Don’t understand the rules of lacrosse? Wish you knew more about the the girls’ game or boys’game? Look no further than MaxLaxOC.com’s Rule of the Day series.
There are many misinterpretations of rules on the boys’ and girls’ side that lead to frustration, confusion, and even the distrust of officials. It is important that everyone takes the time to read the rulebook for themselves. The rulebook can be daunting if you haven’t played the game or are unfamiliar with commonly used terms. MaxLaxOC has designed a video series in hopes to help clarify any confusion on the field and in the stands.
Girls’ face offs and boys’ face offs are noticeably different. Girls’ face offs are conducted standing up and with the ball balanced between the back of both players’ crosse. For reference, the ball is placed in the widest part of the girls’ crosse and is held up by pressure applied by both players, almost like a handshake. The players’ crosses are lined up parallel with the midline and are frozen until the whistle blows. The ball is then pushed or pulled in the direction desired by each player. The face off is not legal if the ball does not reach above the height of each players’ head.
The boys’ face offs are conducted on the ground. The same initial rules apply to the face off with slight variations; the ball is placed at the center “x” (or center of the midline) with the back of each player’s crosses aligned with the ball (although not touching) and crosses are parallel with the midline and players must be motionless until the whistle blows. In addition, players must not lean in with their crosses (must be perpendicular to the ground) and body parts must stay out of the neutral zone (extending up from the bottom end of each player’s crosses’ head). Upon owning possession off of the faceoff it is possible for a ball to be stuck in a player’s crosse. When this happens, the player has one attempt, or hard shake, to dislodge the ball from the crosse.