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An Awesome Game - Lacrosse

by K.L. Amadio
15372465_01776cd0491.jpg
2005 NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Championship; Credit

Lacrosse has been popular on the east coast of the United States for many decades now. Recently, lacrosse is gaining popularity across the country. It is the official summer game of Canada and is played in over 20 countries world wide.

Lacrosse is well documented all the way back to the 1600’s by French missionaries who witnessed Native Americans playing the oldest team sport in North America. Native Americans called the game baggataway. The stick used to play the sport resembled the bishops cross; and so a new name was given by the missionaries. They referred to the game as la crosse.

Today, lacrosse is played by men and women, boys and girls at ages as young as 3rd grade. Upwards of 5,500 women play lacrosse at over 240 American universities and colleges. It’s estimated that 125,000 children in the United States play the game in over 4,500 programs across the country.

Seemingly complicated, lacrosse rules are slightly different for women’s and men’s leagues. Studying a lacrosse game might remind the viewer of American football, field hockey and soccer all rolled together. Perhaps the native game of baggataway influenced these younger team sports.

Basics of Lacrosse:

Lacrosse players use a stick to pass and carry a rubber ball that is around the size of a standard baseball. On one end of the stick is a head with nylon cording strung to create a pocket for the ball. Each player carries a stick and uses it to throw and catch the ball, carry the ball while running and displace the ball from an opponent. Cradling is the practice of keeping the ball in the pocket while running.

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April 25, 2008 | Category: Fitness and Exercise 

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