Lacrosse Defense Drills

Looking for a few lacrosse defense drills? Like any sport, defense is a huge part of lacrosse. If you are a defensemen in lacrosse, your main job, of course, is to prevent the ball from getting to the goalie. You will generally be assigned to a specific player and it will be your job to use your stick to check that player and get the ball. In lacrosse, defensive players get to use six foot sticks, which are longer than the sticks that the offensive players, such as the midfielders, can use. If you choose to use the below lacrosse defense drills, you should be able to take your game to the next level.

1. The Poke Check. One of the best lacrosse defense drills that you can use is the poke check. Checking is a huge part of being a defensive player in lacrosse, so this is a skill that you should master. To practice the poke check, have your teammates line up with their sticks to the right side of their body. You, as the defenseman, will then move down the line, poking each stick two times with your stick.
2. One-on-One. Another great lacrosse defense drill is one-on-one practice. During one-on-one practice, you will be trying to prevent the offensive player that you are practicing with from shooting or passing the ball. Of course, if you can strip that player of the ball, even better. The great thing about the one-on-one defense drill is the fact that it replicates what you will be doing in a real game. For an even better drill, you can drop your stick and use your gloves to try to take the ball away from the other player.
3. Passes. Passing is probably a lacrosse defense drill that you would never think of. If you happen to intercept the ball from the offensive player you are covering, it is your job to pass the ball to an offensive player on your team so he or she can make an attempt to score. That is why you should spend at least ten minutes per day practicing both clearing passes and long passes. You will need to utilize both of those types of passes during a lacrosse game to get the ball into the offensive zone so your team can score.