What kind of game is this, anyway?

Spring comes suddenly to Baltimore, and as Hopkids swarm out of the library and onto the grass, the old Blue Jays take to Homewood Field to wield their sticks in "the little brother of war," that is to say, to play lacrosse.

As a native of New England, I knew precious little about lacrosse before I came to Hopkins. I had some vague idea that it had been invented by the Native Americans and that it was really popular at Hopkins. I remember watching TV with a friend over the summer before my freshman year and seeing a lacrosse championship game being played at Homewood. Seeing the big "H" in Columbia blue and black at the center of the turf, I exclaimed "I'm going there next year!" My friends, if I recall, rolled their eyes. After all, who cared about lacrosse?

Cut to me, three years later, having gone so far as to drive to Princeton last year to catch the opening game of the season, having sat in the bitter cold by myself, waiting to see the final outcome of the Virginia game that went into overtime; having nearly gotten in a fight with a belligerent Towson fan over some trash-talking. OK, that last one was my roommate, but I was going to back him up all the way if it came to blows.

And all this from someone who didn't even watch sports before college.

I'm probably not alone in this particular metamorphosis, but even if I was, I wouldn't mind. Not only does lacrosse give us one of those few and far-between chances to express some school spirit, but it also, for many of us, gave us our first look at a sport that has excitement, speed and a certain grace.

All that, and cross checking, too.

That having been said, I want to give here a brief primer on how to approach the game for those of you out there who are coming to it with as much, or rather, as little knowledge about it as I did.

Tip 1: Go with friends

There's nothing worse than trying to figure out what's going on and why you're supposed to be so damned excited about it when you don't have anyone else there, both to support your cheering and to serve as another set of eyes to capture that crucial play that everyone in the stadium saw and you missed. I can't tell you how many times that's happened to me, and my roommate has almost always been there to enlighten me.

Tip 2: Keep your eye on the ball

Sounds elementary, doesn't it? Nonetheless, it's important. The lacrosse ball is a little easier to keep track of than a hockey puck, which I mention only because the games are quite similar in many other respects. If you're having trouble, remember this: the guy with the ball will be twirling his stick to help keep the ball in the pocket. Also, people will be trying to hit him.

Tip 3: Watch the face-off

This is a big help when you're really lost, if only because it's a very defined moment in the game when you can know what's going on and just cheer for our midfielder to get the ball. Plus, there's generally a good scrap to keep possession, which is always fun.

Tip 4: We want more!

You'll notice pretty quickly that whenever Hopkins scores, the band strikes up, people clap in time and then everyone counts up to the number of goals we have, then screams "We want more!" Hopefully, we'll hear that a lot this season. Clap and chant along. It's good fun. The song, incidentally, is the University's fight song, which few people know the words to anymore. There are some alums who come to every game who sing along, so cadge the words from them if you can. They were also in the index of the Compendium, back when that actually still came out on paper. Let's just say that it's an example of old-time college songwriting at its cheerily nonsensical best.

Tip 5: Why does everyone chase the ball?

You'll notice that sometimes, as the ball heads out of bounds, almost everyone on the field, regardless of which team they're on or how far they are from the ball will take off like a shot after it, even if there is obviously no chance at all that they'll make it. The reason for that is a quirky rule that is, as far as I know, unique to lacrosse. If a shot or deflected shot (as opposed to a pass) goes out of bounds, possession is awarded to the team whose player was closest to the ball when it went out. So cheer on the Jays as they run in apparently futile chase, because it will pay off if we get there first.

Tip 6: Why does the defense hang back like that?

That's in the rules too. Teams are required to keep the goalie and three other players on their own end of the field, behind the defensive line. In addition, not all the attackmen and midfielders are allowed to be behind the other team's defensive line simultaneously. I guess it could be said that doing it that way makes it more fair, but it's just something that's in the rules.

Tip 7: Hit the road

Homewood Field is a nice place, and the voice of whoever announces the games is really comforting in a weird way, but there's nothing that can really compare to the thrill of being deep in hostile territory, watching a road game. I hit Princeton for the season opener last year and also took a jaunt north to see the Jays beat Towson. Both times, it was a load of fun, particularly with all the other tailgaters (mostly adults) hanging out and partying it up in preparation for the game. This year, we're finding a grill somewhere and bringing hot dogs and beer. It's going to be a blast.