Lacrosse is a fast-paced sport played by tens of thousands of girls and women in the U.S. According to the National Federation of State High School Associations, nearly 65,000 girls played high school lacrosse in 2008-09, and there are about 350 women's teams in NCAA Division I, II and III competition. Women's lacrosse differs from the men's game both in game play and equipment. A complete list of rules can be found in the Official Rules for Girls and Women's Lacrosse from U.S. Lacrosse.
Players
Women's lacrosse is played with teams of 12. Up to 12 players may be on the field for each team at a time, and one of those players may be a goaltender. Offensive positions include first, second and third home, along with attack wings; defensive positions are the point, coverpoint, third man, center, defensive wings and goaltender.
Timing
Lacrosse games are 50 minutes long for high school girls or 60 minutes for women, divided into two halves. Play is continuous; the clock stops only after goals are scored any time during the game, or after any umpire whistle stopping play during the last two minutes of each half. The umpire may also call time out because of unusual circumstances, such as interference or broken equipment, and teams have two timeouts they can call during a game.
Scoring
A team scores a goal by shooting the ball into the opposing team's goal. In order to count as a goal, the entire ball must cross completely over the goal line, under the crossbar and between the posts, from the front of the goal. The ball must have come directly from the legal crosse (stick) of an offensive player or have deflected off the crosse or body of a defender.
Fouls
Unlike men's lacrosse, the women's game does not allow intentional contact to the body or head, also called checking. In 2010, the U.S. Lacrosse rules committee requested that game officials pay particular attention to cross-checking with the stick and slashing/dangerous checks.
Major fouls in women's lacrosse include the above, as well as holding, hooking, blocking, charging, pushing, tripping, obstruction, illegal contact and illegal use of the crosse. Minor field fouls include hand or body balls, illegal draws, covering and illegal substitutions. A player who has committed a foul must yield "free position" to an opposing player.
Depending on the severity of a foul, officials may give a player a yellow card, which results in a three-minute penalty; or a red card, which expels the player from the game and also leaves her team shorthanded for three minutes.
Equipment
Women's lacrosse equipment also varies from that allowed in the men's game. Because contact to the head is not allowed, women may not wear hard helmets. Soft head and nose protection is allowed, and protective eyewear and mouthguards are required.
In the women's game, the length of the crosse is defined and is the same for all field players: between 35 1/2-inch minimum and 43 1/4-inch maximum. Also, the women's crosse may not have a mesh pocket. Players must wear rubber- or composite-soled shoes; while plastic, rubber or leather cleats or studs may be used, spikes are not allowed.
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