There are a lot of sports terms/ references that many people will scratch their head trying to understand. I’ll admit, even as a sports editor, I don’t know every sports term in existence. But if you’re a little confused about what an article in the sports section is even talking about or referring to, then fear no more. This column will enlighten you on some terms that I haven’t even heard of. 
The first sport I’ll talk about will be lacrosse. Lacrosse has a lot of terms, just like any other sport. Here are some: backbreaker, black hole, bucket, crispy with the rock, dusty, kayak, lax rat, peanut butter, jesus pipes and rip. You may be thinking, what in the world does any of that even mean? For a lacrosse player, these terms may sound familiar, but for others it can sound like a lot of random phrases. So let’s find out what they really mean.
A backbreaker refers to a trick shot where the stick is held by both hands above the head and the ball is shot underhand, behind the back and between the legs. So obviously, this trick takes some major skill, so, if at a lacrosse game, keep your eyes peeled for it.
Black hole basically means that a player is a major ball hog. So, in a sentence, it could be used like this: “Don’t throw it to him, he’s a black hole.”
Bucket is a really simple term that most people might already know. Bucket just refers to a helmet. It can also refer to the old style lacrosse helmets that had laces in the back.
Crispy with the rock. This term is completely new to me and extremely hilarious sounding. But it means/describes a player with precise shooting ability and feeding (assisting) ability.
Dusty refers to an unskilled, as in not very good, defensive player. No one wants to be dusty or dust.
Kayak does not mean a type of canoe in this case. It actually means one of the harder and less useful checks to throw. It’s when a player wraps their stick, butt end first, around a guy for a check.
Lax rat means/describes a player who eats, sleeps and breathes lacrosse.
Lettuce or cabbage or flow refers to long hair that flows out of the back of the helmet. This is also a hockey term. Basically, it’s the perfect length of hair for lacrosse players.
Peanut butter also doesn’t refer to the sandwich topping in this case. Peanut butter means a goal on the top shelf, ‘cause that’s where mom keeps the peanut butter. Once again, this was one of those interesting terms that you can’t help but laugh at.
Jesus pipes or pipe city or pipes dreams (there are literally so many alternative terms for this definition) means hitting the post on the shot. So many terms for such a simple definition.
And finally, rip means to shoot. So when a lacrosse player takes a rip, they are simply shooting.
Caroline Perry can be contacted at cperry@kscequinox.com
