How to Shoot a Lacrosse Ball

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Last Updated: October 2, 2022

Lacrosse requires you to use a stick with a net on the end to throw a ball into a goal. In this fast-paced, highly physical sport, it’s important to perfect the basics of shooting. Shooting involves proper hand placement, a hard forward step, and a smooth swinging motion with full follow through. You can improve with drills like shooting from the ground, practicing without a ball, and strength training.

Part 1

Part 1 of 3:

Getting into Position

1
Grip toward the bottom of the stick with your non-dominant hand. The bottom hand acts as a fulcrum, or pivot point, for the leverage of the stick. Your hand should be wrapped around the stick with your thumb near your body and your knuckles outward.
- It’s possible to become very versatile at lacrosse and give yourself the option of shooting with either hand. If you learn to shoot with your non-dominant hand, you can make shots from either side of the goal more easily.
2
Slide your dominant hand down the stick. The power for your shot comes from this hand. Your palm should be on the stick such that it faces toward the opposite hand as you push. This hand should be 10–12 inches (25.4–30.5 cm) from your bottom hand.
- Having your hand too low on the stick will reduce the amount of control you have. Leaving it too high on the stick will reduce the amount of power you have.
- This hand positioning is only used for shooting, so don’t move your hand into this position until you know that you are going to shoot.
Advertisement
3
Take a hard step toward the goal. Your legs lead your shot, so this step is important. As you approach the goal, take a powerful, lengthened step with the leg opposite your dominant hand. Both of your legs should be slightly bent, but the front leg will be bent a little more.^{[1]
X
Research source}
- You may do this directly after you dodge around a player. If you have just been running, you may want to slow down as you move into your shooting stance.
- Your step should carry you forward and you should plant your foot hard into the ground.
4
Square your body to the goal. You won’t always have this option, especially if you are shooting on the run, but the basic technique requires your body to be square. This starts with squaring your hips to the goal.

Part 2

Part 2 of 3:

Making the Shot

1
Crank the stick back for the windup. Lift both of your elbows so that the pocket, or net, of the stick goes slightly over your dominant shoulder. This is the start of the shooting motion. The farther back you wind up, the more power you can achieve.
- You don’t want to overextend yourself on this part, so crank back just to the point where you feel tension in your shoulders.
2
Swing the stick in a downward motion. Thrust your upper hand forward and pull the bottom of the stick back. Bring the head of the stick downward. The goal is to snap your wrist quickly. The power comes a little more from your wrists than from your shoulders.
- Get comfortable with performing a nice full crank back and swinging straight through the arc into a complete follow through.
3
Twist your torso. Your shot’s power is a combination of your leg placement, your wrists snapping quickly forward, and your torso twisting through the motion. Your dominant shoulder comes forward while your non-dominant shoulder goes backward. You’ll feel this twist through your abdominal area. Keep your hips forward.
4
Follow through after your shot. Just like golf, tennis, and baseball, the follow through after a shot is important in lacrosse. Once the ball leaves the pocket of the stick, let the stick continue with the momentum it has. When you finish, the pocket of the stick should be pointing down at the ground near your forward foot.
- After the shot, move your top hand back up toward the middle or top of the stick to get ready for the next play.
- The complete arc of your shot should move the pocket in a diagonal line from the top of your dominant side to the bottom of your non-dominant side.

Part 3

Part 3 of 3:

Improving Your Shooting

1
Drill shots from a sitting position. There are a lot of great ways to practice your shot which isolate different parts of the technique. Sitting down takes your leg placement out of the equation and focuses all of your attention on using your upper body to swing through the shot.^{[2]
X
Research source}
- This drill is best done in fairly close range to the goal as you will be able to achieve less power from this position.
- Focus on twisting your torso and bringing your arms through the full range of motion.
2
Practice your shot without a ball. This is a great drill for beginners and it allows you to get the motion down without worrying about ball placement and aiming perfectly. Practice a few dozen reps without a ball to gain muscle memory for the shot.^{[3]
X
Research source}
- The great thing about this drill is that is can be done anywhere since you don’t need a ball and goal. You can practice in your bedroom, the garage, or out in your yard.
- The main disadvantage to this drill is that you can’t practice aiming or gauge your power as well as you can with a ball.
- This drill is called shadow shooting.
3
Shoot from different angles. While it is good to shoot from directly in front of the goal to get your technique down, most of your shots during games will not be so easy. It’s important to practice shooting from the left and right of the goal, as well as down low and high over your head.
- During practice, do specific drills that force you to shoot in these ways. Do a set of shots that are only sidearm.
- Do a round of drills where you aim specifically for the top corners or bottom corners.
4
Train your body for strength. Lacrosse is a highly physical game, so being in great shape and keeping up your strength is always important. You should run daily, both endurance and sprinting. Doing push ups, pull-ups, and plenty of core training to build your muscles is highly recommended.^{[4]
X
Research source}
- If you are on a lacrosse team, or are thinking about joining one, talk to the coach to find out what exercises they suggest you do outside of practice.