One of the most successful teams at University of Georgia does not play under the lights at Sanford Stadium or on the court at Stegeman Coliseum. Instead, it plays at the Club Sports Complex.
Last spring, Georgia’s women’s club lacrosse team made its 10th straight appearance in the Women’s Collegiate Lacrosse Associates championship after winning the Southeastern Women’s Lacrosse League for more than six years in a row. As such a skilled program, the team would have a strong case to become a varsity women’s lacrosse program, but the players like things just the way they are.
At the moment, Georgia may be in violation of Title IX standards. According to the U.S. Department of Education, Title IX prohibits sex-based discrimination in education programs and activities that receive federal financial assistance, including UGA.
The Education Department uses a three-prong test to determine whether a school is complying with Title IX. The three prongs for Title IX include proportionality, expansion and accommodating interests and abilities. Schools must comply with at least one prong.
Proportionality refers to whether the number of female and male student-athletes is proportional to the overall male and female student enrollment. Because the proportion of female student enrollment (57%) is significantly greater than the proportion of female student-athletes (45%), Georgia fails to fulfill this prong.
Expansion focuses on program growth, meaning the university or school must show a history and continuing practice of expanding opportunities for female athletes. Georgia last added equestrian as a women’s sport in 2001 — 24 years ago — showing a lack of expansion.
The third part allows schools to have uneven or disproportionate athletic programs if they can show their existing program meets the interests and abilities of female students. Given the size and success of the women’s club lacrosse program at Georgia, the team would have a convincing case that the university fails to meet this prong. The athletic association at Georgia did not respond to a request for comment.
Given these three failings, athletes could file a complaint with the Department of Education, claiming that the university is violating Title IX by withholding opportunities for women in athletics. This is what many women’s teams at other universities have done by petitioning to make their teams varsity programs.
For example, the women’s club lacrosse team at Florida State University settled with the university in 2023, and in 2026, it will start its inaugural season. Athletes could also sue in federal court. At the University of Kentucky, two former women’s lacrosse athletes sued their university for failing to provide equal opportunities in athletics. This case is waiting on a decision from the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Club president Alex Young said the team was contacted by lawyers in fall 2023 seeking students to be plaintiffs for a lawsuit.
Creating a varsity team at Georgia would help accommodate the growing interest in women’s lacrosse across the state. The number of women’s high school lacrosse participants in Georgia increased from 2,719 in 2013-14 to 3,327 in 2023-24, according to the Georgia High School Association.
In addition, the resources required to fund the team would shift to the university.
“It’s an enormous amount of resources required from the athletes to simply field, finance and operate a team, in addition to playing on it,” said Arthur Bryant, a lawyer who has represented athletes filing civil rights claims against universities. “Whereas if it were to become a varsity team, the school would have to do that.”
When the team heard lawyers were getting involved to make a case for varsity status, not everyone was thrilled.
“When we heard the news of, like, oh, this is a possibility of becoming a varsity team, we were kind of shocked,” said Meg Heflin, vice president of the club.
We didn’t really want that because we like how balanced it is — that we choose to play.”
Because a club program does not require morning lifts or a rigid practice schedule, it allows students to pursue activities outside lacrosse.
“Being here, we can be in sororities … you can do other clubs, be in other things. It’s not all just lacrosse the entire time,” said Kay Page, senior captain of the club team and SWLL Attacker of the Year. “I mean, also, it allows you to kind of think about your future after graduation.”
Additionally, a varsity program would raise conference complications, as the SEC does not sponsor women’s lacrosse. The only Southeastern Conference universities with women’s varsity lacrosse programs, Vanderbilt and Florida, play in different conferences. If Georgia were to create a team, it would need to join another conference or form a new one.
Given their status, the UGA women’s lacrosse team will keep playing as a club team this spring, competing in the SWLL. Last year, the Bulldogs went undefeated in the regular season and league tournament before falling to Boston College, placing third in the WCLA National Championship. The team enters this next season hoping to finish even higher.
“We are really working to win it all and win nationals this year,” said sophomore midfielder Shea Edwards. “We got so close last year; I just hope we are able to let the hard work pay off.”
Adrian Fleming is a student in the undergraduate certificate program at the Carmical Sports Media Institute at UGA.
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