Sixes, the fast-paced, Olympic-style version of lacrosse, has seen increased exposure over the past year with inclusion in The World Games in Birmingham, Ala., last summer and the Premier Lacrosse League Championship Series in February.
Now it’s ready to come to youth lacrosse.
Madlax Events (MDLX), which runs around a dozen events each year – including the popular Club Nationals – has added a Sixes event to its traditional fall lineup. MDLX will host a one-day Super Sixes event on Sunday, Oct. 15 for boys’ and girls’ players of all levels from fifth through 12th grade at Good Counsel High School in Olney, Md.
USA Lacrosse is helping to support the event and working with MDLX to test out Sixes in the youth tournament space.
“With the possibility of Olympic inclusion on the horizon, USA Lacrosse is looking to develop best practices for Sixes in the youth environment,” said Brian Silcott, VP of Sport Growth for USA Lacrosse. “Madlax stepped up with an opportunity to look at rules, timing, roster sizes and other things for us to evaluate in a live tournament setting.”
“We’re in a great location and paired with USA Lacrosse this is a good time to work on the growth of the game,” said Tracey Cantabene, Director of Event and Operations for MDLX Events. “We’re excited to work together to build a great template for Sixes events going forward.”
“We wanted to be one of the first to do a Sixes event and we think we can create a first-class experience with a great venue and some of our touches,” said Cabell Maddux, founder of Madlax. “We’re going to have a two-point arc similar to how the PLL did it. I loved that part of it.”
Sixes features 6-on-6 lacrosse played on a smaller field with a shot clock, no longpoles and faceoffs only at the start of each of the four 8-minute quarters. It combines elements from the traditional field game with box lacrosse and provides tons of touches for players and an intense workout even with just four 8-minute quarters in the back-and-forth game.
The MDLX event will feature more of its own unique twists with awards for most creative team names and uniforms, team sportsmanship and even a Most Creative Player award for championship teams.
“We’re just trying to have fun and encouraging creativity,” Maddux said.
This event will be a key learning moment for USA Lacrosse as it looks to expand the Sixes footprint on the lacrosse landscape.
“USA Lacrosse sees Sixes as an important part of the future of the game,” Silcott said. “From sport growth to player development to ultimately elite competition, Sixes can be a key driver of increased participation and visibility for the sport.”
