2011

Bishop Feehan

Girls Lacrosse

Playing Defense: What You Need To Know

Girls Lacrosse – Playing Defense: What You Need To Know

As with all sports, in lacrosse, when your team has the ball, everyone on the team should be considered an attack player. When the other team has the ball, everyone should be considered a defensive player and immediately switch into a defensive mode.

Defensive field positions

However, there are specific field positions defined for players located on the defensive side of the field, as shown below.

Field setup for defensive players:

The restraining lines

When playing girl’s lacrosse, the field is marked at each end with restraining lines 30 yards from each goal line. These restraining lines run the width of the field.

As a defensive player, you need to know when it is ok for you to cross these restraining lines. If you move out of the area defined by the restraining lines, it could result in the umpire declaring offsides and the ball will be given to the other team.

Movement of players between restraining lines:


Note: Keep in mind that if you are a defensive player and you move up to the restraining line in your opponent’s defensive end, you need to make sure that you can quickly get back to your own defensive end. If the other team makes a quick run or passes to an opponent in your defensive end and you are not there to defend against the attack, your team is one man down in its efforts to ward off a goal.

When playing on the field, whether it is in the offensive end of the field or the defensive end, always think “4 players back”. This will help you avoid offside calls. Players can exchange places over the restraining lines during play, but the first player must have both feet out of the area before another player can take their place. Any part of the foot on or over the restraining line is considered a violation. Players can reach over the line with their stick to play the ball, as long as no part of their feet is on or over the line.

Critical Scoring Area

The area 15 meters in front of and to each side of the goal and nine meters behind the goal is considered the critical scoring area in girl’s lacrosse. An 8 meter arc and 12 meter fan are marked in the area.

Warding off an attack

When an attacker with the ball is running into your defensive end, all defenders should immediately do the following:

  1. Mark up – Get between the player you are responsible for guarding and your goal. Then, get big. Hold your stick up in one hand and point it in the direction of the girl with the ball (to help block her view of her teammates). Point the other hand at the opponent you are supposed to be guarding (so that everyone knows you have that person covered).
  2. Start the chatter – Keep talking (so the player with the ball cannot hear her teammates). The defender(s) approaching the attacker should use phrases, such as “Got ball”, “Got body” (depending on which part of the attacker they are closest to and therefore are responsible for covering). Other defenders should make calls to each other to let them know that they’ve “Got #” (number written on back of player’s shirt) and that they are there to assist (“Got Help”) when needed.

The defender closest to the attacker with the ball (typically called the first defender) should then attempt the following:

  1. Apply pressure. Move toward the attacker to challenge her, forcing her to the outside of the field and/or to where she has to use her non-dominant hand.
  1. Keep your stick at a 1:00 angle. Don’t force your crosse or your opponent’s crosse into her body. You cannot hold your crosse in your opponent’s protective 7-inch bubble around their head, often referred to as their “sphere”. Wait for your opponent to present her stick to you outside of the sphere. Patience is important. Otherwise, you may end up getting a call for dangerous and reckless use of the stick. Often times, your presence alone will result in a player dropping the ball or making a critical mistake in her pass and/or positioning on the field.

Tip: If it is feasible, and the defense finds that it is an effective tactic (often based on the skill level of the attackers), a second defender should slide up out of their position to double-team the attacker with the ball. In these cases, one defender works hard to watch the attacker’s body while the other defender is responsible for the ball and, if possible, the check. As the attacker moves her crosse from one side of her body to the other, the role of the defenders will switch such that one is no longer responsible for the body, but now must guard the ball. To communicate effectively with each other, players should be calling out “Got ball” and “Got body” to each other. While this is going on, the third defender is now responsible for guarding both the opponent that sheis supposed to be marking and the opponent that the second defender left behind when she made her slide. This third defender lets others know that she has both opponents covered by calling out “Got two”.

Checking an opponent

As the attacker with the ball moves down the field, defenders can check her stick to regain possession of the ball. A check is when a player attempts to dislodge the ball from another player’s stick by tapping the head of their stick.

Note:At the high school level, full checking is allowed. (Modified checking is allowed at the U15 level. Checks must be below the shoulder. Checking is not allowed at the U13 level.)

The definition of crosse checking is stick-to-stick contact consisting of a series of “controlled taps” in an attempt to dislodge the ball from the crosse.The only time you should check is when the attacker becomes lazy and presents her stick to you. This can happen when the attacker does any of the following things:

  • Shows that she is overconfident and lowers her stick below her shoulder as she cradles or moves it outside of the 7-inch protective bubble around her head
  • Brings her stick back to make a pass or to shoot
  • Attempts to roll away from you

Before you check, keep the following guidelines in mind:

  • You can check from behind as long as you do not swing the stick across the front of your opponent’s body.
  • To check across the body, you must be one step ahead of your opponent. You cannot be level with her or one step behind and then swing your stick across the front of her body.
  • You can check your opponent’s crosse when she is holding her stick behind her.
  • Your crosse cannot pass through your opponent’s sphere.
  • Do not check in an upward motion unless your opponent’s crosse is behind or to the side of her and your swing will not enter her protective bubble. Use extreme caution and discretion when using this type of check.

Note:We’d prefer that you do not use this type of check at all. It is a swing towards someone’s head and, in our opinion, is dangerous for the majority of players who have not mastered the type of control required.

As you check, keep the following guidelines in mind:

  • Do not check an empty stick. The stick you check must be holding a ball or it is a penalty.
  • Try to use short, controlled taps. If you use a larger tap, keep both hands on the stick, do not slide them together (you will be called for a “slash”). Remember to recoil. If you do not retract, you risk the possibility of being called for a “held stick” and you will also end up in a bad stick position with your crosse toward the ground rather than in the air.
  • Swing in a downward motion, away from the body.
  • If the attacker attempts a face dodge, wait while the crosse passes in front of you, and then check as she brings it to the other side of her body. Check down and away from her body. If you check evenly, you will lose good body positioning and the attacker will roll away strongly.
  • If the attacker passes the ball, your teammates need to anticipate to whom the pass is being thrown. They can often intercept the pass when the receiver slows down to catch the ball.

IMPORTANT: Penalties for both major and minor fouls result in a change of possession and, in certain cases a shot on goal. Make sure you are fully aware of all fouls and the penalties associated with them. They could cost your team the game. We have provided a list of all fouls in another handout for your reference. Please take the time to review them thoroughly.

Preparing for a shot on net

In addition to shots on goal during offensive plays, shots may also occur as the result of a foul. When administering fouls, attack players may be rewarded with either a direct free position (they can immediately shoot on net after the whistle is blown) or an indirect free position (the player taking the free position may run or pass, but may not shoot until another player has played the ball).

When your opponent takes a shot on goal, you cannot be in their shooting space between the ball and the goal circle. This means that you cannot jump in front of them as they go to take a shot. If you do so, umpires will call a shooting space violation to warn you that you are playing dangerously and may end up getting hit in the face with the ball or your opponent’s stick.

All defenders must abide by the three-second rule, whether they alone are marking an opponent or if they are working together to double or triple team someone. The three-second rule is in effect when the team in possession of the ball crosses the ball over the restraining line into their attacking end of the field. This rule means that you cannot stand within the 8-meter arc for longer than three seconds unless you are within a stick’s length away from an opponent.

When double teaming or triple teaming a player in the arc who then passes the ball to a teammate, thereby changing possession of the ball to one of her teammates, the three-second count will continue until there is only one defender on the attacker who has now become a non-ball attacker.

Once the ball crosses over the restraining line, defenders need to anticipate that chances are high that the opposing team will take a shot on goal. In addition to marking opponents, the people playing Point and Coverpoint must work together so that at least one of them has rolled back behind the net to prepare for the shot. If the attacker misses the net when they take a shot, the defender will be there to retrieve it.

When a shot or deflected shot on goal goes out of bounds, the player nearest to the ball when it crosses the boundary will gain possession of it. She will be allowed to stand 4 meters inside the boundary line from the spot where the ball went out of bounds. Opponents must give the player with the ball at least 1 meter of free space. If two opposing players are equidistant from the ball (stick or body) when it goes out of bounds after a shot, the umpire will serve a throw ball (similar to a jump ball in basketball). If the goalkeeper within her goal circle is nearest to the ball when it crosses the boundary, she will remain in the circle with the ball and restart play.

Rule Differentiation:Unlike an out-of-bounds call after a shot on goal, when the ball goes out of bounds and it is not the result of a shot or deflected shot, the player/team that last touched the ball before it went out of bounds automatically loses possession of it.

Understanding Goalkeeper privileges

Only one player, the goalkeeper or a deputy serving as a goalkeeper when the goalkeeper has left the goal circle, is allowed in the goal circle at any one time. No other players can have their feet, body, or stick over the goal circle at any time. When in the goal circle, a goalkeeper can do the following:

  • Stop the ball with her crosse, hand, or body. She must then place the ball in her crosse to proceed with the game.
  • Reach her crosse outside the goal circle to bring the ball back into the circle provided that no part of her body is grounded outside of the circle.
  • Clear the ball. This must be done within 10 seconds after the ball has entered the goal circle.
  • Leave the goal circle with the ball, essentially becoming a field player. However, she no longer has goalkeeper privileges. She cannot reenter the goal circle with the ball in her crosse. She must propel the ball into the circle and then follow it in. She must then be inside the goal circle to play the ball.

Requirements for Goalkeeper Deputy: Anyone acting as a deputy for a goalkeeper can only remain in the goal circle while her team has possession of the ball. As soon as the opposing team gains possession of the ball, the deputy must step out of the goal circle. The deputy cannot step into the goal circle until the goalkeeper is fully outside of the circle. If the deputy enters the circle to prevent a rolling ball from crossing the line, she must place the ball in her crosse and clear the ball within 10 seconds after it has entered the goal circle.

US Lacrosse: High School LevelPage 1 of 7

Playing Defense: What You Need to Know