Lacrosse in Israel
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Israel Lacrosse Association
| Sport | Lacrosse |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2010 |
| Affiliation | European Lacrosse Federation World Lacrosse |
| Headquarters | Ashkelon, Israel |
| Coach | William Beroza |
| Official website | |
| www | |
 | |
The Israel Lacrosse Association (ILA) is the official governing body of lacrosse in Israel, and is a member of World Lacrosse and the European Lacrosse Federation.[2] It was founded to develop and promote lacrosse within Israel and strives to offer lacrosse to Israelis of all ages.[3] Israel Lacrosse was founded in 2010 by Scott Neiss who previously served as an executive for the National Lacrosse League, along with William Beroza and Howard Borkan.[4] It was officially recognized by World Lacrosse in April 2011.[5] Israel Lacrosse COO David Lasday directs grassroots youth lacrosse expansion utilizing the status and influence of National Team players to develop the sport throughout Israel.[6]
Israel Premier Lacrosse League
The Israel Premier Lacrosse League (IPLL) is the premier lacrosse league in Israel, which debuted in 2015.[7] The league competes during summer months only, in an attempt to attract players from abroad to participate.[8]
Teams
The IPLL had four teams in the 2015 season before expanding to six in 2016, which were:[9]
| Team | 2015 | 2016 | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ashdod LC | N/a | 4th | 2016 expansion team[10] |
| Ashkelon LC | 3rd | 3rd | Third official club - [11] |
| Barak Netanya LC | 1st | 5th | Second official club[12] |
| Be'er Sheva LC | N/a | 1st | 2016 expansion team[13] |
| Haifa LC | 2nd | 2nd | First official club[12] |
| Kiryat Gat LC | N/a | 6th | |
| Tel Aviv LC | 4th | N/a | Fourth official club,[14] suspended operations after 2015.[13] |
Fields
There are six stadiums used by the IPLL which are:
| Field | City |
|---|---|
| Ashdod Sport Club | Ashdod |
| New Municipal Stadium | Ashkelon |
| Mikha Reisser Field | Be’er Sheva |
| Kiryat Gat Synthetic | Kiryat Gat |
| Tubruq Field | Netanya |
| Wolfson Fields | Tel Aviv |
2015 season
The 2015 season was the inaugural season of the IPLL. Barak Netanya LC won the IPLL Championship with a win over Haifa LC, with Bryan Hopper winning the EL AL Player of the Game award.[15] A total of 16 games were played, with each team playing eight games.
| Pos | Team | GP | W | L |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Barak Netanya LC | 8 | 6 | 2 |
| 2 | Haifa LC | 8 | 6 | 2 |
| 3 | Ashkelon LC | 8 | 3 | 5 |
| 4 | Tel Aviv LC | 8 | 1 | 7 |
Source:[16]
2016 season
The 2016 season of the IPLL was their second season. Tel Aviv LC decided to suspend operations for the 2016 season, however Ashdod LC, Kiryat Gat LC, and Be'er Sheva LC joined the league for the 2016 season. A total of 22 games were played, with each team playing either seven or eight games.
| Rank | Team | GP | W | L | Score | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Be'er Sheva LC | 7 | 6 | 1 | 68:53 | 6 |
| 2 | Haifa LC | 7 | 5 | 2 | 70:26 | 5 |
| 3 | Ashkelon LC | 8 | 5 | 3 | 64:63 | 5 |
| 4 | Ashdod LC | 7 | 4 | 3 | 52:48 | 4 |
| 5 | Barak Netanya LC | 7 | 1 | 6 | 45:75 | 1 |
| 6 | Kiryat Gat LC | 8 | 1 | 7 | 44:78 | 1 |
Source:[17]
2018 season
| Rank | Team | GP | W | L | Score | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Be'er Sheva LC | 7 | 6 | 1 | 77:64 | 6 |
| 2 | Ashkelon LC | 7 | 4 | 3 | 72:73 | 4 |
| 3 | Haifa LC | 7 | 4 | 3 | 63:58 | 4 |
| 4 | Barak Netanya LC | 7 | 4 | 3 | 67:54 | 4 |
| 5 | Herzliya LC | 7 | 4 | 3 | 68:61 | 4 |
| 6 | Sderot | 7 | 3 | 4 | 59:64 | 3 |
| 7 | Ashdod LC | 7 | 2 | 5 | 55:68 | 5 |
| 8 | Kiryat Gat LC | 7 | 1 | 6 | 46:65 | 1 |
Source:[18]
International competition
Israel fields men's, indoor, and women's national teams, which compete at both European and World levels.
European Lacrosse Championships
In 2016, Israel's men's team won the Silver Medal, placing second in a field of 24, England won the gold 7-6 in regulation play. This was Israel's first medal in international play.[19]
| Year | Result |
|---|---|
 2012 | 8th place |
 2016 | 2nd place |
World Lacrosse Championships
In its first-ever appearance, for the Men's 2014 World Lacrosse Championship in Denver,[20][21] Israel finished in 7th place out of 38 nations. Four years later, with the 2018 World Lacrosse Championship held in Netanya, Israel, Israel again finished in 7th place, this time out of 46 nations.
Women's European Lacrosse Championships
Women's Lacrosse World Cup
IIJL World Junior Lacrosse Championship
| Year | Result |
|---|---|
 2015 | 12th place |
 2019 | 4th place |
| 2022 | 4th place |
| 2023 | 3rd place |
Shabbat policy
The ILA has a consistent position of not playing or scheduling games during Shabbat.[22] Israel Lacrosse released a statement saying: “As a new sport to Israel it is imperative . . . we cannot ignore that reasonably large percentage of our nations’ people, our teams’ players and our associations’ members would be offended if we took the field on Shabbat." The organization has stated that the policy is a national identity issue, not a religious issue.