The Canadian University Field Lacrosse Association (CUFLA) is an association of men's

field lacrosse Field lacrosse is a full contact sport, full contact outdoor sport played with two opposing teams of 10 players each. The sport originated among indigenous peoples of the Americas, Native Americans, and the modern rules of field lacrosse were i ...

teams connected with several universities in

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

and

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

. Teams compete in the fall with league playoffs typically in early November.

History

Founded in 1985, the Canadian University Field Lacrosse Association, or the "CUFLA," was originally known as the Ontario University Field Lacrosse Association (OUFLA) and, as the name suggests, was entirely Ontario-based. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, OUFLA expanded to include more teams across Ontario. Having grown to 10 teams in 2002, OUFLA changed its name to the Canadian University Field Lacrosse Association to reflect the additions of

McGill University McGill University (French: Université McGill) is an English-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill University, Vol. I. For the Advancement of Learning, ...

and

Bishop's University Bishop's University () is a small English-language Liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Lennoxville, a borough of Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. The founder of the institution was the Anglican Diocese of Quebec, Anglican Bishop of Quebec ...

, both located in Quebec. The league expanded to 12 teams in 2007 with the additions of Trent (Peterborough) and Laurentian (Sudbury) universities. With these additions the league split into two divisions (east and west) based on geographic location of member schools.

Concordia University Concordia University () is a Public university, public English-language research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College (Montreal), Loyola College and Sir George Williams Universit ...

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

became the 13th member, the third in Quebec, in 2012. As it celebrates its 30th year in 2014, the CUFLA has expanded again to 15 teams with the addition of

Nipissing University Nipissing University is a public university located in North Bay, Ontario, Canada. The campus overlooks Lake Nipissing. History Northeastern University (1960–1967) The roots of Nipissing University date back to 1947, when residents of North B ...

and the

University of Ottawa The University of Ottawa (), often referred to as uOttawa or U of O, is a Official bilingualism in Canada, bilingual public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on directly to the northeast of Downtown Ot ...

. This ongoing growth bodes well for the continued expansion of men's field lacrosse at various universities across Canada. Concordia University left after the 2015 season, leaving the league with 14 teams.

Teams

Former *

– Montreal, Quebec *

Waterloo Warriors The Waterloo Warriors are the intercollegiate sports teams that represent the University of Waterloo in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The Warriors have found success over certain spans in football, hockey, rugby, golf and basketball among others, ...

– Waterloo, Ontario *

Windsor Lancers The Windsor Lancers are the varsity athletic teams that represent the University of Windsor in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The school's varsity program supports 9 different sports. Their mascot is a lancer and the team's colours are blue and gold ...

– Windsor, Ontario *

York Yeomen The York Lions is the official name for the athletic varsity teams that represent York University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The university's varsity teams compete in the Ontario University Athletics conference of U Sports and, where applicable ...

– Toronto, Ontario

Champions

The Baggataway Cup is the Canadian university field lacrosse championship, awarded annually to the winner of the post-season tournament by the Canadian University Field Lacrosse Association. The Baggataway Cup tournament is typically held the second weekend in November, and is hosted by one of the member schools. Guelph Gryphons longstick 2014

Executive

The operations of CUFLA are handled by an executive that reports regularly to the team presidents, typically at annual general meetings. Currently, the executive is composed of a commissioner, two assistant commissioners, a treasurer, a director of communications, a high school liaison and a referee-in-chief. * Scott Fox - Commissioner * Tom Bileski - Deputy Commissioner * Chris Lesanko - Asst. Commissioner * Mark Walker - Treasurer * Michael Drake - Referee in Chief * Stephen Stamp - Director of Communications * Jim Price - High School Liaison

Player eligibility

Only current students registered at their respective universities with a full course load are deemed eligible to play in CUFLA competitions. Players who have played professional field lacrosse (such as

Major League Lacrosse Major League Lacrosse (MLL) was a men's field lacrosse league in the United States. The league's inaugural season was in 2001 Major League Lacrosse season, 2001. Teams played anywhere from ten to 16 games in a summertime regular season. This w ...

) are prohibited from playing in CUFLA. However, players who play professional

box lacrosse Box lacrosse, also known as boxla, box, or indoor lacrosse, is an indoor version of lacrosse played mostly in North America. The game originated in the 1930s in Canada, where it is more popular than field lacrosse. Lacrosse is Canada's officia ...

(such as the

National Lacrosse League The National Lacrosse League (NLL) is a professional box lacrosse league in North America. The league comprises 14 teams8 in the United States and 6 in Canada. The NLL is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. ...

) are eligible to play. Throughout the years, the league has seen many current and former NLL players scattered throughout various teams.

Alumni

Many current and former players have met with a great deal of success representing their countries or playing professional lacrosse in the

and

Media coverage

Media coverage of CUFLA has grown in recent years, with local and student newspapers devoting several articles to CUFLA's game results. Several lacrosse websites
Lacrosse All StarsInside LacrosseThe Lacrosse NewsLacrosse Bucket
etc.) and magazines have taken notice and included CUFLA in their ongoing coverage of the world of lacrosse.

References

External links

Canadian University Field Lacrosse Association
{{Field Lacrosse Leagues Lacrosse governing bodies of Canada 1985 establishments in Canada Sports leagues established in 1985 Lacrosse leagues in Canada