Jack Beaulieu is a standout LSM from the ADVNC Sacramento & NDP 2025 team going to play at Salisbury University starting this Fall.
Jack, Matt & Lucas Beaulieu with ADVNC Sacramento in the early days.
Jack’s dad, Matt played lacrosse at storied St. Ignatius in high school growing up in San Francisco. He went on to play in college at Sacramento State. He introduced the sport to Jack, his oldest son, and Lucas (ADVNC Sacramento & NDP 2027), his youngest son when they were in the 3rd and 1st grades respectively.
“I have always loved to run, and I really liked the running and speed aspect of lacrosse,” said Jack. “My dad had a passion for the sport, and as soon as we started, my brother and I really liked it. I’ve always enjoyed spending time together with my family through lacrosse.”
The Beaulieu family realized that their boys had a passion for lacrosse and it was apparent that they would like the opportunity to play in high school and beyond. However, there was no youth lacrosse program nor was there lacrosse at either high school in their town. Matt made it his mission to get lacrosse as a recognized CIF sport at the high schools in Rocklin. That endeavor involved starting a youth program - Rocklin Youth Lacrosse - to prove the viability of the sport. After a couple years of building traction in the youth lacrosse program, both Whitney and Rocklin High schools added boys and girls lacrosse as a CIF sport in 2020.
Jack playing for Rocklin Youth Lacrosse.
“When the boys were in elementary school, very few kids in the area played lacrosse,” said Jack’s mom, Nicole Beaulieu. “So if Jack and Lucas were playing catch at school, other kids would stop and ask what they were playing. People began to refer to them as the ‘lacrosse kids’, and that has been their identity. They have enjoyed that and taken a lot of pride in it.”
“We are super proud of how far lacrosse has come in Rocklin,” said Matt Beaulieu. “We have a great core group of families who helped the youth and high school programs succeed. It has given these kids opportunities that weren’t there just a few years ago.”
Jack with ADVNC Sacramento.
Jack started playing with ADVNC Sacramento in the 3rd grade. His dad coached within the Program the entire time as well. “It was great getting all the best players from Sacramento onto one team,” said Jack. “I’ve made a lot of good friends that I wouldn’t have without ADVNC Sacramento. Going to all these tournaments created a winning mindset for all of us.”
“The ADVNC coaches have made a big impact on Jack,” said Matt Beaulieu. “Jack made the ADVNC World Series of Youth Lacrosse team back when he was 12 years old, and that’s where he met Coach BJ Grill. He has learned so much about defensive fundamentals from BJ and has taken his coaching to heart. Later on with ADVNC, he learned a ton from Coach Andrew Parilla and Chris McLellan, aka ‘Cheech.’ He also loved working with Mikie Schlosser (ADVNC Alum, PLL midfielder and current ADVNC Coach/Director). Having a pro player to show a path to our players here in Sacramento is great. He’s been an excellent role model to all the kids here. Mikie has been invaluable to all of us.”
Jack joined ADVNC NDP the summer after his freshman year. He said it was a little challenging finding his place on the team, but eventually, he came to love his ADVNC NDP 2025 team. “Playing for NDP and getting to play against the best teams in the country, gave me the exposure I needed to open up the opportunities to play college lacrosse at the level I was hoping,” Jack said.
“His NDP coaches were great,” Nicole Beaulieu said. “Coach Parilla, Cheech and Mikie Schlosser made it so fun for Jack. They were able to push Jack to a new level of competitiveness while still keeping things fun for all the boys on the team. I think it is a unique talent that these special coaches have. I think sometimes we forget that playing lacrosse is not just about getting recruited, it still needs to be fun.”
Jack is a standout at Whitney High School.
When it came time to look at colleges, Jack thought he wanted to stay on the West Coast. But when DIII powerhouse Salisbury University expressed interest, Jack started to reconsider.
“Jack wanted to stay closer to home, but his options were fairly limited with only a handful of NCAA options around us,” said Nicole Beaulieu. “Jack eventually said he was willing to go further away, if he found something that was a great fit. Salisbury had everything he wanted, except for it being so far from home. But as he matured, he started to realize that this opportunity might be worth exploring more, even if that means being across the country”
Jack on his visit to Salisbury University.
Jack said. “After Naptown, Salisbury reached out again. At that point, I took the opportunity to visit the campus and meet with Coach Berkman while we were in Maryland”
Salisbury lacrosse is led by legendary head coach, Jim Berkman. Now in his 37th year at the helm of the Sea Gulls, Berkman is the all-time winningest coach in men’s college lacrosse history. He has won 13 national championships, most recently in 2023. “Having been a player and a coach myself, and around the sport of lacrosse my entire life, getting to spend time with Coach Berkman was amazing,” said Matt Beaulieu. “Getting a glimpse of how he treats his staff and his players was great. As a dad, he is the kind of person I want mentoring my son for the next four years.”
“We visited with Coach Berkman in his office for an hour and a half,” said Jack Beaulieu. “He gave us a great idea of what his program and the school are like. Then I took a tour with the team’s defensive coordinator. They have awesome facilities and it’s beautiful there. It was a humid day, but not too hot. They told me it rarely snowed there, and I thought that was perfect. I could play lacrosse almost every day with high expectations of getting better.”
Jack committed to Salisbury shortly after his visit, and is excited to start his college career. “Coach Berkman explained that he is very involved with all his freshmen. Every week, he meets individually with each freshman to review academics with him to make sure you are on track, and also to discuss lacrosse development. That was a big thing for me and my family, especially with me going so far away from home. The coaching staff is very supportive with both academics and lacrosse. It just felt like a great fit and a place where I can be successful”
Jack playing for ADVNC NDP.
Jack has already decided what he wants to pursue at Salisbury. “I’m going to major in finance and minor in coaching,” he said. “I want to come back home and help coach the teams in Sacramento. This area needs that. We’ve had a few guys come back after college and coach, but we could use more. Having more experienced coaches will help drive the popularity and competitiveness of lacrosse in the Sacramento area.”
Looking back on his journey, Jack credits his experience with ADVNC NDP in helping him reach his goal of playing college lacrosse. “I go back in my mind to the very first game I played with ADVNC NDP, at Crabfeast a few summers ago,” Jack recalled. “I remember getting a bunch of ground balls that game, and I thought to myself, I could do this in college. That has become my game. I just try and pick up as many ground balls as I can.”
“I look back on that first tournament, when Jack’s NDP team beat the Annapolis Hawks,” recalled Matt Beaulieu. “Those kind of experiences help players from Sacramento set high expectations for themselves. Until you go back east and see the best players and teams, you don’t know how much better you need to get. That was important and eye-opening for Jack.”
Jack has this advice for younger players who wish to follow in his footsteps. “You can’t ever give up on a play. You can’t show any laziness on the field. Chase after every ball. Coaches want players who give it their all on every play. They want players who sprint all the time and always give great effort. Also, you have to love the game.”
“I would add to that, players need to put in the extra work,” Matt Beaulieu said. “Jack has put in so much work outside of practices. You have to love the game to do the extra work. You really have to work hard all the time. If you look at the most successful players around here, that’s what they all do.”