When A.J. Palmer was conducting his college search, he told his mother a simple fact.

If he had a choice between a school 10 minutes away or 10 hours away, he was going to the farther one.

She supported his decision, saying that leaving home for college was the greatest decision she ever made.

Palmer isn’t going 10 hours away – more like five – as the Highland High School senior verbally committed to play Division III men’s lacrosse at Hood College in Frederick, MD.

“I’ve always wanted to play in college because that’s the next big step throughout the entire process,” Palmer said. “You’re always meeting coaches. You’re always going to look at these schools and thankfully, (Highland boys’ lacrosse coach Tom) Schlappich was able to help me through it. Once I stepped foot on the on the campus of Hood, I fell in love with it. I knew that was the place for me.”

He was looking for a smaller school, giving him something like the small-town feel in Highland. A place, where you can go outside and meet new people, but everyone knows each other.

“No matter where you go, you’re going to know someone,” Palmer said. “And honestly, that reminds me of my home.”

Palmer is going to join a Hood team that he described as a new program that has been on the rise under coach Brad Barber.

The Blazers finished 2021 with a 4-5 overall record, 3-3 in their conference and were eliminated in the Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth quarterfinals to finish their season. A year earlier, the Blazers were off to a 4-2 start before the COVID-19 pandemic cut the season short.

Palmer is looking forward to going in there and helping Hood continue its ascendance.

“It’s not like high school where you have the kids that are studs,” Palmer said. “In the college program, everyone there is a stud and I’ll have that experience with those players. They know what they’re doing and it’s a chance to prove that we belong as a team.”

Palmer has had a lacrosse stick in his hand as long as he can remember. His father used to be an athletic trainer at a high school in Franklin Lakes, NJ, and he was introduced to the sport there. When Palmer was born, the lacrosse coach gave his father a lacrosse stick and since he could walk, he’s never put the stick down.

“He’s a very good leftie finisher,” Schlappich said. “He’s like a sniper from that left-hand side. He’s able to find space quite well and more times than not, he’s going to put the ball in the cage.”

Schlappich also had a role in helping Palmer narrow down schools, pulling him aside after getting contacted by coaches, and gauging Palmer’s interest in some of the schools as he went through the recruiting process.

He believes his leftie attackman is well-suited for the college lacrosse game.

“He’s a very soft-spoken kid, but he just does everything,” Schlappich said. “He does all the intangibles. He’s there every day in practice and he does little things really well for his position. He’s always in the right spot to receive a pass. He’s got excellent vision when feeding his teammates.”

Palmer has one more varsity season left, and he hopes his team can improve on their trip to the Section 9 Class C championship game, where they lost to the Wallkill Panthers.

He said getting to the title game was a big confidence booster for the Huskies, which have been a huge part of his life for years.

“I’m going to miss everything,” Palmer said. “It’s like they’re my second family. I can go to them with anything. They can come to me with anything. We hang out outside of lacrosse. It’s going to be hard to leave all of them.”