9-12 Lacrosse Drills
199 drills for 9-12 lacrosse players. Browse by skill focus and add them directly to your practice plan.
4v3
Work 4v3 situations in the half field. 4 offensive players vs 3 defenders. Coach starts play with a ground ball or pass. Play to a goal, save, clear, or whistle. Variation: Flip it — 3 offensive players vs 4 defenders. Defense clears all saves or takeaways. Add passing requirements.
3v2
Work 3v2 situations in the attack zone. 3 offensive players vs 2 defenders. Coach starts play with a ground ball or pass. Play to a goal, save, clear, or whistle. Variation: Flip it — 2 offensive players vs 3 defenders. Defense clears all saves or takeaways. Add passing requirements.
2v1
Work 2v1 situations in the attack zone. 2 offensive players vs 1 defender. Coach starts play with a ground ball or pass. Play to a goal, save, clear, or whistle. Variation: Flip it — 1 offensive player vs 2 defenders. Defense clears all saves or takeaways. Add passing requirements.
Canadian 2v2 Ground Balls
Teach defenders to scoop ground balls in the crease area and transition the ball upfield. 2 defensive lines behind the goal, 5 yards from GLE. 2 goalies in the cage. Coach at 15 yards with a bucket of balls. Coach shoots low, soft shots that deflect into the rebound zone. Defenders rush up, scoop the ground ball, break out to the wing, then turn and throw back to the goalie. The player breaks upfield and receives a clearing pass. Repeat. Variation: Add offensive pressure near the crease.
4 Corner Pick and Go Ground Balls
Drill ground ball pickups going straight to goal. Coach at the top of the box with a bucket of balls. 4 lines of players around the attack zone. Coach rolls a ball to a line — that player scoops and goes to goal for a shot, then sprints to the opposite line. Variation: Add a soft defender or coach with a long pole in the middle. Add a goalie for live reps.
Save To Clear Warm Up
Warm up the goalie's save-to-clear transition. Goalie in the cage. Coach shoots from about 10 yards. 2 players or coaches roam between midfield and the attack zone. Goalie makes the save, then immediately clears long to one of the targets. Alternate clearing targets each rep. Move targets around to vary clearing distances. Variation: Change shot locations. Add targets like trash cans in the midfield for the goalie to hit.
Rapid Toss Warm Up
Warm up the goalie with rapid toss shots to develop quick footwork and reactions. Goalie in the cage. Coach stands about 5 yards away with 25 balls. On the whistle, toss balls at the goalie in rapid fire, varying locations. Goalie makes a save and drops the ball behind them. Continue until balls are gone or need to clear balls from the crease. Watch for balls underfoot. Variation: Change the angle of the toss shots.
Rapid Fire Warm Up
Get your goalie a high volume of shots from multiple angles in a short time. Goalie starts on the right post. Set up 5 cones at 10-15 yards from the goal in an arc. On the whistle, the first player at each cone shoots one at a time, moving from right to left. Call out shot locations for shooters. Go through as many rounds as needed. Variation: Move cone positions and have shooters vary their shot types.
Diamond Sprints
Practice defensive footwork — drop steps, turns, and recovery movements. Set up 4 cones in a diamond, 5-10 yards apart. Start sideways at cone 1. Sprint at an angle to cone 2, drop step to cone 3, switch drop step direction to cone 4, then drive forward back to cone 1. Variation: Add a ground ball pickup on the final sprint.
3v3
Work 3v3 situations in the attack zone. 3 offensive players vs 3 defenders. Coach starts play with a ground ball or pass. Play until a goal, save, clear, or whistle. Variation: Defense clears all saves or takeaways out of the box. Add passing requirements or other skill constraints.
2v2
Work 2v2 situations in the attack zone. 2 offensive players vs 2 defenders. Coach starts play with a ground ball or pass. Play until a goal, save, clear, or whistle. Variation: Defense clears all saves or takeaways out of the box. Add rules like a minimum number of passes before shooting.
Target Practice Face Off
Practice winning faceoffs and directing the ball to specific locations on the field. Set up at the center X. One player at a time gets set with a ball. Before the whistle, the coach drops a cone somewhere in the midfield area. On the whistle, the player wins the draw and forces the ball toward that cone. Next player steps up, cone moves, and repeat. Variation: Use different faceoff moves. Have two players face off against each other with different colored cones as targets.