Is checking allowed at 12U?

Yes, but only modified checking. Under the 2026 girls youth rules:

• 12U modified check: an attempt to knock the ball out of an opponent's stick, where the checking motion goes down and away from her body and stays below the shoulder of the player with the ball.
• Sphere: in youth lacrosse (14U and under), the protected sphere around a player's head is 12 inches. In high school it's 7 inches.
• Next steps: 14U moves to transitional checking: checks outside the 12-inch sphere and away from the body, or down and away and below the shoulder when checking from behind. At 10U and younger, there's no checking at all.