Proposed changes reflect rules committees’ focus on safety
Members of the two NCAA women’s lacrosse rules committees proposed modifications to refine the rules of the game and address unintended consequences resulting from the most recent rules changes. If approved, the changes will take effect for the 2026-27 academic year.
The Division I Women’s Lacrosse Rules Subcommittee and the Division II and III Women’s Lacrosse Rules Committee made the recommendations.
All rules’ proposals must be approved before becoming official. The Division I Women’s Lacrosse Oversight Committee is scheduled to discuss women’s lacrosse rules proposals later this month, and the Division II and III Playing Rules Oversight Panel are scheduled to discuss the rules recommendations Aug. 11.
In keeping with the committees’ ongoing focus on safety and their recent emphasis on simplifying penalty administration, both committees proposed refinements to the penalty structure that better align penalties with the nature and severity of the foul, promote greater consistency with other levels of play and governing bodies, discourage unsafe conduct, improve consistency in officiating, enhance efficient game administration, and continue to improve the pace of play. Those changes include:
- Making all yellow cards a two-minute, non-releasable penalty.
- Reorganizing and consolidating existing stick and body contact fouls into the illegal check and illegal contact foul categories to provide clearer definitions of impermissible actions with a player’s stick of body. An illegal check would be called when a player initiates contact using an uncontrolled or swinging (chopping or hacking) motion of the stick to strike an opponent’s stick, hand, or body, regardless of whether the opponent is in possession of the ball.
- Using one’s stick or body against an opponent’s body in a manner that is unsafe, reckless, or that pins, restrains, or detains an opponent’s movement, including using the webbed area of the stick to hook, would be illegal contact. Combining the flopping and embellishment fouls into a single flopping foul and strengthening the penalty by classifying as a flagrant foul, resulting in a yellow card and a two-minute non-releasable penalty
- Adding targeting as a new flagrant foul. A player who commits targeting would be assessed a red card. The proposed definition is as follows: Any action in which a player initiates forcible contact with an opponent without making a legitimate attempt to play the ball, and where the primary purpose of the contact is to strike, hit, or otherwise make significant physical contact with a high potential for injury rather than to contest possession.
Video review
The committees proposed several refinements to the video review rule including limiting video review requests to coaches, requiring officials to notify both teams’ coaches whenever a video review request has been made, and directing officials to strive to complete a video review within two minutes.
The committees proposed expanding the use of video review by allowing officials to identify or confirm the correct offender whenever a card is administered, rather than limiting the use of video review to cards resulting in an ejection.
The committee also proposed adding timing restrictions for video review requests. Following a goal, requests for an eligible view review must be made before the draw clock expires. During a timeout, any video review request must be made within the first 30 seconds of the timeout.
With flopping reclassified as a flagrant foul that results in a yellow card, potential flopping fouls would also become eligible for video review. In addition, reviews initiated solely to correct timing errors would be limited to timing issues and could not be used to identify or penalize other reviewable fouls.
Other rules’ proposals
- The committees also proposed returning to the previous rule that allows teams on a power play at the expiration of a quarter or overtime period, will retain possession to begin the subsequent quarter or overtime period.
- Officials would be required to conduct at least one stick check per quarter on players who take the draws. The stick check would be conducted immediately prior to a draw.
- Players would be permitted to exchange sticks with another player on the field when they are not in possession of the ball.
- Require that all equipment subject to certification or governing body approval under the applicable equipment rule be commercially available to all institutions by January 1 preceding the applicable spring season.
- Players receiving red cards would still be ejected from the game, but the automatic suspension for the next game would be eliminated.
- Require the game clock and possession clock to be stopped during official warnings (e.g., non-engagement and misconduct) and during defensive false starts on an 8-meter free position.
Experimental rules
During the fall, teams can experiment with the possession clock.
Following possession gained from a draw or possession awarded in lieu of a draw, the possession clock will be set to 60 seconds instead of 90 seconds.
Also, teams can experiment reducing the total number of players on the field from 12 to 11 and reduce the number of players required below the restraining line from seven to six.
Lastly, teams can experiment with a rule similar to basketball’s backcourt rule. Once an attacking has advanced the ball below the retraining line, it must keep possession below the line. If the ball crosses back above the restraining line for any other reason than a deflected shot or foul committed by the opposing team, the opposing team will be awarded possession at the spot of the ball.
