020)

When September 1, 2019 rolled around and college coaches could officially contact Henry, the floodgates opened. “I was with Duke (Reeder, Henry’s SI & ADVNC teammate), just hanging out, and I started getting some texts asking to schedule phone calls,” Henry said. “The first 3 days were the most hectic. Coach Tierney at Denver was the first coach I talked to and he offered me over the phone, right when I woke up. That was kind of a shocker, and that was really the first time it felt real, like I could really achieve my goal of playing college lacrosse.”  

“Before that even happened, we sat down and made a Top 10 list of schools and programs Henry was interested in,” Matt Niehaus said. “Chris Rotelli (ADVNC Founder & CEO) was a great resource throughout, very responsive and incredibly available during the recruiting process. Henry texted Chris whenever he needed advice.”

“Coach Rotelli was super helpful,” Henry said. “He asked what I was looking for, what were my dream schools. He definitely helped a lot. A lot of college coaches that offered me talked to Coach Rotelli first.”

Henry wanted a school with great academics and a great lacrosse program. While he had interest from a wide range of programs, he visited 3 schools, Harvard, Dartmouth and Brown, all top Ivy League institutions. “Lacrosse, at the end of the day, is not something I will be playing when I’m 60 years old,” said Henry. “I understand the importance of a great education and used lacrosse to help me achieve my academic goals. What stood out about Brown, besides their winning tradition, was their great learning environment, full of students and athletes interested in a top tier education.”

“My proudest moment during the recruiting process was sitting in the head lacrosse coach’s (Mike Daly’s) office at Brown, not sure what to expect, and Coach Daly offered Henry while we were sitting there,” said Matt Niehaus. “Henry handled himself quite well. He and I gave each other a quick look, as we weren't expecting something so quickly. Our eyes just about bugged out of our heads.”

With the process behind them, the Niehaus family reflected on their journey. “As a mom of 4 kids, I have a mantra: if you invest, I invest,” said Erin Niehaus, Henry’s mom. “The kid has to really want it. They have to be self motivated.”

“Once you reach the high school club level, if your kid doesn’t love whatever sport they’re playing, they shouldn’t be playing club,” Matt said. “We didn’t accept any complaints about going to practice or working out on your own from any of our 4 kids on club teams. If you’re complaining about practicing, you’re not really committed and unlikely to achieve your goals. Henry kept at it, stayed focus, worked hard without complaint, and achieved his near term lacrosse goals.” 

Henry agreed with his parents. “The most important thing is your love for the game. You have to really, really love the game and commit yourself to be the best. It takes a ton of work, so you have to feel fundamental joy when you play, or you won't get the best out of yourself. I’ve always felt a lot of joy and happiness when I play lacrosse; that’s what motivated me to set big goals for myself in the first place."