Lacrosse is one of the fastest-growing sports in the United States, and that momentum is increasingly visible in Oklahoma. The appeal is easy to understand once you see the game in motion: It’s fast-paced like soccer, strategic like basketball and physical like football — yet open to athletes of all body types and skill levels.
“What I love about lacrosse is that any athlete can succeed,” confirms Jason Armstrong, director of lacrosse for Broken Arrow’s Indian Nations Lacrosse Club. “You don’t have to be the biggest or the fastest. If you work hard and learn fundamentals, there’s a place for you.”
While lacrosse does blend recognizable elements of other sports, it also offers something totally unique.
“Everyone’s a quarterback on the field,” adds Brandon Newman, head coach at 405 Lacrosse, a similar club based in OKC. “There’s something about having a stick in your hands that’s just special. That’s why [Native Americans] call it the medicine game. It just feels good every time you play.”
The sport builds community as much as athleticism. While college scholarships are a possibility, coaches emphasize that lacrosse also opens doors into coaching, officiating, college club programs and lifelong recreational play. The lacrosse world is known for being tightly connected, with players frequently continuing in the sport well beyond their youth or high school years.
Although often perceived as a boys’ activity, girls’ lacrosse has a meaningful and growing presence in Oklahoma. Indian Nations introduced girls lacrosse in 2014, but the early years were marked by tension over player assignments and organizational structure, leading to a split that left girls’ programs operating separately for several years.
That changed in 2023, when a coalition of clubs came together seeking a unified system from youth through high school. The result was a renewed partnership: high school teams aligned under the Oklahoma Lacrosse Association, while youth programs, including Bixby, Broken Arrow and Metro Christian Academy, rejoined Indian Nations. According to Indian Nations commissioner Chad Lott, this shift represented “a new era of growth and collaboration for girls’ lacrosse in Oklahoma.”
Lott notes that the growth hasn’t been linear, but it has been driven by passion.
“A small but highly committed group of coaches, administrators and parents has created a strong foundation for the sport,” he says. “Their focus is on supporting the athletes and expanding the game’s reach.”
Many girls arrive from other sports, especially softball and cheerleading, bringing athleticism and competitive drive.
The helmets and contact may suggest rugby at first glance, but lacrosse places far more emphasis on spacing, ball movement and stick skill. Rugby relies on continuous physical tackling, while lacrosse blends controlled contact with the finesse of passing, shooting and positioning. Strategically, it resembles basketball more than rugby, with rotations, screen plays and coordinated attacks driving play.
“There’s truly a role for every player type,” Newman said. “Big, small, fast or strategic — there’s space for you.”
Oklahoma lacrosse participation declined during the pandemic, when the number of players dropped to about 500. But Indian Nations has nearly doubled its youth numbers in recent years, and more families are discovering the sport every season.
Armstrong believes this upward trend is just beginning.
“Once families understand the game — not just the rules, but what it offers their kids — they really buy in. I truly believe lacrosse is going to take off in Oklahoma.”
Main image cutline: 405 Lacrosse is dedicated to building a competitive and supportive community for the sport across OKC. Photo courtesy 405 Lacrosse
