Lacrosse is a game of hard knocks and bruises. And that suits Elaine Jones’ warrior spirit just fine.

“I’m a competitor,” said Jones, the UC Davis women’s lacrosse coach, “and I don’t like losing.”

While growing up in Baltimore, Jones used to sit in class and steal glances outside the window — she’d see kids playing on the athletic fields of the small, private school she attended. And then she’d daydream about racing out to join them.

“I could hardly wait to get to practice or games,” she said. “I played everything — basketball, field hockey, lacrosse — but lacrosse won out.”

Jones was in the right place — since the early 20th Century, Baltimore has been a mecca for lacrosse, a sport that evolved from a Mohawk Native American stickball game to become popular on the East Coast, especially among the wine-and-cheese academic crowds.

On the West Coast, however, lacrosse hasn’t been played nearly as long, and East Coasters in the sport have long viewed university teams on this coast with some disdain.

“That’s changing,” said Jones, “Teams out West are getting better every year.”

Jones, a two-time All-American lacrosse player at the University of Virginia, helped lead the Cavaliers to four straight national postseason appearances, including the NCAA title in 1991. She later played four years on the Elite Squad of the U.S. National Team.

Lacrosse, played with fast-paced, passionate zeal by both men and women, is increasingly popular in North America, with some 2,000 high school and more than 500 college teams in the United States alone.

In California, Jones said, only Stanford, UC Berkeley and Saint Mary’s field Division I women’s lacrosse. The University of Oregon just added a D-I women’s lacrosse program.

“Besides UC Berkeley, there are no other UC’s that play lacrosse and no schools in the Big West have Division I programs, either.”

In her rookie UC Davis coaching effort in 2002, she guided the lacrosse team to a No. 3 ranking in the final national poll. The team has compiled a record of 13-1 against Division II opponents and was ranked No. 1 for several weeks last season. With UC Davis entering Division I, this year the competition will get tougher, Jones said.

Her team opens its 2004 season Feb. 14 against Stanford University.

What was your biggest challenge as a student-athlete?

Keeping my attention on the books. My mother, Eva, was a teacher, and my father, Earl, was an assistant superintendent in the Baltimore City Public school district and has a doctorate in education. While they supported my athletic adventures, they never wanted sports to come at the expense of my education. And so as a two-sport scholarship student-athlete, I earned a B.A. in English from the University of Virginia.

What’s something about you that might surprise others?

I have a law degree, which I earned from the University of Miami Law School, and a master’s degree in sports management, from the University of Massachusetts, which I earned while serving as an assistant lacrosse coach. My brother’s also a lawyer. I thought I wanted to go into the legal field, but my passion for playing lacrosse kept calling, and I answered it. When I was in law school, I did not play or coach lacrosse for three years — yes, I missed it.

So I got a job as assistant director of compliance at the University of Southern California and then as the head women’s lacrosse club coach. Three years ago, I came to Davis.

Excited about moving to Division I?

Yes. Our recruitment scholarship funds will increase significantly this year and in the upcoming years, which is tremendously exciting. And while it will take a few years for these players to mature, we’re positive about competing at the D-I level in the years ahead. In a way, I wish we had another year at D-II so we can win a championship, but the pain now at D-I will be the gain later on.

What other sports do you like?

Baseball, college and professional football, and college basketball. I love the Oakland A’s baseball team. And sometimes I get ideas for plays by watching college football and basketball on TV.

What do you like best about your job?

The inner satisfaction I get from interacting with the players and getting to know them both on and off the field. Road trips are great bonding times. Also, it’s rewarding to spend time on techniques and teamwork, and then to see that work pay off once the game starts. While I don’t necessarily crack the whip all the time, I’m very detail-oriented and work my players hard so they’re prepared for any situation.

And least?

Losing. After a loss, a lot of times you have to be positive with the players and you can’t let them see you disappointed. But you also have to sit down with them and tell them how they could have done something different. You have to make sure they learn something from the loss. We go over plays and show tapes to our players to help analyze the games.

What do you feel fortunate about?

Being healthy. I’ve never had a broken bone while playing sports. The worst I’ve had is a case of turf toe. But I’ve been lucky in that I never missed a game due to injury in all the years I played sports.

What’s your prized possession?

My NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Champion-ship ring from the University of Virginia.

What’s your guilty pleasure?

When my players want to make me feel better, maybe after a tough game, they bring me jelly bans and Snickers bars. Hey, it works just fine. •