Welcome to the Monroe Lacrosse preseason guide! These are ways your player can get ready for the lacrosse season and this should always be fun. If your child gets frustrated, confused or doesn’t enjoy any activities below, that’s ok! We will do everything in practice and no athlete will be “behind” if they don’t do any of these activities. Same goes for parents. If this isn’t fun, don’t worry about it.


CONDITIONING (for 5/6 and 7/8 grade levels)
If your player isn’t in any running sports now, encourage them to start conditioning. Give them time goals based on their current fitness level. Try intervals of 20 second sprints and 20 second jogs. Each time encourage them to stay with it a little longer.

Lacrosse uses a lot of upper body work, their arms can be sore during the early season. If they have a lacrosse stick already, cradle for 2-3 minutes at a time, then take a break. Make it fun, it shouldn’t be unpleasant for them!


LACROSSE PRACTICE – What can you do now?

Cradling
Improve your cradle NOW and practice will be much easier. A good cradle uses the arms, and the stick is vertical. A bad cradle looks like a fishing net and is horizontal. Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VUaWghgMZm4

Catching/Passing
This is HARD, if your player is new and only catches 1 out of 10, don’t get discouraged, that’s a normal progression. Keep encouraging them to catch over their shoulder and not drop the stick so it looks like a basket or net. Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ydrxwqfhiS0


EQUIPMENT needed for girls lacrosse
What equipment do girls need to play lacrosse? Lacrosse Stick, Headgear (either goggles or helmet), Mouthguard, Cleats (can be soccer, lacrosse, or football)

Note: Any type of bag with pockets to hold head gear and mouth guard (you do NOT need a lacrosse stick bag or lacrosse book bag but can use one if you have it)

Shop Around! If you find something you like, try different online vendors. Prices vary along with shipping costs. You do NOT have to buy new. Used equipment can be cheaper especially sticks.

Local Shops: Hersport (Haddonfield), Play it Again Sports (Deptford), Dick’s Sporting Goods (Deptford)

Online Vendors: SportStop.com, LaxSteals.com, Lax.com, Lacrossemonkey.com, Lacrosseunlimited.com, Universallacrosse.com, Dickssportinggoods.com

Thoughts on Dicks Sporting Goods…. Selection in store can vary, but they have a wide variety of good sticks online.

Girls lacrosse sticks: Girls sticks have changed a lot in the past 5 years. The preferred girls sticks now come with a good curved shape towards the end of the stick. This makes it easier for scooping ground balls. Also, girls sticks come with a smaller side wall (plastic side) compared to boys. This allows us to make a deeper pocket (the net where the ball sits in). The deeper pockets makes it easier for the girls to catch and cradle the ball keeping the ball in their stick more.

Beginner Sticks (Girls in Kindergarten through 4th Grade): A good beginner stick will only cost between $50 - $65. We recommend 2 sticks specifically:

Beginner stick #1: the Signature Jr Girls Stick: Monroe Lacrosse was able to get Signature Jr Girls sticks for $50 after shipping and tax. These sticks are great for the 1/2 and 3/4 grade teams. Link to picture: https://signaturelacrosse.com/products/universal-complete-jr28-womens. Reach out to us at [email protected] if you are interested in purchasing one of these girls sticks from Monroe Lacrosse.

Beginner stick #2: the new STX Crux 100 with Lock Pocket Jr stringing: It is on sale at Amazon right now for $50 plus tax. https://www.amazon.com/STX-Girls-Lacrosse-Stick-White/dp/B0CK2PPCG7

Great beginner and intermediate stick: Maverik Ascent Carbon Composite ($100): https://www.sportstop.com/products/maverik-ascent-carbon-composite-complete-womens-lacrosse-stick


Intermediate Sticks (Girls in 4th grade or older): We recommend getting something slightly more advanced than the beginner sticks that are built towards 1st - 4th graders.

Please note that the sticks below are just recommendations. Trying to pick out a stick is overwhelming. I’ve been there (6 years ago now). So many “best stick guides” on the internet that are all paid for by clicking through their referral links. This is a guide that has taken some of the best recommendations from various lacrosse circles and tried to compile it to make it easier. In the end, we can try and make almost any stick work. If all else fails and you are at a store, searching the internet, trying to decide between a couple of sticks and need help, feel free to text me at 609-501-6586 (send pictures of sticks, etc). We can discuss what level your daughter is at, their age, and even style of play.

Intermediate Sticks ~$50- $150: Great for rec, youth club through high school. These sticks are better for older beginners and those looking to upgrade from a beginner stick after a few seasons.

Monroe Lacrosse has been able to get a small number of STX Exult 500 sticks for just $50 after tax and shipping. If you are interested in a great intermediate stick at a great price, please let us know at [email protected].

Here are some other sticks that we found that are great sticks for this age:
      ·        Maverik Ascent Carbon Composite (great beginner and intermediate stick for $100): https://www.sportstop.com/products/maverik-ascent-carbon-composite-complete-womens-lacrosse-stick
      ·        STX Crux 600 ($120 - great sale on this stick): https://www.sportstop.com/products/stx-crux-600-crux-mesh-pro-nike-lunar-elite-10-degree-composite-complete-womens-lacrosse-stick
      ·        Maverik Axiom G4 Composite ($150): https://www.sportstop.com/products/maverik-axiom-g4-composite-complete-womens-lacrosse-stick


High End Career Sticks +$175: Do not buy these sticks for beginners! These sticks will last a player through rec, club and high school and any version of the elite game. Used by the pros. Not needed for rec, but including it for those who are interested.