The Division I Women’s Lacrosse Committee is recommending that a seven-official crew (instead of six) be present at the finals site.

All seven officials would work all three games in some capacity, including:

• Three on-field officials
• One  alternate official
• Two additional officials, one assigned to each team to assist with bench decorum
• One reserve official who can replace an on-field official, if necessary

All would receive a flat fee for working the championship. The committee is recommending the change to keep up with an increasingly fast-paced game, assist with the flow of protests and to curb unsportsmanlike behavior, when necessary.

Additionally, the committee is recommending that host institutions for first-round and quarterfinal games be allowed to conduct the games on either Saturday or Sunday. Currently, all first-round games must be held on Sunday and quarterfinal games must be held on Saturday. The change would give hosts more flexibility and help reduce conflicts with graduation and other NCAA and conference-sponsored events.

The committee also noted that the fan base for the sport continues to increase, illustrated by attendance records at the 2009 championship. The committee will continue to look at ways to market the sport, including holding the event in the same city as the men’s lacrosse championship but at a different venue.

The committee also recommended the following conferences to receive automatic bids to the 2010 championship:

• America East
• Atlantic Coast Conference
• Big East Conference
• Ivy Group
• Colonial Athletic Association
• Metro Atlantic Athletic Association
• Two play-in games will have the Patriot League hosting the Northeast Conference and the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation hosting the Atlantic-10 Conference.