Like its male counterpart, women's lacrosse is an energetic game in which players on opposing teams run up and down a grass field trying to score goals into a net while controlling a ball with lacrosse sticks. The rules of women's lacrosse emphasize skill and precision over the more physically-inclined men's game, and has different standards for equipment and the size of the field.
Field and Equipment
The goals are placed 100 yards apart in women's lacrosse, compared to just 80 in men's lacrosse. In addition, women's teams have 12 players on the field at once--five on offense, seven on defense, while men's teams only use 10 players at a time. The most noticeable difference in equipment is in safety gear. With stringent restrictions on physical contact, the official rules of women's lacrosse only require players to wear protective eye wear and mouth guards. Head gear, nose guards and gloves are optional, but must be approved by the game's officials. Length of the lacrosse stick must be between 36 and 44 inches for women.
Physical Contact
A major part of the men's game is checking--using one's stick to interrupt another player's possession of the ball, or to harass said player.
No stick-to-player contact is allowed in women's lacrosse, either to the body or the head. Only stick-to-stick checking is permissible, as one player attempts to dislodge the ball from the other player's possession. Stick-to-stick checking cannot be aimed toward a player's face and the checking player must show clear control. In addition, one player may not hold down their opponent's stick.
Fouls
If a player is fouled, the umpire will stop play with his or her whistle. The player who has been fouled retains possession of the ball, and the offending player must move several yards away while play is resumed. If the foul occurs within the arc surrounding the defending team's goal, all defenders except the goalie must leave the arc, and the fouled player is awarded a free shot on goal, with only the goalie able to actively defend.
Game Length
College lacrosse games are 60 minutes long, divided into two 30-minute halves. For high-school level and younger, the game length is 50 minutes, and each half is 25 minutes. In all levels of competition, teams are allowed two timeouts.
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