Town and Team Rules and Guidlines

Mass Youth Lacrosse BOYS Select Lacrosse Rules and Requirements:

GAME OPERATIONS

  • All Select Games MUST be four quarters of play consisting of 10 minutes of Start/Stop Time. Exception, if the score differential is ever 12+ goals, game moves to running time for the remainder of the contest.
  • Each town must provide a safe, regulation-sized lacrosse field (grass or synthetic) at no cost to league for all home games. Lighted surfaces recommended but not required.
  • Home team MUST provide:
    • Adequate number of balls for game play and endlines
    • Cones/pylons for field corners, opposite bench side midfield and substitution box
    • Scorers table, scoreboard and timing devices for game and penalties
    • A minimum of 2 people to run the clock, scoreboard and penalties.
  • Game is Tied at the End of Regulation
    • If field availability permits
    • 4 Minute Sudden Death Overtime
    • If 4-minute overtime ends with no one scoring, game is a Tie.

ROSTERS

  • Each player must be registered with MYL and in good standing.
  • Rosters should not exceed 30 players per team. 
  • Players who live in a town that has a youth lacrosse program NOT in Mass Youth Lacrosse are NOT eligible to play in MYL Select League.
  • A Waiver must be submitted, and approved by the Select Committee, for any team wishing to have players on the roster not from their Town Program.
    • Select League play should be made available for all players interested from your program.
    • Select Teams are not for creating a "super team" of the best few players from multiple towns.
    • Towns may not cut players from their own town to accept players from another town program.
    • Teams should consist of players from no more than two (2) town programs.
  • There are two (2) types of teams with players from multiple towns
    • Combined Programs
      • When there will be 4 or more players from two different town programs. 
      • The name of the team will include the name of both town programs
      • A Waiver must be submitted, and approved by the Select Committee.
      • If approved, Individual player waivers are NOT required for players from the approved two town programs.
      • Combined Program waivers must be submitted by Feb 16 and will be approved/denied by Feb 23.
        • This is to keep the integrity of the Division Placement which is finalized immediately following team registration closing and for fair in-season competition.
    • Individual Player Waivers
      • If a team is interested in accepting 3 or less players not from their own town program, they must submit a Waiver Request for EACH individual player not from their town program.
    • If your team has a special request to consist of players from more than two (2) town programs, you must submit a Waiver Request for approval - CLOSED
  • Teams must "submit" a Roster by March 31, including coaches and managers.
    • Rosters MUST be made through Demosphere on the team unique ID 
      • If a roster is NOT submitted by March 31, team will forfeit game 1.
      • Roster must be submitted at least 1 week prior to next game(s) or the next game(s) will also be forfeited.
  • Every player MUST play for their town Classic Team in order to participate in Select League Play
  • Any team having been found of having an ineligible player participating in a Select Game:
    • First Offense: Team loses that game 1-0
    • Second Offense: Team will not be eligible for the Playoffs.
  • Changes to a team’s roster during the season must be approved in advance of games being played with a new player on the roster, by the Select League Directors. Approval will only be provided due to a player injury resulting that player missing the remaining games of the season.

COACHES

  • Teams may roster a maximum of 5 coaches, but only 3 coaches/managers may be on the sideline for any game.
    • Penalty for having too many coaches on the sideline will be the suspension of the Head Coach for the next game.
  • All coaches in the MYL Select Lacrosse program must be MYL-certified. Coaches are expected to wear their certification lanyards around their neck and visible for each game.
    • Coaches on the sideline without a MYL Certification Badge (regardless of having completed requirements) will be told by the officials that they are not allowed on the team sideline.
    • Referees will NOT be asked to remove anyone from the sideline, but to notify MYL in the post game report of any coaches on the sideline without a proper coaching badge. The purpose is to NOT create a potential hostile environment between a referee and adults on the sidelines
    • Teams report to MYL for having adults on the team sideline without a proper MYL Coaching Badge:
      • First Offense: Warning
      • Second Offense: Forfeiture of the game played (loss by score of 1-0 in standings)
      • Third Offense: Forfeiture of the game played (loss by score of 1-0 in standings) and Team will be declared ineligible for playoffs.

SCHEDULE

  • 2023 SCHEDULE
    • Week 1 - April 7-8
    • Week 2 - April 14-15
    • Week 3 - April 21-22
    • Week 4 - April 28-29
    • Week 5 - May 5-6
    • Week 6 - May 12-13
    • Week 7 - May 19-20
    • Playoff Brackets Published May 21
    • First Round MUST be completed by May 31
    • Quarterfinals MUST be completed by June 7
    • Semifinals MUST be completed by June 13
    • Championship Game (D1 & D2 Champ Bracket) - Wednesday, June 14
    • Championship Game (D2 BoR & D3)  MUST be completed by June 21
  • Teams MUST keep to the original schedule as published except for the following circumstances:
    • Religious Holiday (Ex: Good Friday) and School Vacation Week Games
      • If your team is unable to field a team on these dates, you MUST reach out to your opponent within 7 days of the schedule being published.
      • Work with your opponent to reschedule the game at date/time that works for both teams. 
      • The home team should submit a Game Change Request Form  immediately, even if the make up date is not yet known.
      • Failure to communicate with your opponent within 7 days of the schedule being published of your team's inability to play a scheduled game may result in a forfeiture (Select League Committee decision).
    • The ONLY reason a game should be canceled/postponed the week of a game should be Weather Related Issues
      • If your field is no longer available due to weather, the HOME team MUST communicate immediately to the opposing coach and assigned referees. If its within 48 hours of the game, home team must communicate via email, phone and text to get an acknowledgment from visiting coach and officials.
    • Player availability is NOT a permitted reason for asking the opposing team to change ANY game date/time.
    • All games changed the week of the originally scheduled game is subject to review by the regional select committee. Any team found to have requested a game change for non-weather or field availability reasons are subject to sanctions including forfeiture of game(s), downgrade in power ranking/post-season ranking, loss of post-season home game.

PLAYOFFS

  • All Division 2 Best of the Rest & Division 3 Playoff Bracket Games will be played at the Higher Seed. Dating parameters for completion of each round remains consistent with D1 & D2 Champ Brackets.
  • Division 1 & Division 2 Championship Playoff Brackets
    • Championship Games will be played on WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14 at a TBD Location. 
    • First Round, Quarterfinals and Semi-final games will be played at the Higher Seed. Date parameters must be followed for each round.

 

DIVISION PLACEMENT AND PLAY

Returning teams have been initially assigned a Division for 2023. CLICK HERE to see initial Division placements Towns may submit a waiver to request to play up OR down a division. CLICK HERE to submit the division placement waiver. The Regional Select Committee will review and make the final decision on all teams' division assignments.

NEW for 2023. There will be 3 Divisions for Boys Select. The purpose is to provide more opportunities for teams to complete for a Championship, provide more equality in who teams are competing against in the standing and playoffs, and to encourage more towns to enter teams knowing there is a 3rd Division of play for new/smaller programs.

Division 1 will be limited to no more than 16 teams. All towns should strive to compete in Division 1 and be named the best Select Team in the league.

  • Historically top programs who have played in Division 1, will stay in Division 1. 
  • Programs that have had a sub-.500 record over the past few seasons may be approved to play in Division 2.
  • Division 2 programs that have had a superior record over the past few seasons can ask to play Division 1, and may be placed in Division 1 by the Select Committee.

Division 2 will have a 16 team Championship Playoff Bracket, and a Best of the Rest Playoff Bracket.

  • Top teams in Division 2 may be moved to Division 1 the following year by the Select Committee.

Division 3 is for:

  • New teams to Select
  • Teams that were historically combined town programs that are now singular town teams.
  • Lower grade teams from Towns with multiple teams at an age level.
  • Teams that have historically had a losing record in Division 2 play
  • The top 2 teams in Division 3, should expect to be moved to Division 2 in the following year.