Shooting is one of the most important skills in all of lacrosse. If you can shoot the ball well, you will score more goals and get more playing time. Today I want to go over my favorite shooting drills that will help you with your shooting form, shot speed and muscle memory. If you can incorporate these drills into your lacrosse routine, you will become a much better shooter. Let’s get into it!
Quick Shots – This is one of my favorite drills that you can do by yourself or with a partner. Get a bucket of lacrosse balls and place them about 5 yards above the goal. If you’re by yourself, scoop up a lacrosse ball from the pile as quickly as possible and turn around and shoot. If you’re with a partner, have the partner feed you the balls as quickly as possible. Your goal should be to shoot all of the balls as fast as possible, almost like you’d be playing “hot potato.”
This drill will help you develop comfort with shooting and forces you to quickly get rid of the ball instead of holding onto it for too long. Repeat this 2 or 3 times for a great warmup or standalone shooting workout.
Over the Cage – If you have access to two lacrosse goals, this is one of the most effective drills you can do. Place two lacrosse goals in front of each other about 3 feet apart. Now try to shoot a ball into the back goal by shooting over the front goal. By doing this, you are forcing yourself to shoot overhand, instead of sidearm or underhand. Shooting overhand is the most effective shooting form, and doing this drill creates muscle memory.
Pick a Corner – This is my favorite lacrosse drill to help with shooting accuracy. Start by shooting the ball from a spot you normally would on the field. That means if you’re an attackman, shoot a shot from about 5 yards away from the goal. If you’re a midfielder, shoot a shot on the run down the alley further out. But this time, pick ONE corner that you’re aiming for every single time. For example, only shoot for the bottom right corner.
By picking one corner, you can actually see if you are shooting the ball accurately. Many lacrosse players practice shooting with no specific target in mind. This is a bad idea because you don’t actually know if you are shooting at the spot you aimed at. Once you feel like you mastered one corner, pick another corner and do the same thing. Your ultimate goal should be to hit any corner you want.
Slow Reps – Like most things in life, it’s better to start off slow and steady instead of rushing into things. The same goes with lacrosse shooting. I see beginners try to shoot as hard as possible with no regard for form, and this will only make your shot form worse.
Every shooting session, start by practicing your shot form in slow motion. Get your hands far back, step through and shoot in a fluid motion. Over time you can build it up until you’re actually shooting full speed. Slow reps make you focus on form instead of power, and I would recommend every lacrosse player give them a try.
Eyes Up, Shoot Down – I saved the most complex drill for last. For this drill, set up a pile of lacrosse balls at the island, or about 5 yards up and 5 yards out from the goal. When shooting, pretend you’re looking right into the goalie’s eyes, or in the top middle of the goal. While not looking down, shoot the ball into a bottom corner of the goal. Repeat until you can pick a bottom corner of the goal without looking.
Most goalies are taught to focus on a shooter’s eyes, so if you’re looking at the top of the goal and shooting there, it will be easy to save your shot. If you can look to the top and shoot to the bottom, you will score more goals and be a deceptive shooter.
These are my all-time favorite lacrosse drills. Please let me know down in the comments what your favorite drills are and any questions you might have. Happy laxing!