Tips for Shooting on the Run

Shooting on the Run
tips from Mark Millon, Jay Jalbert and others

Mechanics

"I remember when I first started to force myself to do it lefty, it was just a really awkward thing. You're running, and you have to keep your whole upper body still, and still have torque," Jalbert says. "And I remember just fighting through that. It was a really difficult thing."

Remember the two Ts: torso and torque.

Paul Rabil - one of the best ever shooting on the run

As opposed to a stationary shot, in which you can plant your feet and release it head-on, shooting on the run requires less of your legs to generate shot power. Most of it will come from your arms and midsection. Your legs, however, do generate the momentum, which is then converted by your upper body into shot power.

Approaching the cage as a righty, you should line up your shot four steps in advance. Jalbert calls it, simply, a run dodge. Draw your defender on your left hip while sweeping right. Take your first three steps down the alley -- left, right, left -- to get him there.

Then, on your fourth step, your right foot steps over your release point.

Allow your feet about a millisecond delay for your upper body to initiate shooting motion. Then whip your torso in a right-to-left motion toward the cage, and follow through with your arms and wrists as you would naturally.

(Approaching as a lefty, use the reverse footwork.)

Hand Position and Arm Angle

Before that fourth step, your hands should already be in a position to shoot.

As with any shot, your top hand should not be too close to the throat of the stick, because you will wind up pushing the ball.

But more so with shooting on the run, your top hand should not be too low, either. A lot of the whip is already generated by the torso-torque mechanic. Positioning your hands too low on the stick not only leaves you susceptible to a trail check, but it also decreases accuracy. A shot on the run is already less accurate than a stationary shot.

When you step over the release point with that fourth step, your hands should extend away from your body, elbows up, and ready to follow through on the torque created by your upper body.

Also, keep the stick "light in your hands," Jalbert advises. "A lot of real young players, they have that kung-fu grip," he says. "It should be tender."

As for arm angles, shooting on the run lends itself best to sidearm and overhand approaches. Choose the angle according to your position on the field.  Overhand shooting is more accurate on the run and many top players recommend an overhand shot when shooting on the run to improve accuracy.

However, if you're dodging across the goal, go ahead and shoot sidearm. This gives you a better angle and widens your options of where to shoot on the cage.

If you're coming down either alley, an overhand shot works best.

'Get Small'

Think of a spring-loaded gun. "My body gets small before I shoot," Jalbert says.

The more tightly wound your torso is upon your release, the more power you'll get on your shot. It means tightening up your abdomen by contorting your upper body and hips, and releasing that energy through your arms and wrists.

Lean into the goal when shooting to generate this effect.

Step over your release point with your outside foot, delay, and whip your torso around for the greatest strength on your running shot.  You can think of it like a golfers swing or leading with your hips in a baseball swing.

Drills and Workouts

Your body wants to stop. It wants to stop and shoot. So practice everything in motion, without a ball, even.

Jalbert had an apple orchard in his backyard growing up. There were six trees in a row. To get used to shooting on the run, when he was younger, he would dodge each tree in succession, and practice getting his hands out into shooting position after each tree.

The same effect could be achieved with any row of obstacles. The important thing is that you never stop moving your feet.

As for developing muscles used while shooting on the run, use workouts for strengthening your rotational core.

More tips for shooting on the run:

Shooting on the run may be the hardest skill to learn in lacrosse and will require tons of practice. You are going to be shooting on the run a lot. When you are practicing, spend as much time as you can focusing on shooting on the run. Any time your on a goal practicing your shot (hopefully all the time) spend 85%-90% of the time running full speed and shooting.  Don't worry if you miss the goal badly the first few hundred times. 

There are a few keys to scoring from outside.

Try to be deceptive. Try to hide your stick behind your body until the last second.  You are going to have the defensive players from the opposing team all over you when you have the ball, so you need to learn to be deceptive.

Paul Rabil shooting on the run

Shoot with the proper technique. Hands and elbows high and away from your body, hands 12 inches apart close to the bottom of your handle, turn your shoulders and hips and uncork like a golfer.  Your power will come from a big hip and shoulder turn while cradling your stick behind your body.  Just as your ready to release your shot uncork your body in the direction of the target.

Don’t be afraid to take bounce shots.  They can provide an additional aspect of deception with unpredictable bounces and often find the back of the cage.

Learn to do it with both hands.

This description is for a right handed shot, a left handed shot will be reversed.

KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE GOAL. Start by moving across the face of the goal from the right side to the left and have your shoulders parallel with the sidelines but as you begin to plant your left foot "show your numbers" to the goal. Begin the shooting motion by planting your left foot so it will face at about the 10 o'clock position, bring your right foot around slightly after so it will end up pointing at the goal. Be sure to have your right foot come around slightly before the stick, this will force you to "coil" your body so you will have more torque in your body which translates to more velocity in your shot. YOU MUST TAKE A WIDE STEP WITH YOUR RIGHT FOOT SO YOU CAN GET ALL OF THE VELOCITY FROM THE TORQUE IN YOU BODY INTO THE SHOT.  Remember, you are moving through the entire process, do not stop to shoot.  If you bring your right foot around properly with all of your body power behind the shot, the follow through should almost spin you completely around. Keep the stick behind your body so the goalie cannot see it, be careful not to "hang the stick". YOU SHOULD HAVE A SORE LOWER BACK AFTER WORKING ON THIS OR YOU ARE NOT DOING IT RIGHT. You can practice shooting on the run from any angle on the field. It does not have to be across the face of the goal only.

Again, this is a tough skill even for top players.  It is going to take a considerable amount of practice to master.  Watch some high level lacrosse to see it in action!!