Beck Anderson was an ADVNC SF’ 21 midfielder who is taking a gap year before fulfilling his dream of playing lacrosse at Duke University.
Beck Anderson playing in youth rec league.
Anderson grew up in the Palo Alto area playing soccer, basketball and baseball before his good friends, Ben Ramsey and Paul Barton convinced him to give lacrosse a try. Ramsey and Barton had already started playing for ADVNC and are currently playing for Notre Dame and UNC, respectively. “I had barely played the game when I went to tryout for ADVNC in the fourth grade,” Beck said. “I went over to Coach Rotelli (ADVNC Founder & CEO) and he wanted to see if I was fast like Paul was. Coach Rotelli saw something in me, cause I sure couldn’t play lacrosse at that point. I guess he saw some athleticism and grit. Making that ADVNC team changed my life.”
Expanding on that thought, Beck said, “ADVNC really took off right after that tryout and got way more competitive. If I didn’t make ADVNC that first tryout I don’t think I ever would have. If I didn’t make ADVNC, I don’t know where I’d be right now. I wouldn’t be part of that brotherhood. I don’t know if I would have gone to Sacred Heart Prep or have the opportunity to play lacrosse at the collegiate level.
But the real turning point in Beck’s career came in the 10th grade at SHP. Beck had been both a defender and LSM up to that point. “Coach Sean Mayle (former ADVNC player and Coach) made me a Defensive Midfielder with my short stick and saw that’s where I belong. I found my niche and started at D-Mid every game after that. I immediately liked D-Mid more than having a pole. It’s one of the most underrated positions. Teams try and attack the D-Mid and a lot of times you’re expected to get beat. But I love getting dirty and trying to win my matchup. I love trying to get dodged on. I just love it.”
Beck grew very close with not only his ADVNC teammates, but also his coaches, Jack Huber and Max Feely. “They were the older brothers Beck never had,” said Beck’s mom, Vanessa Anderson. “Max and Jack built up his confidence to where he wanted to play at the collegiate level. He’s still super close with them. We couldn’t have asked for better mentors for our son. We have told them they changed Beck’s life.”
Beck (#13) after a SHP football game with his ADVNC coaches (Jack Huber, far left & Max Feely, far right) and teammates
Beck entered the college recruiting process not knowing if he wanted to play lacrosse in college. A strong student, Beck was primarily focused on getting into a top academic university. “All my friends on ADVNC were getting recruited, but I am physically on the smaller side, plus I am a D-Middie,” Beck said. “I wasn’t getting the looks from college I wanted. I went to lunch with Coach Rotelli and made a plan of attack. I started getting some interest from a few schools, but not as many as I wanted. I wasn’t overly excited about it and I didn’t want to go to school just for
lacrosse. I knew I could do better. I started losing a little faith in the process, but I never lost faith in myself.”
Beck leaned on his ADVNC coaches, Feely and Huber, in addition to Coach Rotelli. “I copied Coach Feely on every single email I sent to college coaches. I copied him on every email and he responded to every single one on my behalf. I was about ready to settle on not playing college lacrosse and just be a regular student. But then, Coach Danowski at Duke reached out to Coach Rotelli and asked about me.”
“Chris has so much street cred in the lacrosse community,” said Beck’s dad, Mike Anderson. “He can talk to any college coach on your son’s behalf. You can't say that about other clubs.”
Beck had been enamored with Duke since he was a little kid. His older sister, Makee is a sophomore at Duke currently. When the Blue Devils showed interest, Beck was ecstatic. “Coach Danowski liked my toughness and liked that I played football too. He said he liked my athleticism and my toughness and grit and just liked how I played the game. He said that because of all the roster craziness caused by COVID, they couldn’t offer me a committed spot but if I applied early, they would put in a good word on my behalf with the admissions office and I’d have a spot on the team.”
Beck was admitted to Duke but that’s not the end of his story. “I’ve wanted to take a gap year after High School for awhile,” Beck said. “My sister did one and she inspired me. And then I didn’t want to attend college with COVID restrictions because online learning isn’t really my thing. I was hesitant to ask my coaches but both Danowski coaches have been super supportive. I am currently studying in Spain, and am going to do volunteer work at the Mexico/US Border and then finish my gap year backpacking in Southeast Asia before focusing exclusively on training for lacrosse.”
“We never pushed Beck to play college lacrosse,” Mike Anderson said. “We always focused on the education part and the gap year is part of that. Our daughter thought the gap year was a wonderful experience and that she grew so much in every way. She and Beck are very close and she advised Beck to do it. He was a little scared to even ask the Duke coaches, but they have been so supportive.”
Beck was an avid ski racer at Squaw Valley.
Beck has always had strong and varied interests outside the lacrosse field and the gap year is just another part of that. A former snow-ski racer at Squaw Valley, Beck was a fearless thrill seeker starting at a young age. He also got his scuba diving certification when he was young.
“He was senior class President at SHP and President of an improv comedy group there too,” said Vanessa Anderson. “He’s always been deeply involved in so many activities.”
Anderson will head to Duke in the Fall of 2022 focused on all of his goals, knowing that he will have to earn playing time just as he always has. “There were several moments in my career where I could’ve given up,” Beck said. “You just have to keep on pushing and having fun with it all. I love getting in other guys’ grills and letting them know they’re getting shut down by a stick. I love talking smack and making my presence felt.