Within UTSA’s vibrant sports scene lies a team that has been powerfully making its mark — the women’s lacrosse team. With determination and talent, these athletes have been steadily making a name for themselves within collegiate lacrosse. Despite still trying to build up their team after the pandemic, the group has quickly asserted itself as a force to be reckoned with due to their skills, passion and unwavering commitment.
Currently, the team is run by their coach, Co-treasurer, Event Coordinator and Co-captain Paige Juneau and President, Co-treasurer and Captain Kaybee Beggs. UTSA’s women’s lacrosse team has been around for approximately six years and is still up and running. From recruiting athletes from his previous high school to creating a community at the university, the team’s coach has put women’s lacrosse on UTSA’s radar.
Lacrosse is a very physical game that requires teamwork and constant movement. The main goal of the sport is for players to score into the opposing team’s goal by using lacrosse sticks — 72-inch long-handle sticks with shallow nets for catching, throwing and carrying the ball. Each game consists of four 15-minute quarters with 10 players from each side, equating to a total of 20 on the field.
This spring, the women’s lacrosse team is participating in various Super Sixes tournaments and competing in the Texas Sixes League, a league founded by their very own coach. Super Sixes is a modified game of lacrosse that is a fast-paced, compact variation of the sport that blends the most thrilling aspects of the game. The main difference between traditional field lacrosse and sixes lacrosse is that only six people per team are required on the field and due to the lower numbers required, all the roles and positions become mixed into one.
“Me and Kaybee have been working very hard the last year and a half to rebuild this team post-COVID,” Juneau said. “In sixes, you don’t really have as many designated positions; it’s five people on the field and a goalie.”
Within traditional field lacrosse, there are four playing positions: attack, middies (midfielders), goalies and defense. However, for sixes lacrosse games, all players play the position of middies.
“In a sixes game we’re all just middies,” Beggs said. “So we play both defense and attack as a player, we go everywhere, we run down the field the whole time. It can be a lot, but it’s very fun.”
Supported by different funding sources, such as the university, reps and coordinating their own fundraisers, UTSA’s women’s lacrosse team has received some backing in order to sustain their program and enhance their competitive edge. One of the many things that the team prides itself on is having the capability to obtain proper lacrosse equipment that members of the team or newcomers can use for the sport.
“We have done a lot of great budgeting as co-treasurer, so we have starter equipment for anyone who wants to come and try lacrosse,” Beggs said. “They don’t have to put up the money upfront to pay for all the equipment because it is an equipment-heavy sport, which the financial barrier can discourage people sometimes. So that was something that we wanted to eliminate.”
The team has a very engaging and welcoming environment that actively encourages individuals of all backgrounds and skill levels to join the sport and become part of their close-knit community. From hosting socials once or twice a month to making the sport more accessible and fun, by providing starter equipment and a good-natured environment, the women’s lacrosse team is happy to expand their group.
“We are very inclusive. We have all different majors, different people from different backgrounds and it’s low pressure,” Juneau said. “We’re really about supporting each other and be[ing] a community.”
Whether you are a seasoned player seeking a new challenge or someone looking to explore the exciting world of lacrosse for the first time, UTSA’s women’s lacrosse team welcomes you with open arms. If you are interested in joining or want updates, check out the team’s Instagram @utsawlax, their link tree or visit them at rec field 6 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays and join them for a fun and exciting practice.
