This great sport has a lot of factors that make it different from other sports. Just like most sports size can be an advantage, but for lacrosse the players that have great “stick skills” always seem to find ways to make big plays happen. The great equalizer in lacrosse if you stand 5 foot 2 or 6 foot 4 is the ability to make your stick an extension of your body and control the ball when it’s around you. 99% of top-level players have unreal stick skills.
WALL BALL IS THE KEY and one year against the wall every day will transform your game. But is that all you need to do? Can you do more? The answer is yes. Deliberate practice focusing on your weaknesses will impact your game a lot quicker then pounding away at your strong hand.
Players always ask us “should I practice with my game stick” This is a huge dilemma and I can’t answer it for you. There is nothing worse than dialing in a stick pre-season only to have it break due to overuse the third game of the season. There is really no cheap way out of this situation.
The 5 steps to not having a mid season stick crisis
1. Get a head/shaft/stringing combo that you like
* It does not have to be perfect. The key is consistency. If you find something that works for you. GO WITH IT! Most of the time when something is not working for you its user error and switching up your gamer mid season can be problematic for all types of reasons. Weight, Hold, flow etc.
2. Make sure you can get it broken in the way you like it in 24 hours. This means you have to have a stringer or a company that does a good job stringing on standby if you crack a head and then a wall ball routine or two that can get your stick up to game speed quickly. At the Varsity level a bad practice can put you from Starting to the 5th man pretty quick and not being prepared with a stick that works for you is a terrible reason to lose an opportunity.
3. Do NOT leave your stick outside in the freezing cold, in your locker to get stolen, in your parents trunk when they leave for work, in your driveway so it gets run over, in your room on GAME DAY. This sounds crazy but we have seen it all…
4. Always take pictures of your stick from a front view, side view and back view when it is throwing on point. As you use it, it will evolve and if you don’t’ know what was causing your success you can’t duplicate it.
5. GET A RAIN STICK. The only time you should be using a gamer in the rain is either DURING A GAME, or in a practice where you could be booted from your spot if you blow it… Coaches usually don’t care if your stick is shooting down when you miss a one on one with a goalie because you were going top cheese and it hit the goalie in the chest…
GOOD LUCK from us here at Universal Lacrosse! Practice hard and always make sure your stick is dialed in for game day.
IT'S ALL U
Players always ask us “should I practice with my game stick” This is a huge dilemma and I can’t answer it for you. There is nothing worse than dialing in a stick pre-season only to have it break due to overuse the third game of the season. There is really no cheap way out of this situation.
The 5 steps to not having a mid season stick crisis
1. Get a head/shaft/stringing combo that you like
* It does not have to be perfect. The key is consistency. If you find something that works for you. GO WITH IT! Most of the time when something is not working for you its user error and switching up your gamer mid season can be problematic for all types of reasons. Weight, Hold, flow etc.
2. Make sure you can get it broken in the way you like it in 24 hours. This means you have to have a stringer or a company that does a good job stringing on standby if you crack a head and then a wall ball routine or two that can get your stick up to game speed quickly. At the Varsity level a bad practice can put you from Starting to the 5th man pretty quick and not being prepared with a stick that works for you is a terrible reason to lose an opportunity.
3. Do NOT leave your stick outside in the freezing cold, in your locker to get stolen, in your parents trunk when they leave for work, in your driveway so it gets run over, in your room on GAME DAY. This sounds crazy but we have seen it all…
4. Always take pictures of your stick from a front view, side view and back view when it is throwing on point. As you use it, it will evolve and if you don’t’ know what was causing your success you can’t duplicate it.
5. GET A RAIN STICK. The only time you should be using a gamer in the rain is either DURING A GAME, or in a practice where you could be booted from your spot if you blow it… Coaches usually don’t care if your stick is shooting down when you miss a one on one with a goalie because you were going top cheese and it hit the goalie in the chest…
GOOD LUCK from us here at Universal Lacrosse! Practice hard and always make sure your stick is dialed in for game day.
IT'S ALL U