Entering the World of Lacrosse…

Many moons ago when I was in high school, I was a member of the Mathletes.  I say this with pride! I was good at math, I enjoyed being part of the math team, and some of my best friends (who are still some of my best friends 30+ years later) were my teammates.  My son, who is also very good at math, gave me such a look of disgust when I suggested that he might enjoy doing something similar. My son is a sports guy–he loves to play sports; he loves to watch sports; he loves to talk about sports.  One of his main hopes when he started high school was to be part of a school sports team. Due to a series of events (which is his story to tell–maybe I will have him blog about it here sometime), he joined the freshman-sophomore lacrosse team as a sophomore!  We were all thrilled! I knew almost nothing about the game! No one in my home really knew anything about the game. My knowledge was limited to knowing that the players toss a ball using sticks with nets and try to score goals. This was my very nutshell version of the game–it was like soccer or hockey but using poles with little nets.  (My ignorance may have worked out for him. I will tell you why soon.) Nevertheless, he had the chance to be part of a team, and that in and of itself is a great opportunity for anyone of any age.

When we first went shopping for equipment, it was the blind leading the blind.  We knew in general what types of equipment were needed but had no idea how to choose.  Thankfully, the staff at Dick’s Sporting Goods helped us out and we left with some required equipment.  Fortunately, my son was also able to borrow some equipment from older players and his cousin (an avid player for years who lives out of state but would be visiting us right before lacrosse season for a completely unrelated purpose).  Considering that my son had never played the sport before joining the team, I was not keen on spending a small fortune if we did not know if he would even enjoy and continue playing.

Jumping ahead, he LOVED being on the lacrosse team!   He learned a new sport, he got daily physical activity which he needed, and he met some great guys who are now his friends.   He plans to join again as a junior. How do I know that he is serious about playing again this year? He went to a morning practice session at school.  I must add a bit of information here. I am a morning person. No one else in my house is anywhere CLOSE to being a morning person with me. When he asked to get a ride to school so that he could be there at 6 am, I knew that he meant business.

If he was going to show such commitment, I was determined to learn more about the game.  I watched some of the games last year when I could. Considering that the weather was cold for most of the games, I did appreciate the fact that they lasted approximately an hour (much shorter that some other high school sporting events).  I recognized when a goal was scored but did not understand much else. I decided to learn some of the rules of the game! (When the weather warms up, I hope my son can teach me a little about actually playing the game.)

To begin, I just did an internet search; I did not do a whole lot of extensive initial research.  I assumed (hoped) that the basic rules of the sport would not change from site to site.  I did go in with the awareness that the rules for high school boys would be different than that for girls and for younger players.  First, I found a nice basic site which provided the perfect introduction for me. https://www.ducksters.com/sports/lacrosse.php.  I really know nothing else about this site, but I had no reason to suspect foul (fowl) play (bad pun–I know, but I couldn’t resist).  The site did provide a nice introduction to the sport. After reading some of the basic rules, I decided to look a little more. Apparently, the National Federation of State High School Association (NFHS) boys lacrosse rulebook is 92 pages long.  You can find the 2019 NFHS Boys Lacrosse Rules Book, Kindle edition for $6.99 on Amazon. This version is 202 pages long. My respect for the coaches and referees for the game jumped dramatically after seeing that! Last year, half of my son’s team had never played lacrosse before.  Kudos to the coach for teaching them not just the physical aspect of the game but the basic rules. I may be dedicated to learning more about something my son is loving, but I have my limits. I am not buying and reading the rule book, and I am guessing that none of the kids on the team have plans to read it either.  (They are probably focusing more on their AP U.S. history reading.)

One of the rules listed, though, made me think (or, more specifically, since I am a mom, worry).  This is copied directly from the webpage: “When an opponent has the ball or is within five yards of the ball, a player can body check them. A body check is contact from the front between the waist and the shoulders. You can also stick check the player on the stick or gloves to try and knock the ball away or to keep a player from getting the ball.”  The rules for attack are a specific part of the game.  I did not realize that this was such a contact sport before my son joined the team!  I knew it was physical but did not know that it included body checks and whacking each other with lacrosse sticks.  (Those happen to be some of my son’s favorite parts of the sport. I suppose it is better that he have this contact with other players while in protective gear as opposed to crashing into his sister.)  After a full day of hard course work, this sport provides an outlet to release energy.

I am going to back up a bit.  Before he started high school, I told my son that I was not going to allow him to play on the football team.  As he was told by me many times, when you have a Jewish mother who is also a pediatrician, the chance of being allowed to play tackle football is somewhere between zero and nil.  Now I am learning more about the “attack” part of lacrosse. After reading a little on the first website I found, I decided to get a little more information. He laughs when we discuss that it was probably a good thing that I did not know much about the sport before he joined the team.  Otherwise, he may not have joined the team. My ignorance worked out really well for him in this situation.

To add to the challenge of learning the rules of the sport, it seems like there are some rule changes each year.  For those who are curious (and want to check it out later), here it a site with some of the changes: https://www.nfhs.org/sports-resource-content/boys-lacrosse-rules-changes-2019/

Let me point out one of the rules which make me as a mom a bit more anxious.  “5-4-5: A player shall not body-check a player in a defenseless position. This includes but is not limited to: (a) body-checking a player from his “blind side;” (b) body checking a player who has his head down in an attempt to play a loose ball; and (c) body-checking a player whose head is turned away to receive a pass, even if that player turns toward the contact immediately before the body check.”   Yay?  My first thought was, “If this is a new rule, what was the old one?”  I was a bit relieved to learn that the rule was more of a clarification than a change in game play.  I am glad that this is a rule but a bit nervous about the fact that there has to be such a rule.  A player can still break a rule; there is just a penalty for doing so. I am going to trust that the coaches around here focus on safety during game play. Fortunately, I do believe that most of the coaches around here do care more about the safety and well-being of their student athletes than on the win. (Maybe it also works out well that the lacrosse team is historically not one of the best teams at our very competitive high school.  That does eliminate some of the stress. The kids of course want to do well, but there is no added stress of having to live up to crazy high expectations.)

As I was learning about the rules of lacrosse, my eyes did start to glaze over at times, but I do feel more ready than ever to cheer on the team come spring!

I am so happy that he found the lacrosse team at school.  I do believe that it is one of the best things that has happened to him since starting high school. Nevertheless, there are moments when wish he would just join the math team.