On August 12, 2020, the North Carolina High School Athletic Association released the amended 2020-2021 sports calendar following a six season model for its participant schools. Perhaps the most glaring modifications included the elimination of indoor track, moving boys and girls lacrosse to a January 11, 2021 start, and moving wrestling to an April 12 start date.

The North Carolina lacrosse community appreciates the opportunity to have ANY lacrosse season. Additionally, we recognize the predicament the NCHSAA faces trying to accommodate all of its participant schools and sports. However, the North Carolina lacrosse community feels the decision was short-sighted regarding our sport and creates debilitating obstacles for athletic directors, teams, coaches, players, and parents alike, many of which were addressed in a recent letter from the NC Lacrosse Coaches Association to the NCHSAA director Que Tucker, 

As recently as 2017, lacrosse was "the fastest growing sport" in national participation at youth and high school levels  In December 2008, the NCHSAA board voted to sanction both men’s and women’s lacrosse as a championship sport starting with the 2009-10 academic year. This recent decision threatens the growth of the sport in our state by the following: 

• moving lacrosse up from its traditional start date (one of only two sports facing that obstacle).                             
• forcing multi-sport athletes to choose a sport by overlapping lacrosse with the two major NCHSAA sports (basketball and football).
• Lacrosse student-athletes lost the majority of their 2020 season already, multi-sport athletes forced to choose would potentially lose another lacrosse season.                                                       
• creating weather-related and other field space issues and scheduling nightmares for athletic directors and coaches.                         
• creating a shortage of experienced and qualified officials will put lacrosse student-athletes at risk.

Lacrosse players, parents, coaches, and athletic directors, please sign and share the petition to change the NCHSAA lacrosse seasons from the amended start date of January 12, 2021 to April 12, 2021.