The overhand shot is commonly taught to new lacrosse players when aiming for the net. However, with improved skills and tougher competition, an overhand shot may not cut it anymore. In order to stand out as an offensive weapon, you must have additional to know about Lacrosse Types of Shots.
After the simple overhand shot, the five most commonly used shots (and the ones from which virtually every variation is derived) are the sidearm and 3/4 set shots, the on-the-run shot and the inside finish.
Setting up an object between you and the net is a good way to practice these shots. Larger objects can also work, but cones are ideal. You do not have to see over the object if you cannot see over it.
Make sure you can see the net by moving until you can see it. Find the spot where your stick’s face should be when you release – this is where you should stop. The ball should go in whatever direction the face points.
During play, you never know which angle you’ll be shooting from. Try to hit the pipe and outer net. Goalies can be hit by aiming for the center.
You can always count on the field and the net is the same regardless of where you play. To mimic game situations, run the drill at different locations.
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Each fundamental lacrosse shot is broken down in the following way:
Set shot with the side arm
Whenever we shoot sidearm from a set, it’s important to be aware of our location on the field and when this type of release is appropriate. It is common for coaches to tell athletes to throw overhand instead of side arm.
However, the side arm release can be very useful when we’re lower and closer to the goal line extended because we can use it to increase our angle. If I were to shoot a three-quarters, an overhand or a righty release from my stick, the ball would leave much closer to the center of the field.
The 3/4 shot
Our hips are generally perpendicular to the target when we’re in a balanced athletic position. The head of the stick will come through diagonally in this case since we’re shooting a three quarter release. A set shot can sometimes be shuffled into or crow hopped into, but we end up in the same place regardless.
As well as maximizing power and accuracy, we want to focus on our weight transfer. Taking weight off of our back foot and placing it on our front foot is what we want to do.
As the back foot swings towards the target after we release our weight onto that front foot, we’ll end up transferring all of our weight onto that front foot.
Finishing inside
You should pay attention to the footwork pattern in this video. In other words, the angle of my run is more important than the type of steps I take. The back pipe is what I’m cutting to.
A starting point on one side and a finishing point on the other side of the cage. Thus, whether we have the ball in our stick will be of great importance. To cut across the cage and towards the back pipe, we must cross the cage in these areas of the field.
Using this fake high finish low technique, you will notice that my fake high doesn’t involve a lot of forward or backward movement. In this case, it’s more of an upward and downward motion. Consequently, I can minimize the time between fake and finish.
Instead, if I brought my stick out in front of my face, it would take me longer to recoil my stick, which gives the goalie time to reset. Therefore, we want to keep the stick behind our heads for the fake, which will allow us to finish faster.
Overhand release for on-the-run shooting
Coaches often ask athletes to use both their strong and weak hands to perform this skill, which is widely known as one of the more challenging skills in lacrosse. It is released with the opposite foot as it was for set shooting.
For lefties, in this case. After I release my left foot from the ground, I’ll rotate my hips, let my shoulders and hands turn into the direction we’re running before, during, and after the release. If we maximize this, accuracy and power will be hugely impacted.
Regardless of which direction we’re running, we want to try and alter our momentum towards the target. First. When throwing on the run, athletes frequently make the mistake of continuing to run in the direction they started in after they release. It often leads to inaccurate throws because they don’t alter their momentum.
Overhand release jump shot
When we jump and rotate and shoot, we will do it all from one foot. It is important for us to land on the same foot from which we jump. As important as our jump is the pivot of our foot, if not more. Regardless of the direction, we are running, our hip rotation allows us to generate a lot of force in this shot.
In situations where we do not have enough time to set our feet while being chased by a defender or a defender who is sliding toward us, this technique is very useful. When we get the right foot planted and the right balance, we can quickly release this release by using the jump shot.
