Lacrosse gets its official stamp
By Kent McDill
Lacrosse, the sport so popular along the Eastern seaboard states and gathering steam in the Midwest, now has a new official status in Illinois.
The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Board of Directors Tuesday approved a recommendation to create an official state series for the sports of both boys and girls Lacrosse, beginning with the 2010-11 school term. Both boys and girls lacrosse state series and finals will be contested during the spring semester, the IHSA said.
“The goal of the IHSA is to provide quality interscholastic opportunities for students in the state and the Board recognized that the addition of boys and girls lacrosse helps support that mission,” said IHSA Executive Director Marty Hickman. “The Board’s decision was consistent with the procedures used when adopting several other recent sports and activities, including water polo and journalism.”
The addition of lacrosse will bring the total number of boys and girls sports contesting state championships to 15 apiece, while the overall number of IHSA sports and activities will grow to 43.
The sport is not widely played in Illinois yet, and the IHSA Board set a minimum standard of 65 boys teams and 40 girls teams in order to have a state series for the spring of 2011. According to the IHSA’s Emerging Sports List, there are currently 65 schools fielding boys lacrosse teams in the state and 40 fielding girls lacrosse teams.
Currently, 17 other state associations crown champions in boys and girls lacrosse.
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