Lacrosse Terminology

 

Assist: 

• A pass to a shooter that results in a goal.

Attack: 

• Players at their scoring end.

Back Door: 

• A play, pass, or cut taking advantage of a (back) turned defender.

Backer Zone: 

• A “roving” or “floating” defender that follows the ball ready to double.

Blocking: 

• Moving into the path of a player without providing space for the player to stop or change direction.

Cage: 

• The goal.

Charging: 

• Player with the ball comes into contact with a defender who has already established position.

Choke-up: 

• Slide your top hand all the way up to go for a ground ball and protect your stick.

Clear: 

• Transitioning (clearing out) the ball from a team’s defensive end to its scoring end after gaining possession from a turnover or a save.

Cover: 

• Illegally placing the stick pocket on top of a ground ball to prevent others from scooping.

Cradle: 

• Rotating motion of the stick to maintain possession of the ball.

Critical Scoring Area: 

• The area inside the 12-meter fan and also extending beyond the goal.

Crosse: 

• Proper name for a stick.

 

Cross Check: 

• An action of contacting (checking) a player with two hands on a ball carrier’s stick to dislodge the ball.

Cutting: 

• Attacker runs toward the goal looking to get open to receive a pass.

Defense: 

• Players positioned down in front of the goal they are protecting.

Deputy: 

• A player who enters the goal circle when the goalie is out of the goal circle and her team is in possession of the ball.

Dodge: 

• A move to evade a defender.

Double Team: 

• Effectively, two defenders on the ball carrier.

Draw: 

• A technique to start or resume play by which a ball is placed in between two sticks held back to back and drawn up and away.

Eight-Meter Arcs: 

• A pie-shaped area in front of the goal used for the administration of major fouls.

Face Dodge: 

• A combination of foot and stick movement whereby the stick is brought “across the face” in an effort to mislead a defender.

Fast Break: 

• Game situation (transition) often the result of a quick turnover in the middle of the field.

Feed: 

• A pass to a player cutting to the goal.

Free Position: 

• A free and clear restart opportunity awarded to one player when a major or minor foul is committed by a player from the other team.

Free Space to Goal (aka Shooting Space): 

• A cone-shaped path extending from each side of the goal circle to the attack player with the ball.

Goal Circle (Crease): 

• 8.5 foot (women’s) radius circle that surrounds each goal.

Ground Ball: 

• A loose ball picked up from the ground.

Hang: 

• The action of a ball carrier holding the stick head exposed below or behind the body.

ISO (Isolation Play): 

• Creating a one on one situation for a player.

Indirect Free Position: 

• An opportunity awarded to the offense when a minor foul is committed by the defense inside the 12-meter fan. Ball carrier must pass before shooting.

Man Down: 

• A game situation when a team serving a penalty is on defense.

Man-Up: 

• The opposite of man down; a team has more players due to an opponent's penalty.

Marking: 

• Defender is within a stick's length of an opponent.

Midfield: 

• Players position in the middle of the field that can play end to end.

Motion: 

• Offensive strategy of passing and moving to create open players and / or 1 v 1 situations by moving defenders from the adjacent slide.

On Ball (Defender): 

• Defender guarding the player with the ball.

On the fly: 

• Substituting during play. When one player exits the field through the team substitution area, another can enter

Off Ball (Defender): 

• Defender guarding a player (or space) away from the ball ready to help (slide) or engage on ball.

Offsides: 

• Occurs when a team has too many players over the restraining line (more than 7, excluding the goalie).

Pick: 

• An off ball player stands in a stationary position in the path of a defender playing the ball carrier to attempt to free the ball carrier.

Pipe: 

• Framing (tubing/post) of the goal.

Quickstick: 

• A quick and short pass, catch, or shot with limited motion of the stick.

Redefend: 

• The situation or act of playing defense following the loss of possession.

Ride: 

• Same as redefending, but a term mostly used in the men’s game.

Roll Dodge: 

• An evasive dodge used by a ball carrier where the ball carrier plants a foot in front of the defender’s opposite foot and rolls back to the opposite side.

Slashing: 

• Recklessly swinging the crosse at an opponent’s stick or body.

Slide: 

• As a noun, it is the player adjacent (right of left) of the on ball defender.

Split Dodge (aka Pull Dodge): 

• Similar to a Face Dodge but the player changes hands.

Stall: 

• The tactic or game situation whereby the offense is not attacking to score.

Stick Check: 

• Inspection (for legality) of a player’s stick by an umpire.

Swag:

• Gear, such as t-shirts and shorts, which a player gets while playing for a team.

Three-second rule: 

• Defensemen may not remain in the arc for more than three seconds without guarding another player.

Top cheddar: 

• Refers to a shot that goes high into the top corner of the goal, often considered a skilled and difficult shot to defend.

Transition: 

• Game situation when a team goes from offense to defense or from defense to offense.

V-Cut: 

• Cutting at one angle, then breaking to another in a path resembles the letter V to receive the pass.

Wall Ball: 

• Practice method of throwing a ball against a wall and playing catch with oneself.

X (The X, at X):

• The area on the field behind the goal or the player at that point who usually starts the play on offense.

Zone (Zone defense): 

• A defense where players are responsible for spaces rather than specific players.

Warding: 

• Occurs when a player guards a ground ball with her crosse or foot, or, removes one hand from the crosse and uses her free arm to ward off an opponent.

Warning Cards: 

• A yellow card* presented by an umpire to a player is a warning which indicates that she will next receive a red card and be suspended from further participation if she continues to play dangerously and/or conduct herself in an unsportsmanlike manner. A green card is presented by an umpire to the team captain indicating a team caution for delay of game. * When a yellow card is given, the player must come off of the field for two minutes of elapsed playing time.