Box Lacrosse Part 3: Pinching My Lacrosse Head

When I first started playing box, I was using a head made by Warrior Lacrosse that was an NCAA Legal head (X or U spec). The heads I always used were wider then a lot of the heads other players were using in the league. When I met one of the guys on my team I noticed the difference between our heads. His was pinched making it very narrow! At first I was not fond of pinching my head; I thought that it was unnecessary and I was nervous about trying it (I didn’t want to mess up and waste a head). But as I continued to practice and play games in my first season, I slowly realize how different box and field are. One of the big differences was how pinched the head of the stick is and this is a big difference because the type of game being played. In box, a tighter face on the stick is needed due to the amount the cross checks thrown and also due to the boards. Those factors can disrupt cradling and with a tighter face the ball will be less likely to come out of the stick. Therefore, I started to experiment with baking my lacrosse heads. I bake the head in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes, then take it out, and fasten it with zip ties or string by the sidewalls to make the face and scoop of the stick tighter. Unfortunately, the first couple of heads I baked came out too tight and I was going overboard with the pinch. After much experimenting, I have found a good way to pinch that works for me and also still abides with the rules; the goal is to have the most pinch to handle the ball in this rough game. After a few attempts I was finally able to get the perfect pinch that I need and I love how it turned out. Below is a photo of my Maverik Tank that I’m currently using and it works perfect. Hopefully my experiences with baking a lacrosse head will help you decide if you want to go through with it or not. Either way you can trust Universal Lacrosse to hook you up with the best gear out there! Until next time. - Paul T. IT'S ALL U