How We Play
Sonoran Box rules
These are the rules for every Sonoran Box game. Tournament, Senior A, and Senior B play them the same way.
The floor
Six a side: five runners and a goalie. The floor is boarded. There is no offside line. Each team dresses runners and two goalies and changes on the fly.
The clock
A Sonoran Box game is sixty minutes, played as four quarters of 15 minutes. Two minutes between the first and second quarters, and between the third and fourth. A longer break at half. Each team gets one 45-second timeout per half.
Shot clock
Thirty seconds from the moment a team has the ball. A shot on goal is required or the other team gets the ball. A rebound kept by the shooting team starts a new 30 seconds. The offense also has 8 seconds to get the ball over midfield.
Face-offs
A face-off at center starts each quarter and follows each goal. The official sets the ball between the two sticks.
Overtime
A tie after four quarters is sudden-death overtime. The next goal wins. Play continues, after a short break, until someone scores.
Penalties
A minor is two minutes. The player comes out early if the other team scores. A major is five minutes. The team returns to full strength after two goals against, and the player stays in the box. A team is never more than two players down. A third penalty at the same time is a penalty shot.
The crease
Only the goalie may be in his own crease. An attacking player in the crease, or on the crease line, takes the goal off the board. A shot still counts if the ball crosses the line before the shooter lands in the crease.
Contact
A body check is allowed from the waist to the neck, on the player with the ball. Slashing, holding, tripping, illegal cross-checking, and delay of game are minors. High sticking, boarding, and fighting are majors.