A ball is a round object with several uses. It is used in ball games, where the play of the game follows the state of the ball as it is hit, kicked or thrown by players. Balls can also be used for simpler activities, such as catch or juggling. Balls made from hard-wearing materials are used in engineering applications to provide very low friction bearings, known as ball bearings. Black-powder weapons use stone and metal balls as projectiles.
Lacrosse is a contact team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensively modified by European colonists, reducing the violence, to create its current collegiate and professional form.
Women's lacrosse, sometimes shortened to lax, is a field sport played at the international level with two opposing teams of ten players each. Originally played by indigenous peoples of the Americas, the modern women's game was introduced in 1890 at the St Leonard's School in St Andrews, Scotland. The rules of women's lacrosse differ significantly from men's field lacrosse. The two are often considered to be different sports with a common root.
Field lacrosse is a full contact outdoor sport played with two opposing teams of ten players each. The sport originated among Native Americans, and the modern rules of field lacrosse were initially codified by Canadian William George Beers in 1867. Field lacrosse is one of three major versions of lacrosse played internationally. The rules of men's lacrosse differ significantly from women's field lacrosse. The two are often considered to be different sports with a common root. An outdoor six-a-side version, or “sixes,” was codified in the 2010s and features six players per team, reduced field size, and shorter duration to be conducive for daily tournament play. Another version, indoor box lacrosse, is also played under different rules.
A water polo ball is a ball used in water polo and canoe polo, usually characterized by a bright yellow color and ease of grip ability, so as to allow it to be held with one hand despite its large size.
A baseball is a ball used in the sport of the same name. The ball consists of a rubber or cork center wrapped in yarn and covered with white natural horsehide or cowhide, or a synthetic composite leather. A regulation baseball is 9 to 9.25 inches in circumference i.e. 2.86 to 2.94 inches in diameter, with a weight of 5 to 5.25 ounces.
Lacrosse has its origins in a tribal game played by eastern Woodlands Native Americans and by some Plains Indians tribes in what is now the United States of America and Canada. The game was extensively modified by European settlers to create its current collegiate and professional form. There were hundreds of native men playing a ball game with sticks. The game began with the ball being tossed into the air and the two sides rushing to catch it. Because of the large number of players involved, these games generally tended to involve a huge mob of players swarming the ball and slowly moving across the field. Passing the ball was thought of as a trick, and it was seen as cowardly to dodge an opponent. Years later lacrosse is still a popular sport played all over the world. The indigenous people would wear their normal clothes and use a wooden stick and they would play the game with 100-1000 players on each team and they played on 1-2 kilometer fields.
A lacrosse stick or crosse is used to play the sport of lacrosse. Players use the lacrosse stick to handle the ball and to strike or "check" opposing players' sticks, causing them to drop the ball. The head of a lacrosse stick is roughly triangular in shape and is strung with loose netting that allows the ball to be caught, carried, passed, or shot.
A football is the ball used in the sport of association football. The name of the ball varies according to whether the sport is called "football", "soccer", or "association football". The ball's spherical shape, as well as its size, weight, mass, and material composition, are specified by Law 2 of the Laws of the Game maintained by the International Football Association Board. Additional, more stringent standards are specified by FIFA and other big governing bodies for the balls used in the competitions they sanction.
Brodie Merrill is a Canadian former professional lacrosse player. Merrill is recognized by the Premier Lacrosse League as having revolutionized the LSM position, and is the namesake for the Brodie Merrill LSM of the Year Award, being the only active PLL player to have an award named after them. Merrill is widely regarded as one of the greatest defensemen in lacrosse history, in both the indoor and outdoor game.
Kyle Harrison is an American former professional lacrosse player. He now serves as the PLL Director of Player Relations and Diversity Inclusion.
Paul Rabil is an American former professional lacrosse player. In 2008, he was selected first overall by the Boston Cannons in the Major League Lacrosse (MLL) collegiate draft and by the San Jose Stealth in the National Lacrosse League (NLL). He played for San Jose from 2008–2013 and Boston from 2008–2018 before co-founding the Premier Lacrosse League (PLL) with his brother. Paul Rabil is widely considered one of the greatest lacrosse players of all time.
Steven Brooks is a professional lacrosse player that retired from the Atlas LC (PLL) of Premier Lacrosse League in 2019. Brooks was the 6th overall draft pick in the 2008 Major League Lacrosse Collegiate Draft by the Chicago Machine. He played high school lacrosse for Libertyville High School in Libertyville, Illinois. He also attended a postgraduate year at Bridgton Academy. Brooks played college lacrosse at Syracuse University. In January 2020, Brooks was named assistant coach of the Atlas LC (PLL) in the professional lacrosse league PLL. He is the first ever PLL player turned coach in the league's history. He is currently serving as Offensive Coordinator/Assistant Coach for Atlas LC (PLL).
The National Operating Committee on Standards for Athletic Equipment is a nonprofit standards organization which develops standards for the manufacture of certain protective athletic equipment in the sports of baseball, football, hockey, lacrosse, and polo. NOCSAE conducts and funds scientific research and collects and analyzes data relating to standards development.
Myles Jones, is an American professional lacrosse player with Atlas Lacrosse Club of the Premier Lacrosse League. He attended Walt Whitman High School in Huntington Station, New York, completed a post-graduate year at Salisbury School in Salisbury, Connecticut and played collegiate lacrosse at Duke University.
Tom Schreiber is an American professional lacrosse player with Archers LC of the Premier Lacrosse League and the Toronto Rock of the National Lacrosse League. He attended St. Anthony's High School in South Huntington, New York, and played collegiate lacrosse at Princeton University. Schreiber is the only player to have won the professional outdoor lacrosse MVP award three times. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest midfielders of all time.
Premier Lacrosse League (PLL) is an American professional field lacrosse league composed of 8 teams. The league's inaugural season debuted on June 1, 2019, and included a 14-week tour-based schedule taking place in 12 major-market cities. The league was founded by the American professional lacrosse player Paul Rabil and his brother Mike Rabil. Investors include The Chernin Group, The Raine Group and Joe Tsai.
Connor Fields is a Canadian-American professional lacrosse player who plays for Archers Lacrosse Club of the Premier Lacrosse League and the Rochester Knighthawks of the National Lacrosse League. He played college lacrosse at the University at Albany, where he was an All-American all four years. He was drafted by the San Diego Seals in the 2018 National Lacrosse League Entry Draft. He was also drafted in Major League Lacrosse by the Charlotte Hounds in 2018.
Stephen Patrick DeMaine Kelly is an American lacrosse player who plays for Cannons Lacrosse Club of the Premier Lacrosse League (PLL). Kelly plays as a midfielder and face-off specialist and scored the first goal in PLL history in 2019. Kelly was selected to play in the 2021 PLL All Star Game in San Jose, California.
Blaze Riorden is an American professional lacrosse player who plays as a goalie for Chaos Lacrosse Club of the Premier Lacrosse League and as a forward for the Philadelphia Wings of the National Lacrosse League. In the PLL he has won three straight Oren Lyons Goalie of the Year awards, making him the first goalie to do so. He is also one of only two field lacrosse goalies to win league MVP at the professional level and is widely regarded as the most dominant goalie of his generation.
