Flip Naumburg
September, 2009
THE NEED FOR SPEED

When approaching the art of scoring, lacrosse players always want to find a faster shot to add to their arsenal. Everyone on the team gets excited when the speediest ‘bullets’ find the back of the net. Fastest shot contests are always a big hit at any lacrosse event. 

For an individual, many things go into shooting the ball hard or harder.  The leg drive, getting the hands in good position away from the body, and the length of the ‘stroke’ all ultimately factor into the speed of a shot. 

For any player, the pocket, the overall weight of the stick, and the length of the shaft are also factors that help to determine the velocity of a shot.

HOLD ON I’M COMING

The deeper the pocket is, the better the ball stays in the pocket while the player is moving the stick.  This hold-ability enables him to wind up more quickly, and to bring the stick head farther back in the attempt to collect, harness, and exert greater force on the ball upon its release.

Also, the deeper that the pocket is, the longer the ball will stay in the stick through the shooting motion and this, too, will tend to increase velocity by increasing leverage.  The more distance the ball travels before it is released, the more speed capability there is on a shot, or the farther the ball can travel on a throw.

SPINNING A TAIL

More ball rotation makes for faster ball movement. The obvious example of more spin equals more speed is baseball. A pitcher throwing a knuckleball is deliberately trying to throw a ball that travels at a slow rate. That’s what he wants in order for the ball to ‘knuckle’ properly. He is trying to slide the ball out of his hand and have as little rotation on the ball as possible. On the other hand, the fastest pitches are gripped with the pitcher’s fingers placed on and over four of the seams on the baseball, as many as possible, giving the ball optimum spin potential, and consequently more or faster rotation, which helps make it travel at a higher rate of speed.

A lacrosse ball is no different and this is where the pocket and its performance really come into play.  Getting more spin on the ball will lead to faster shots.  The pocket can indeed have a lot to do with spin, and therefore speed.

An underhand shot in lacrosse has forward or ‘top’ spin and has a tendency to be slightly faster than on overhand shot, which has ‘back’ spin on it.

PUT TO THE TEST

I once conducted a pocket test to see what pocket made for the fastest shots.  I had individual players shoot like 5 shots each with three different sticks that were exactly the same, except for the pocket.  There was one stick with a hard mesh pocket in it, one strung with the traditional leather and nylon style, and the third was, of course, the Rock-it Pocket.  The Rock-it Pocket won, but the traditional leather pockets were close, and both registered significantly higher numbers on the speed gun than the mesh.

WEIGHING THE DIFFERENCES

Stronger players can use a heavier stick to a speed advantage because more weight can add to the forward momentum he is generating with the head of the stick.  Most players, however, are looking for the lightest stick weight possible so they can achieve a faster stick motion and thereby increase the speed of a shot that way.

POLES

Even though they do not tend to be the ‘shooters’ on a team, long pole players often hang in with any fastest shot competition because the longer shaft makes for a longer stroke.  The greater distance makes a significant difference in speed potential.

SO WHAT IS THE DEAL?

There is pretty much no debating the fact that having the leather touching the ball in the pocket allows for a harder shot because the leather grips the ball and allows it to pick up that spinning movement more efficiently than mesh does.

The Rock-it Pocket and the traditional leather pockets are a tiny bit heavier than the mesh pocket because of the leathers, and the pocket needs to be cared for and nurtured a little more than the disposable or reusable mesh pockets, but the leather component does allow for a more consistent release and the ball gets to that release point of the pocket more quickly than with the mesh.

HE SHOOTS, HE SCORES

Having said all of this I will continue the thought and say that, yes, I do believe that the faster shot can improve a player’s chances of scoring, but as a coach I know in my heart that scoring has much to do with many things, like when you shoot, where you shoot from, what you look at, how you approach and live that moment, and on, and on.  On top of all that it is the simple fact that it is only a rare goal in lacrosse that is not accomplished through TEAMWORK to one degree or another.  Who’s your buddy is often the most important question to ask after a goal was just scored for your team.  Great teamwork is what can break down the defense best, and it can take the goalie completely out of the scoring equation.  It does not take speed for a shot to find wide-open twine.