Le Provocateur

Issue date: 4/16/04 Section: Sports

Shawn Huxley

A majority of people may not exactly know about the Assumption's men's lacrosse team. This could be because many don't know what exactly is happening on the field. But, before jumping into AC's team, let's talk details.

"Lacrosse is an interesting game in the sense that many of its rules and regulations are like no other sport aside from a small hint of hockey," said defenseman Junior Shawn Huxley.

Each game consists of four 15-minute periods, each beginning with a face off where the ball rests on the ground and two midfielders, helmet-to-helmet, scrap for the ball upon the whistle. Lacrosse is full contact, so checking mimics hockey. However, players can really take hacks at the opponent as long as it looks like they are going for the ball and sometimes arms can be hit.

Also, like hockey, players can serve minutes for various types of penalties, causing their team to play shorthanded. Technical and fighting penalties are the most deadly to a team. Every game the referees choose two sticks to examine, from each team at any part of a game between periods. They check the shaft length and width, as well as the depth of a pocket.

Defenders' sticks in lacrosse are usually around six feet long while the rest of the players use sticks around three feet long, but both have to have the same depth of their pockets.

Penalties are often called for holding, pushing, illegal hits such as crosschecking, and head shots. These penalties can be anywhere between one and two minutes depending on their severity. The minute dispersals of penalty time are granted on a judgment call by the referee. It's up to them to determine how much time players are going to serve. All penalties are vanquished after a goal, aside from lock-in calls. A lock-in penalty would be an illegal stick or fighting in which three minutes are served without release.

"Lock-in penalties are the worst because they are long and also playing man down is extremely difficult, especially when the other team is in the offensive zone," said captain Senior Adam Kelly. "Serious offensive damage can be done during a lock in."

Lacrosse has zones that must be held in tact or the whistle is blown. At all times there must be three offensive and three defensive players, in addition to the goalie, within a half of the field at all times. In simple terms, it always has to be six on six plus a goalie. However, only offensive players can stay on their half of the field as well as defenders on their half, unless players switch to allow a player to make a run up or back. Technically if proper switches are made, a goalie can carry a ball up field and score if he wants, but it would be difficult to hold onto the ball with the gigantic pocket they use. A goalie's pocket is about three times the regular size.

Continued...

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