Lacrosse is a sport, usually played outdoors, that features two teams of 10 players. Each player wields a lacrosse stick with a small net at one end to help carry, pass and shoot the game ball. The game is high contact, although there are safer versions that avoid contact and feature softer balls.
Field
A typical lacrosse playing field is 110 yards long and 60 yards wide. Goals are placed 80 yards apart, each 15 yards from their respective end line. Each goal is 6 feet by 6 feet and is surrounded by a circle with a 9-foot radius, known as the crease.
Rules
A team's 10 players include the goalkeeper, three defenders, three midfielders and three offensive attackers. The defenders and attackers are expected to stay on their side of the field, while the midfielders roam. The game is divided into four 20-minute periods. The clock runs the entire game, except for the final three minutes when it stops for any dead balls. Teams switch ends at the completion of each quarter, and players can substitute at any time within the designated area.
Face-off
A face-off is taken at the start of each quarter and after a goal is scored. One player from each team positions themselves at midfield. The referee drops the lacrosse ball between the two players and blows the whistle. The players fight to hit the ball to their teammates and gain possession.
Body-checking
Body-checking is essential to lacrosse, but can only occur under certain circumstances. Contact can only be made from the front or the side, between the neck and hips. A player can body-check an opponent who is in possession of the ball, or within 9 feet of a loose ball or a ball in flight.
Penalties
There are technical, personal and expulsion fouls in lacrosse. Technical fouls include relatively small infractions, including holding, pushing or interfering, outside the realm of legal body-checking. In addition, players cannot be offside or move the ball with their hands. The result is a turnover where the foul occurred, or the offending player sits out of the game for 30 seconds. Personal fouls are more severe and include illegal body-checking, slashing, cross-checking and tripping. The offending player must sit out for as long as the referee sees fit: one, two or three minutes. If a player commits five personal fouls, he is removed from the field for the rest of the game. Likewise, if a player fights, he is guilty of an expulsion foul and is ejected from the game.
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