I headed out to Homewood Field, home of the Johns Hopkins Bluejays, to see my first lacrosse game. I honestly had no idea what to expect. The Lacrosse Hall of Fame is right next to Homewood Field. I had seen it on TV before, but didn't have a real feel for how the game is played. Basically, each player has a stick with a net on the end of it. Offensive players have short sticks, while the defenders have much longer sticks. The goalie has a net about a foot in circumference to stop the shots on goal. All players wear a full helmet with face shield, shoulder pads and arm guards. A lot of speed, agility and strength is required for the game.The stadium is similar to a high school football stadium. Seating capacity is around 7,500, but they can fit nearly 10,000 in there for some games. All bleacher seats. It cost me $7 to get in. Programs were $3 and a bag of peanuts was $2. Not a bad price for all that stuff. I went in to get a look at the stadium. First thing I noticed was the turf. They have the FieldTurf, which is artificial turf that is made to react like real grass. First time I've seen it up close. Pretty cool stuff.
I quickly figured out that this was not a game for the faint of heart. Evidently, whacking at each others sticks and checking guys is allowed in this game. VERY rough. I saw three guys totally flattened. Two didn't get back up. Every time a hit was put on someone, the whole crowd would either moan in pain or cheer in delight. It was brutal. I was really surprised that more people didn't get hurt.
The first half was a relatively slow half. The Retrievers of UMBC lead the Johns Hopkins Bluejays 3-2 at halftime. UMBC got called for a delay one time (passing the ball around the perimeter without making any offensive moves or shots towards the goal.
The second half started like the first half. With one minute left in the third quarter, UMBC was ahead 5-3. Then, 'it' occurred. UMBC's goalie had the ball and was on the left side of his end. He went to pass the ball and one of the Hopkins attackers absolutely leveled the goalkeeper. The ref didn't throw a flag, the goalkeeper was irritated and the UMBC crowd was going bananas.
Not more than 20 seconds after that, the Hopkins goalie had the ball to the left of his goal. WHAM! With no regard for the goalie's well-being, a UMBC player absolutely nailed the Hopkins goalie. A penalty was called (the retaliatory nature of the hit was obvious). The UMBC fans were upset because they didn't get a penalty earlier.
After that, chaos ensued. Guys were getting knocked to the ground left and right. Cheap shots were being thrown all over the field. Over the next 5 minutes, Hopkins scored 6 goals to take an 8-5 lead. Then, just when it seemed like Hopkins was taking control, UMBC scored 2 quick goals in 2 minutes to cut the lead to 8-7. After the UMBC comeback, Hopkins took over the game with 4 goals in 5 minutes. They won 12-7. Hopkins had 40 shots and UMB had 27.
I had a great time and can't wait to go to another game. The game is almost like a mix between basketball and hockey. Lots of zone and man-to-man defenses like basketball with movement behind and around the goal and lots of hitting like hockey. Really fun to watch. I'd suggest that anyone who has the chance to see a high-level lacrosse game definitely take the opportunity to do so.
