Letter from the President

Welcome to the Eastern Massachusetts Women's Lacrosse Umpires Association website...read more.

Instructions for viewing the new US Lacrosse Women's Game Officiating Online Course are here.

Becoming an Umpire...The Basics

There are three steps to becoming a women's lacrosse umpire:

1. Attend a new umpire training clinic.   EMWLUA runs Adult Beginner Umpire Clinics (if you are over 18 and out of high school) and Youth Umpire Clinics (for high school players) across eastern Massachusetts in February and March of each year. All meet three or four times for a total of 10 to 12 hours. Senior umpires run these clinics and teach the rules, umpiring techniques and game procedures you will need to safely manage games. Separate clinics (see below) for high school lax players lead to certification for youth games.
2. Pass a written test.   US Lacrosse requires a score of 85% on a national standard umpiring (open book) test. The clinics cover all of the information on the test.
3. Get field rated.   After passing the test you and other new umpires will get on-field experience at a high school pre-season "play date". Experienced umpires will work with you on the field and on the sidelines to acclimate you to real game conditions. If you meet the requirements then you will earn an Apprentice rating and be contacted by one of the three EMWLUA regional assignors, given an account on ArbiterSports (see below) and you will be eligible for game assignments! Apprentices are generally assigned to sub-varsity games in their first season, however no guarantee of game assignments is made to any clinic attendee.

Junior Beginner Clinics are abbreviated and designed specifically for current high school players and lead to certification to umpire youth lacrosse games (on Sunday afternoons in April, May and June).  If you are over 18 and just want to umpire youth lacrosse games you must still attend a standard umpiring clinic (the same one that interscholastic game umpires attend) even if you just want to umpire youth games.

EMWLUA uses ArbiterSports for high school and college game assignments. This web-based scheduling program allows you to "black out" dates you cannot umpire, indicate travel preferences and more. Games assigned to you appear in ArbiterSports for you to accept (the right thing to do) or decline (rarely). You will be given an account on ArbiterSports when you are field rated.

MIAA Important Game Official Links and Concussion Training Video

Members Section, then Learning