High Life: A WEEKLY FORUM FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS : Lacrossing Their Hearts : Sports: Local youth league, with more than 100 players, consists of five non-sanctioned teams from South County.

In recent years, Orange County has been witness to a sports revival, of sorts. Lacrosse, first played by North American Indians in preparation for battle, has become increasingly popular.

The game was a precursor of some of today’s more popular sports.

“Lacrosse is an exciting, fast-paced sport that combines all the skills of basketball, football, soccer and hockey,” said Kevin Brennan, a senior at Mission Viejo High School and a co-captain of a local team.

There are 10 starting players on a lacrosse team--three defenders, three midfielders, three attackers and a goalkeeper. Play is similar to hockey and football, with the stick checks of the former and the hard hitting of the latter.

A hard rubber ball is passed, caught and carried in the pocket-like head of the stick, called the crosse. Teams advance the ball until it can be hurled with the crosse or kicked into the opponent’s goal. Only the goalkeeper may touch the ball with his hands, and penalties result in disqualification or temporary suspension from the game, leaving the penalized team shorthanded.

“Anybody can be good at lacrosse through practice,” said Mission Viejo senior Sanjay Merchant, who also played high school football for the Diablos.

The Orange County Youth Lacrosse League is largely responsible for the sport’s local development. The league, with more than 100 playing members, consists of five non-sanctioned teams from South Orange County.

Patty and Dennis Brennan, Kevin’s parents, are beginning their second year as co-presidents of OCYLL.

“I’ve seen a subtle interest in lacrosse increasing among students over the past several years,” Patty Brennan said. “It’s a word-of-mouth thing. I see it as an educational process for the athletes involved.”

Kevin Brennan began playing lacrosse at age 11, when his family lived in Maryland. Upon moving to California 3 1/2 years ago, the Brennans looked for a high school that offered the sport. When they couldn’t find one, they contacted OCYLL and asked permission to start a team in Mission Viejo.

In 1991, they joined the league with a team of 10--the minimum. By the end of the season, they had 15 on their roster and finished the year with a 2-8 record.

“It didn’t really matter if they won; it was more important that they had fun, and we had fun,” Patty Brennan said. “And they did.”

A player’s cost to join OCYLL is $100 per season, which covers injury insurance and lacrosse jerseys. Presently preparing for its fifth season of play, OCYLL’s schedule calls for Saturday games from March through June.

The league’s biggest battles, however, are taking place off the playing fields.

“Our goals are to promote the sport of lacrosse and make it better known,” Patty Brennan said. “We’re also hoping the high schools will allow club teams to be formed.”

Presently, lacrosse is not sanctioned by the California Interscholastic Federation’s Southern Section, so players do not officially represent their high schools, although the OCYLL teams tend to be organized according to what schools the players attend.

Patty Brennan has been told that the schools can’t consider allowing lacrosse as a club sport because it isn’t a part of their curriculum--it isn’t taught in physical education classes.

“Lacrosse isn’t sanctioned at Mission Viejo High School because it’s not part of the athletic program,” said Morris Hawkins, the school’s assistant principal. “It’s also not part of CIF. Plus, finding playing fields would be next to impossible.”

Hawkins said if lacrosse were made a club sport, the high school would have to assume complete liability, coaches would have to be paid because that’s in the CIF rules, and existing sports would have their budgets cut even further.

“I have nothing against lacrosse personally,” Hawkins said. “But it’s hard to back another sport with the existing cutbacks and limits of field space.”

Finding practice fields on a regular basis has, indeed, posed a problem for OCYLL teams.

The league’s games are often played as the opening half of doubleheaders featuring college lacrosse club teams. Among the Southland universities featuring teams are UC Irvine, UCLA, UC Santa Barbara and UC San Diego.