Lacrosse will not be IHSA sport in 2014

The Illinois High School Association board of directors met for their regularly scheduled meeting at the IHSA office in Bloomington on Monday, where the board heard an update on entries into the boys and girls lacrosse state series.

The IHSA will not proceed with a boys and girls lacrosse state series in the spring of 2014, as the entry numbers required to begin a state series were not met.

The threshold to concurrently begin a boys and girls lacrosse state series is 65 schools entering to participate in boys lacrosse and 40 schools entering to participate in girls lacrosse. The entry numbers were met for girls with 43 schools entering, but the boys’ entry number was 55. The board requires both to reach the benchmark in order for the state series to begin.

“We remain confident that lacrosse will become a sanctioned IHSA sport in the near future,” said IHSA Executive Director Marty Hickman. “The number of schools competing in the sport has continued to grow. However, we also know that financial restraints have prevented many schools from committing to the sport and believe it is in the best interest of the schools, and the sport, to wait until we reach the previously established benchmarks before beginning a state series.”