I. Introduction and Purpose Girls Lacrosse Advisory Panel Agenda Florida High School Athletic Association 1801 NW 80 th Blvd., Gainesville, FL. 32606 Monday, October 6, 2014 10:00 a.m. II. III. IV. Review Procedures, Agenda and Expense Vouchers Review Old Agenda New Business V. Compliance and Eligibility Update VI. Round Table Discussion a. Head Gear b. Coaches/Officials during Playoffs c. Lacrosse Coaches Clinic d. Officials requirements for US Lacrosse VII. Adjournment
Girls Lacrosse Advisory Panel Meeting Minutes Teleconference Tuesday, May 13, 2014 10:00 a.m. I. Introduction and Purpose II. III. Mr. Ozuna called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m. He welcomed committee members and attendees, and then notified members that the purpose of the meeting was to review the rules and regulations of FHSAA Girls Lacrosse and make recommendations to the Board of Directors as deemed necessary. Meeting attendees were as follows: Melanie Hicks, Episcopal School of Jacksonville; Mary Hopkins, West Orange High School (Winter Garden); Charlie Bodine, Tampa Catholic High School; Mark Rosenbalm, Barron Collier High School (Naples); Sarah Burlingame, The Benjamin School (West Palm Beach); Gill Whitefield, Central Florida Women s Lacrosse Officials Association. FHSAA staff members present were Alex Ozuna, Justin Harrison, and Mike Colby. Review Procedures, and Agenda Mr. Ozuna reviewed the procedures of the meeting, explained the process that a recommendation goes through prior to being implemented. Review 2014 Lacrosse State Finals This year state final were held at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida. IMG Academy have an amazing facility with a well-kept grass field. This year there were several thunderstorms during the event, which cost several schedule changes. Never the less, the staff at IMG Academy did an excellent job in hosting the State Championship Tournament. The facility was great and the staff and volunteers who worked the event did an excellent job. IV. New Business a. US Lacrosse Carding System Recommendation: Adopt US Lacrosse carding system. If a team receives a fourth card during a game, the team will play a player down for the reminder of the game. Rationale: The carding system allows officials to have increase control of dangerous play, encourages teams to play within the rules at all times, and forces coaches to control player s actions. Discussion: The panel discussed the item in detail and the overall consensus of the panel was that the US Lacrosse carding system encourages players to play more conservative and coaches to control their players actions during the game. The panel approved the recommendation to adopt US Lacrosse carding system regarding a team playing a player down for the reminder of the game if the team receives a fourth card. [Recommendation Approved: Vote 6-0]
b. District Realignment Recommendation: Re-Balance district when needed, as opposed to a 2 year restriction. Rationale: Hot bed growth areas add teams. Counties have mandatory game rules on top of district games, causing school rankings to go down being locked into weak teams. Unequal number of teams within different districts. Discussion: The panel discussed the possibility of rebalancing the districts every year in the sport of girls lacrosse. Mr. Ozuna explained to the committee, that every two (2) years each sports classifications and district placements are review and expanded accordingly if the sport meets all requirements needed. Mr. Ozuna explained that once the current two (2) year classification cycle has concluded, the FHSAA office will review the number of classifications and district placement for all sports including girls lacrosse. Item was discussed but no further action was taken by the panel. c. Water Break Recommendation: Allow water breaks during the mid-way point of each half only after a goal is scored. Rationale: Players have learned how to gain yardage on a dropped stick situation. Player sometimes may gain up to 10 extra yards when returning after the water break. Discussion: The panel discussed this item in detail and concluded, the number one priority of the water breaks is player hydration and if there is a scoring drought during a given half, the water break may be missed. The panel did not approve the recommendation allow water breaks during the mid-way point of each half only after a goal is scored. [Recommendation Not Approved: Vote 4-2] V. Sportsmanship Update VI. Mr. Harrison spoke to the committee about the status of sportsmanship in the sport of lacrosse for the 2013-14 season and noted the ejection numbers for the sport of girls lacrosse are not high. Mr. Harrison s main point of emphasis was the continuous use of abusive language towards officials by coaches and student-athletes. In addition, Mr. Harrison noted that the Board of Directors are currently looking into the possibilities of mandating the use of headgear in the sport. Compliance and Eligibility Update Mr. Colby gave the committee an update on current compliance and eligibility issues, including the currently policy and bylaw changes, the compliance and eligibility webinars which are posted on the FHSAA website, and discussed the past state legislation session and how it affected high school athletics.
VII. VIII. Round Table Discussion a. Out-of-State Non-NFHS Member Schools The committee discussed this item at length and noted per FHSAA bylaws and policies, FHSAA member schools may not participate in competitions with schools whose association is neither a member nor an affiliate member of the NFHS. This rule applies to all FHSAA sports. If the school association is a member or affiliate member of NFHS, then competition with FHSAA schools is allowed. b. Requiring of Helmets Girls Lacrosse The committee discussed this item at length and felt if this item was approved, it will have an adverse effect on the safety of the game. The committee felt that given current medical research pertaining to concussion prevention, helmets do not prevent the occurrence of concussions. In addition, the committee felt if hard helmets are implemented, the overall aggression of the game will increase and in turn may increase the amount of concussion occurrence in the game. The committee was unanimous is disapproving the requirement to helmets in the sport of girls lacrosse and increase the officials control over the safety game by approving the implementation of the US Lacrosse carding system. c. Coaches Officiating State Series Contest Adjournment The committee discussed issues pertaining to coaches who officiate during the regular season and post season and the current issue of the lack of qualified officials in the state. Meeting adjourned at 11:50.
Girls Lacrosse Advisory Panel Meeting Recommendation Form Agenda Item Site: Robert W. Hughes FHSAA Building, Gainesville Florida Date: Monday October 6, 2014 Item: Season/Playoff Officials vs Coaches Action: Discussion: X Recommendation: If a referee for FHSAA is also a coach for a FHSAA Team/School, Said referee should not officiate a game in which he or she has competed as a coach with that team. Additionally, said official should not officiate a FHSAA playoff game with such conflict. Rationale: This conflict creates a difficult situation for all involved and is hard to work through. A coach (opponent) is officiating against said team.tough Situation! Alternatives to Recommendation: While it is clear that referees are in strong demand & often there are too few for games, There should not be any conflict during the play-in rounds (when less games/teams are playing). If this recommendation cannot be done in regular season- it should be a ruling/guideline for Post- Season. 1. Approve recommendation. 2. Modify the recommendation 3. Deny the recommendation Panel s Voting Summary: VAC Vote: Data Source: Impact (To be completed by FHSAA Staff): _ Name of Panel Member/Staff Member Signature of Panel Member/Staff Member
MEMORANDUM TO: Principals, Athletic Directors and County Athletic Directors FROM: Roger Dearing, FHSAA Executive Director DATE: September 30, 2014 SUBJECT: Girls Lacrosse Soft Headgear and US Lacrosse Certified Officials for 2015 Season During the June and September FHSAA Board of Directors meetings, there have been a couple of changes approved for the sport of girls lacrosse that will take effect beginning with the 2015 season. The FHSAA would like to draw your attention to these changes so that everybody can begin preparations and be in compliance by the time the girls take the field on February 2, 2015. The 2014 US Lacrosse Women s Rule Book, Rule 2 Section 10 states in part, Close-fitting gloves and soft headgear may be worn by all players. The FHSAA adopts the US Lacrosse Women s rules since the NFHS does not provide playing rules for girls lacrosse. At the June meeting, the FHSAA Board of Directors mandated the use of headgear in girls lacrosse, effective with the 2015 season. Yesterday, the Board further specified that the required headgear would be soft, mirroring what is already allowable in the US Women s Lacrosse rules. ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) is currently in its balloting process to develop a performance standard for girls lacrosse headgear and according to US Lacrosse, that standard is due to be published on November 11, 2014. Once that standard is published, the FHSAA will require all headgear to meet that standard. More information about the balloting process is available at http://shar.es/1addjl. Student-athlete safety is the top priority of the Board and while it is understood that research does not suggest headgear prevents all concussions, the opportunity still presented itself to decrease the number of contusions, lacerations, abrasions and other head and facial injuries. Additionally, all girls lacrosse officials are required to be US Lacrosse certified in order to work FHSAA contests beginning with the 2015 season. Girls lacrosse is a different game from boys lacrosse and this change will assist our officials in understanding the rules better and create a safer playing environment for the student-athletes. The FHSAA will partner with US Lacrosse to make sure there is a proper training and certification process, which must be completed in order to officiate FHSAA interscholastic contests moving forward. The FHSAA and US Lacrosse are working cooperatively to comply with US Lacrosse regulations and enhance student-athlete safety in girls lacrosse. Representatives from US Lacrosse attended yesterday s meeting and have assured us that they will assist in the training of FHSAA officials and in working with ASTM to develop a standard for headgear that is scientifically supported. We will continue to keep you updated on the soft headgear specifications when the ASTM performance standard is finalized. Please do not hesitate to contact the FHSAA office if you have any questions. Roger Dearing FHSAA Executive Director