With the Wildcats hosting their home opener on Saturday against Oregon, I thought it was a good time to dust off this old post from last year (see after the jump), explaining the rules of women's lacrosse, should you feel inclined to check out a game at Lakeside Field or watch one on the BTN.
Our Wildcats are ranked No. 1 and 3-0 on the season, after Wednesday's dramatic 11-9 OT win at No. 9 Syracuse. NU got off to a slow start in the game, digging themselves a 6-3 halftime deficit, but righted the ship in the second half to seize a 9-6 lead late. From there, it looked like the Wildcats would cruise to victory, but the Orange rallied back to tie the game with 51 seconds left, sending it into OT.
NU would dominate the OT period, with Erin Fitzgerald scoring the eventual game winner and Shannon Smith adding the insurance goal, one of her game-high five tallies on the night. Goalkeeper Brianne LoManto had nine saves in the game, including five big ones in the second half and one in OT.
Hit the jump to learn more about the game of women's lacrosse. That way, at your next cocktail party, you can impress folks with your knowledge of free positions, restraining lines and crosse in the spheres.
The field
Women's lacrosse is played on a field 120 yards long by 65 yards wide. Goals are placed at each end, 10 yards from the edge of the field. The goals stand six feet tall by six feet wide. Surrounding each goal is a circle 13 feet in diameter. Also extending from each goal is an 8-meter arc and a 12-meter fan. We'll explain these later.
In the middle of the field is a center circle that is used for draws after each goal is scored. Halfway between the center circle and the goals on each side are restraining lines, which stretch from sideline to sideline. More on the restraining lines later, also.
The players
Each team has 12 players, usually in a configuration of one goalkeeper, three attackers, five midfielders and three defenders. As in ice hockey, teams are allowed to substitute players on the fly, while play is still going on
The equipment
Each player is equipped with a stick, also called a crosse. The pocket of the stick is relatively shallow (much shallower than in men's lacrosse), which makes the ball easier to dislodge. As a result, players must learn how to "cradle" the ball, which is the lacrosse equivalent of hockey stickhandling or basketball dribbling.
Besides the stick, the women also wear protective eye gear.
Goaltenders get a stick with a much bigger pocket, and they also wear a protective mask, chest protector and gloves.
The play
Games are 60 minutes long, with 30-minute halves. Each half begins with a draw, in which two opposing players line up in the center circle, and the ball is placed between their two sticks, about waist high. When the whistle sounds, the players must then lift the ball over their heads. As the ball comes loose, a free-for-all ensues with each team frantically scooping at the ball to try to gain possession of it. Draws are also used to restart the game after each goal is scored.
The object of the game is obviously to score more goals than your opponent. When a team is on offense, it can only have seven players in the attacking third of the field beyond the restraining line. The defending team also is only allowed seven field players plus the goalie behind the restraining line. This explains why you'll see players hanging back in the middle of the field, not getting involved with the play. It's not that they're cherry picking or too lazy to join the play; they're required not to cross the restraining line.
If the ball goes out of bounds on a shot, the team with the player closest to the ball when it went out of bounds gets possession. You'll often see a team on offense keep a player or two behind the goal, in large part because of this rule. If the ball goes out of bounds on any play besides a shot, then the team that touched the ball last loses possession.
No players are allowed to enter the goal circle, except for the goalkeeper. Within the 8-meter arc, a defender can only stay for three seconds at a time, or, as in basketball, the team will get called for a 3-second violation.
On defense, no body checking is allowed, but players can use their stick to check their opponents' stick to jar the ball loose. However, you can not recklessly check your opponent's stick (that's slashing) or direct a check towards a player's head or violate the "sphere," which is an imaginary bubble about a foot in diameter around the head. Those violations will be called as fouls. Conversely, a player with the ball can't just cradle the ball by her head in order to keep it safe. That's a foul, too.
The fouls
There are minor fouls and major fouls. When a foul is called, the referee blows the whistle, and all players must freeze right where they are. For a minor foul, the offending player must stand four meters back from where she was when the foul was committed. For a major foul, the offending player is placed four meters directly behind the player that was fouled. This is called a free position and, in effect, could lead to a fast break.
If a team commits a major foul within the 8-meter arc, the other team gets a free shot at the goal from the top of the 8-meter arc. This is similar to a soccer penalty shot, and all defenders are cleared out of the arc. For a minor foul within the 12-meter fan, the player gets an "indirect free position" from the nearest spot on the fan, in which the player can run or pass, but can not directly shoot at the goal.
Similar to a delayed penalty in hockey, if a foul is committed on a team in the middle of a scoring chance, the referee may issue a "slow whistle" and allow a play to continue. Once the scoring chance ends, if a goal is not scored, the foul is enforced.
Players can also receive yellow and red cards, if the foul is severe. A yellow card forces a player out for three minutes of action. While technically the team is shorthanded, the fact that the restraining line only allows seven offensive players and seven defensive players (plus the goalkeeper) means that in reality neither team really has to play with a manpower advantage/disadvantage in the offensive and defensive zones. (This has changed this year. Yellow cards now result in an actual power play for the other team. See comments section below for more details). A red card means ejection from the game.
Differences with the men's game
You might be surfing ESPNU and find yourself watching a men's lacrosse game. Though the women's and men's versions are obviously similar, there are also significant differences.
Women's lacrosse is played with 12 players a side, while men's lacrosse has 10 players. The men are allowed all manners of body checking and physical contact, and they wear helmets, pads and other protective equipment.
Because of the physical contact, the pocket on men's sticks is much deeper, which allows players to hold onto the ball better. Men's sticks are also allowed to be of varying lengths, with defenders having longer sticks.
The field in men's lacrosse is smaller, 100 yards by 60 yards, compared to the women's 120 yards by 65 yards. Men's lacrosse also operates on a shot clock.
Well there you have it. Now you can discuss our lacrosse program like a seasoned veteran.
Gametime against Oregon is noon CT Saturday, and if you're not able to make it to the game, it'll be streamed online at NUsports.com for a fee.
If you can't catch it, you'll have nine more chances to see the Wildcats in Evanston, including games against No. 2 North Carolina, No. 4 Florida, No. 6 Virginia, No. 11 Vanderbilt, No. 14 Notre Dame and No. 20 Johns Hopkins.