WOODBURY — Lacrosse, a sport that started with the Native Americans, was a violent symbol of war where injuries were very common, and many players even lost their lives.

With a history like this, it’s no wonder that the sport still remains popular today — well, at least for boys. 

Some argue that the girls version of lacrosse lacks aggressiveness and is a sport of finesse, while the boys version is mainly an aggressive sport. Many things between the two sports are different, the fields aren’t even the same size.

“Technically, they are two different sports; the equipment is completely different,” said senior Zoe Inglis, a goalie for Northwest United who will play at Division I Merrimack next year. “Boys lacrosse has to wear a lot more padding because they can get hit, while girls only wear goggles because there is less [body] checking.” 

Girls lacrosse is a lot less physical than boys lacrosse. This adds to the amount of padding needed for the sport. 

Boys in middle school and high school wear helmets, arm pads, gloves and chest pads, whereas girls only wear goggles or helmets. Headgear and close fitting gloves are optional for field players, according to USA Lacrosse. 

“This is my second year playing,” said freshman Mariah Manzano, “but I still think it would be more fun if girls lax could be more physical. I like parts of guys lacrosse, and I wish girls was more similar.”

To many, boys lacrosse is the traditional play of the sport, but it isn’t. Girls lacrosse is an almost exact replica of the original indigenous lacrosse game play. 

“Women’s lacrosse is actually a lot similar to the indigenous playing, and not the men’s,” said Inglis. “Boys [lacrosse] is all about hitting and not a lot of skill involved, in my opinion.” 

Surprisingly, a study done by the American Academy of Pediatrics showed that the sports with the largest amount of concussions that were recurrent were boys ice hockey (14.4%), boys lacrosse (12.1%), and girls field hockey (12.1%). Girls lacrosse didn’t even make the list.

“I think that girls lax would be more fun with boys rules, or at least more physical, because it gets kind of boring with all of the calls,” said Manzano. “But also I wouldn’t want anyone to get hurt.”