From our President Sonny Pieper:
JIM WESTBROOK HOF SPEECH – For those who missed it, Jim Westbrook’s Hall of Fame Induction speech has been posted to GALAXREF.com. You can view the entire speech here:
http://galaxref.com/jim-westbrook-2011-georgia-lacrosse-hall-of-fame-induction
Past President Damian Kavanagh did an excellent job in presenting Jim. Congrats again to Jim for being inducted into the Georgia Lacrosse Hall of Fame. Well deserved!
GHSA SCRIMMAGE REMINDERS – Unlike previous seasons, GHSA Varsity Scrimmages are now full length games – FOUR 12-minute quarters. Please plan accordingly as this is a relatively new change from seasons past.
REFEREES on scrimmages should conduct all pre-game procedures (coaches certification, field check, table instructions, captains/coin toss, player lineups) to help instruct new officials on how to properly start a contest on-time. New referees should shadow the experienced officials on the field for the first quarter and then reverse roles (experienced refs shadow new refs) for the remainder of the scrimmage (2nd Qtr, 3rd Qtr, & 4th Qtr).
GAME TIMING – Please remember that GHSA Varsity teams play four 12-minute quarters. If the game is tied at the end of regulation, the teams will play 4-minute Overtime period (after a coin flip to determine which goal they would like to defend) until one team scores a goal.
Any GHSA sub-varsity teams (JV or Freshman) play four 10-minute quarters with NO Overtime. If a JV or 9th grade game is tied at the end of regulation, the game is over.
For any GHSA contest (Varsity, JV or Freshman) once one team leads 10 goals (or more) in the second half of the game, the clock becomes a running clock. The only time you would stop a running clock would be a team or officials time out OR if the score differential becomes less than 10 goals again.
MAYLA and GHSA Middle School teams have a few rules variations that will be distributed via Arbiter and Email shortly.
GLOA MEMBER INFORMATION – Based on input from last year, we are canvassing the association membership to gather information on game assignment preferences plus reconfirm contact information. All GLOA members are asked to visit this web page to input their information by the end of the weekend:
http://galaxref.com/contact-update
If you have further questions on assigning, please e-mail the four GLOA assignors at: [email protected]
BUSY GAME DATES – Currently, GLOA is showing 30+ games on the following dates: February 26, March 19, March 26, and April 16. There may be additional “busy dates” as the schedule is still being loaded into Arbiter by the various teams/leagues we service. Please do your best to show some availability on those “busy” dates if possible, even if it is only for part of the day.
PHOTO IN ARBITER – One of the challenges of such a large organization like GLOA is getting to know all of your colleagues. Several GLOA refs still do not have a personal photo listed in Arbiter. GLOA asks that you load a personal photo of yourself by the end of this week. Future game assignments may be at risk for those who do not comply. Click “PROFILE” when you are logged into Arbiter to add your photo.
FIRST BULL SESSION – The first Bull Session of the season will take place on Sunday evening, February 27 at Westminster’s Turner Gym from 6:00 PM to 7:30 PM. Please make plans to join us for rules discussion, game situation discussion, and a special presentation.
Enjoy the great weather this week!