Riptide Lax is a 100% volunteer program, not sponsored or funded by any school district nor town recreation department.

New Protocols this year: Every participant in Riptide Lacrosse will be asked to review and sign off on our Riptide Covid Protocols. The most relevant items include wearing masks to and from the field, spacing personal bags/equipment 6 feet apart, not sharing equipment or water bottles (balls are touched only with sticks), using personal hand-sanitizer, and social distancing on breaks, sidelines, and for fans and family while watching.

HYA Riptide Lacrosse has multiple offerings to serve the needs of the elementary community: skills clinics are available to everyone in grades K-4, while field play is also available in varying levels to 1^st-4^th graders:

K2 PLUS Skills Clinic – Click the link to learn more & Register! Fundamental skills are taught in a fun, low-pressure environment to Kindergarteners through 4^th graders who are new to the sport or more interested in skill development vs. game play. Detail: six (6) Saturday mornings, 8:00-8:45AM, May 1-Jun 12 (nothing Memorial Day weekend). $45. In-house scrimmages providing situational and positional play will happen during the clinic as children progress in their skills:

• Kindergarten players will receive a coed introduction to lacrosse, focusing on stick skills and fun, small-sided games to introduce larger game concepts.
• 1^st/2^nd grade players will focus on individual stick skills, gaining comfort with ball handling and increasing their confidence for field play. There will be an emphasis on catching and throwing but also the fundamentals for more advanced stickwork, shooting, and ground balls.
• If there are 3^rd/4^th grade players new to the sport or simply interested in another opportunity to have a stick in their hands, this clinic will be available once a week.

1^st/2^nd Grade U8 Team – Game play will now be available for children confident in their individual skills and interested in a competitive environment for learning. U8 teams will focus on stickwork and field play in small-sided games and drills while learning positional play, teamwork and sportsmanship in scrimmages.   Detail: April 11-Jun 13, one 1-hour practice (weeknight) and a “learn to play” scrimmage most weeks (minus Memorial Day weekend). Travel is local (within 30 min). A full season schedule will be provided before the first game. We expect primarily 2^nd graders to play U8, but 1^st graders are welcome. $100

3^rd & 4^th Grade U10 Teams – Game play continues to be available for 3^rd grade players and older. Our U10 teams will focus on foundational skills as well as field awareness, positional knowledge and game readiness, with attention always to teamwork and sportsmanship.  Detail: April 11-Jun 13 (minus Memorial Day weekend), 1-2 one-hour practices (weeknights) and one game weekly on Sundays, culminating in the NHYLA Festival on Jun 12/13. Travel is mostly within 30 min, but can be state-wide. A full season schedule will be provided before the first game. $100

Riptide Lacrosse provides a travel program for players enrolled in 1st-8th grade in the SAU 90 or SAU 21 School Districts. Players from any surrounding town without a lacrosse program may also be considered for play.

Players must pay in full via our online registration site before "taking the field" in March.  If this deadline is a financial challenge for a particular family, they may contact Stacy Kinnaly at lacrosse@hyasports.org for special payment terms (on an exception basis) and only after receiving approval from our 5-member Executive Board.

The K2PLUS Clinic regsitration open Jan 15 as it does for Travel lacrosse, but sign-ups will be accepted through April.

Note: Due to COVID-19, the 2021 Registration period was modified to January 15-February 15, with no late period. A non-refundable Late Charge WILL apply after February 15, 2021.

"Wait Listed" players did not meet the announced timelines, and will be placed on teams only where there is room.  If a team can accommodate Wait Listed players, they will be rostered on a first come, first serve basis, with no reference to a player's past performance and potential.

The K2PLUS Clinic costs $45 for the 6 sessions.

Travel Registration costs:

Note:  Uniforms must be purchased separately and are reusable as long as they fit and comply to USL standards.

Note:  In normal years, late charges WILL apply after our normal fall registration period.  Riptide Lax incurs significant processing costs for players who sign-up after our fall deadline.

Note:  The Costs noted above DO NOT include an optional US Lacrosse Membership (~$30).  This membership includes player insurance and provides developmental information, Lacrosse Magazine subscription, and other benefits to members and our Program.  Click here to pursue US Lacrosse Membership.

Note:  Our Program has a specific Refund Policy (see Register/Refund Policy).

• Practice Schedules will be posted sometime in late March after fields are fully secured with towns and schools.  We try to set schedules as early as possible, however we must secure the space (weather-reliant) before announcing a schedule.
• Practices are generally 2x per week, sometimes less frequent at younger ages.
• Indoor, pre-season practices start in March on Sundays.
• The Outdoor Season starts early April and goes until Mid June, with nothing scheduled on Memorial Day weekend.
• Games for U8 (1st-2nd graders) will likely be scheduled on weekdays or Saturdays, while games for U10+/NHYLA are usually scheduled on Sundays (see League descriptions below).

There are a couple leagues/scenarios by which we play:

• 3rd grade and above will play in the New Hampshire Youth Lacrosse Association (NHYLA) League
• 1st-2nd grade will play in either NHYLA or a self-scheduled program against Seacoast Area teams

League placement is dependent on the number of registered players per grade and is approved each year by the HYA Riptide Lacrosse Executive Board.

 NHYLA uses  a "grade-based" format for Teams:

• 4 Pre-Season Indoor practices will begin in March, typically on Sundays
• NHYLA's first outdoor games are scheduled in early April
• There will be at least 7 games (usually 8 games), mostly played on Sundays - some coaches choose to add more games
• Practices will be scheduled 2x per week
• NHYLA is a statewide New Hampshire league, though they do their best to minimize travel by scheduling teams to compete against closer NH Towns as much as possible.  Expect a couple games to be over an hour away
• A tournament-style festival will be played on the last weekend of the season, mid-June

As a rule of thumb, players are kept on teams within the same grade. There will always be exceptions based on player counts within the U-grouping, coaching needs, and specific player skillsets (goalies).

Leagues require that our Program submit a count of teams at the end of February.  There are different levels of league play in each U-grouping.  A Competition Committee at NHYLA determines the final level for all teams submitted to that league.

Final Rosters are submitted to leagues at the end of March.  The Riptide Board and coaches work collaboratively to finalize rosters throughout March.  Rosters are decided after assessing the number of players registered, the size of teams in each grade grouping, and the expected level of play that the league assigns to our Program.

Note re U14: in parity with most programs in our league, 7th and 8th graders combine to form 2 teams of mixed grades after a ratings session during preseason. Our Blue team will generally rate as A/B in NHYLA, and our White team will generally rate as B/C. All U14 players practice together during the week. For more information, see our Rostering policy.

Riptide Lax will NOT turn any player away who completes registration on-time.

We stress game time for ALL players, and players are expected to attend practices. If practices are missed, game time is left to the discretion of the coaches.

Players are expected to communicate well with their coaches regarding their attendance for both practices and games.  Proactive communication has proven to alleviate nearly all concerns about gametime.

Lacrosse@hyasports.org