Lacrosse becomes official TSSAA varsity sport

The Legislative Council of the Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association (TSSAA) held a special meeting last year to address two agenda items involving the sanctioning of Lacrosse and to discuss implementation issues related to the recent changes to the Amateur Rule.

After discussion, the Council unanimously voted to sanction Boys’ and Girls’ Lacrosse beginning with the 2024-2025 school year.

TSSAA become the 26th state high school governing body to recognize the sport

The Council then held a discussion concerning the Amateur Rule and the administration of penalties associated with violation of the rule.

The Council voted to change the penalty statement of the Amateur Rule to read that a student found to be in violation of the rule “may” be deemed ineligible for a period of “up to” 12 months in the sport of participation.

That gives the Executive Director and member schools the opportunity to take corrective action involving a potential violation prior to penalizing students with loss of eligibility.

A recent report from SI High School detailed the latest sport in Tennessee. Below is an excerpt from the SI High School story.

The sport has grown steadily in Tennessee since 1993 and more and more high schools have added the sport as a club program. To govern the club competition, the Tennessee Scholastic Lacrosse Association (TSLA) was formed and the organization has helped the sport grow to a point where is viable for high school competition.