External Match Load in Women's Collegiate Lacrosse

Area of Science:

• Sports Science
• Biomechanics
• Exercise Physiology

Background:

• Quantifying athlete external loads during competition is vital for performance management, rehabilitation, and return-to-play decisions.
• Objective data on external loads in women's collegiate lacrosse are currently lacking.
• Understanding sport-specific demands aids in tailored athlete care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantify external load metrics during game competition for women's collegiate lacrosse players.
• To identify differences in activity demands based on player positions.
• To establish reference values for high-intensity actions and overall workload.

Main Methods:

• Utilized wearable global positioning system (GPS) units to collect load data over a 19-game season.
• Collected data from 18 collegiate women's lacrosse players.
• Employed linear mixed models to analyze positional and seasonal phase differences in load metrics.

Main Results:

• Players averaged 4,733 m per game, with 656 m at high intensity speeds (max speed 24.1 km/h).
• Average game counts included 124 sprints, 6.1 high-intensity sprints, 51 high-intensity accelerations, and 38 high-intensity decelerations.
• Significant positional differences were found in high-intensity distance, sprint frequency, and high-intensity deceleration frequency.

Conclusions:

• Collegiate women's lacrosse involves substantial external load, with a significant portion occurring at high intensities.
• The study provides sport- and position-specific external load data for women's lacrosse.
• These data are valuable for clinicians in late-stage rehabilitation and return-to-play assessments, enabling quantitative load progression.