Small Daily Improvement: The Secret to Big Success in Lacrosse

---

“Small daily improvement leads to massive success over time. Consistency beats intensity as progress compounds.”

 

That principle applies perfectly to lacrosse. Success isn’t about one huge workout or one amazing practice—it’s about stacking small improvement day after day until they transform your game. The players who separate themselves aren’t the ones who train the hardest once in a while, but the ones who train with discipline and consistency all year long.

With that in mind, here’s is this week's simple but powerful challenge designed for every player in our program: (The actual plans have been emailed to each player directly)

 

🥍 Midfield Shooting Drills – 3x per week

Set aside time three times a week for structured shooting sessions. Focus on technique, accuracy, and speed. Don’t just count reps—make each one intentional. Over time, your shot will feel automatic under pressure.

 

🛡 Defense: Wall Ball & Footwork – 3x per week

Wall ball sharpens stick skills, while footwork builds agility and positioning. Do both three times per week, and you’ll be more confident in one-on-one situations and stronger in your team defense role.

 

💪 100, 200, or 300 Pushups a Day

Strength isn’t built overnight, but consistent work pays off. Choose your level (100, 200, or 300) and spread your pushups throughout the day—before school, after practice, before bed. Pushups build not just upper body strength, but also endurance and mental toughness.

 

---

Stick to this plan with discipline and you’ll notice the difference—not only in your skills, but in your confidence as a player. Remember, the key isn’t doing everything at once. The key is doing the right things consistently over time.

Keep stacking those small improvements, and big success will follow.

Friday, September 23, 2022 - Wall Ball Test and Routines (Post Your Results)

Gentlemen

By now all of you are settled back in school, fall sports, family routines, etc.  Hopefully, you are having a great start to the year.

I wanted to take a minute of your time to reach out and start to get you focused on what needs to be done between now and the Spring / Summer.

Every one of you wants to get better.  Every one of you wants to improve.  Every one of you wants to be the best on your team.  But for that to happen you have to use the off season to work on your weaknesses and improve your skills.

Remember championships are won in the off season.  The running, the lifting, the shooting, the footwork, the wall ball.  There is no way around it.  The only way to get better is through work and effort.  As one coach once stated “if you earn it with your effort in the off season, you will play. If you don’t earn it, you won’t.”  Its that simple.  

To help you with that the coaches at BR have come up with a list of skills / abilities you need to succeed in lacrosse.  Over the next few weeks, we will be rolling out drills, video work, and skills plans that will help you address your weaknesses and put you in a situation to be successful.  

The areas we are going to address are:

• Stickwork (slick stick)
• Strength (better able to handle contact)
• Footwork (faster / more explosive)
• Lax IQ (smarter off ball, in transition and with team concepts
  

The first is stickwork.  Everyone of you needs to improve on your stickwork.  From our best 2024 to our newest 2031.  No one escapes having to work on their stick skills.  

To do that we are going to start with where you need to be in College.  A top 20 division program sent me their stick work test.  

The test states to step on the field and practice with the team you must first accomplish the following:

• 80 throw / catch with your right hand in 60 seconds. 
• 80 throw / catch with your left hand in 60 seconds. 
• Defensemen need to do 70 right and 70 left
• Goalies need to do 70 with their strong hand.
• Until you can do this, you haven’t earned the right to practice with us. 

Using this as our benchmark we at BR have come up with the following benchmarks:

• Senior / Junior:  70 in 60 seconds. 
• Sophomore:       60 in 60 seconds. 
• Freshman:          55 in 60 seconds. 
  
  
• 8^th grade:           45 in 60 seconds
• 7^th grade:           40 in 60 seconds
• 6^th grade:           35 in 60 seconds
• 5^th grade:           35 in 60 seconds
• 4^th grade:           30 in 60 seconds

Note: this is for both your left and right.  These are minimums, not maximums.  You should always strive to do more than the benchmark for your grade. 

So how will you accomplish this?

Simply by making a plan and working it.

The plan is simple.

Stickwork

• 2 times a week you are going to do a 10-15 minute wall ball routine - write down the day you did it in a notebook or on an index card.
• Both Coach Kavanagh and Coach Calleri have put a routine together for you on our training plan page (here)
• You can use either one, go back and forth between them, or find a different one on the internet.
• 1 time a week you are going to teach yourself a stick trick. 
• Stick Trick Video -   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKZrODozLbc
• Work on them in order. 

 

Testing

• Every other week you will complete a wall ball test for either time or accuracy.
• Time – see how many times you can successfully throw and catch right to right / left to left in 60 seconds – write the results down with the date in your notebook or index card.
• Accuracy – draw a circle on the wall (3 to 6 inches) or use 2 bricks.  In 60 seconds see how many times you can successfully hit that circle in 60 seconds with your right hand, with your left hand.  – write the results down with the date in your notebook or index card

Gentlemen, none of this is rocket science.  It simply comes down to putting in the work on a consistent basis. Improving your skills doesn’t have to take a long time.  It does however require that 1) you work on them with a purpose, 2) you track your changes, 3) that you have a goal that is measurable. 

This starts this weekend.  

Every player should go out and complete the wall ball test.  

60 seconds lefty.  60 seconds righty.  

Mark down your results and post them in the comments.  

Friday, June 5 – Conditioning (Just Sign Your Initials) - Last Day!!!!

Please see our website under Covid for any of these exercises if you don’t know them.

• Dynamic Stretching 

• 180s (4 x 20) – run 10 yards turn and finish backward. 

• 5 and 10 yard agilities
• This drill is a full speed backward drill in a 5 or 10 yard area. Defenders will place toes on the line in a good stance & body position (chin over toes). On command, defenders will backpedal 5 or 10 yards, plant foot and sprint forward to the line, then backpedal and plant foot again and sprint past the line.
• Do 3x at 5 yards and 3x at 10 yards
• Coaching Points - Stress chin over the toes, vigorous arm movement, leverage foot and head up as they sprint forward
• 4 x 20 yards

• 1 x Ladder drills or line drills or jump rope for 5 minutes

• Ivan The Terrible

• 200 yard meter run - 60 seconds with run and rest combined
• can be 200 continuous run, 100 down and back or 50 yard down, back, down, back, etc.
• 20 lunges
• 20 burpees
• 30 crunches

• 200 yards run - 60 seconds with run and rest
• can be 200 continuous run, 100 down and back or 50 yard down, back, down, back, etc.
• 15 lunges
• 15 burpees
• 25 crunches

• 200 meter run - 60 seconds with run and rest
• can be 200 continuous run, 100 down and back or 50 yard down, back, down, back, etc.
• 10 lunges
• 10 burpees
• 20 crunches

• 200 meter run - 60 seconds with run and rest
• can be 200 continuous run, 100 down and back or 50 yard down, back, down, back, etc.
• 5 lunges
• 10 burpees
• 15 crunches

Please complete the wall ball drills to finish for the day.

Burning River Wall Ball

 

• HS players  - 25 of each
• MS players -  20 of each
• Youth players -  15 of each
• Goalies – 30 of strong hand only

• 2 handed - Catch Right, 1 Cradle, Throw Right
• 2 handed - Catch Left, 1 Cradle, Throw Left

• 1 handed - Catch Right, 1 Cradle, Throw Right
• 1 handed - Catch Left, 1 Cradle, Throw Left

• 2 handed - Catch Right, NO Cradle, Throw Right
• 2 handed - Catch Left, NO Cradle, Throw Left

• 2 handed - Catch and Switch - Throw right, catch right, split dodge to left hand, throw left, catch left and split back to right hand

• 2 handed - Catch and Roll - Throw right, catch right, roll to your to left hand, throw left, catch left and roll back to right hand

• 2 handed - Twister / back handed – Throw right, catch backhanded.  Throw backhanded, catch right

•  2 handed - Twister / back handed – Throw left, catch backhanded.  Throw backhanded, catch left.

• If you want to push it do a set of throw behind the back and catch forward.

• High school players – you should be able to do most of these drills while walking or jogging down the wall.

Thursday, June 4 – Conditioning (Post your best 1 set time on the 240 yard shuttle)

Please see our website under Covid for any of these exercises if you don’t know them.

• Dynamic Stretching 

• 180s (4 x 20) – run 10 yards turn and finish backward.  

• 5 and 10 yard agilities
• This drill is a full speed backward drill in a 5 or 10 yard area. Defenders will place toes on the line in a good stance & body position (chin over toes). On command, defenders will backpedal 5 or 10 yards, plant foot and sprint forward to the line, then backpedal and plant foot again and sprint past the line.
• Do 3x at 5 yards and 3x at 10 yards
• Coaching Points - Stress chin over the toes, vigorous arm movement, leverage foot and head up as they sprint forward

• 4 x 20 yards 

• 1 x Ladder drills or line drills or jump rope for 5 minutes

• 240 Yard Shuttles (6 x 40 yards)
• Set up
• Place 2 cones 40 apart (40 steps, 3 or 4 houses, etc) (Notice it says yards not feet)
• On go you sprint from 1 cone to the other 3x
• You must touch a foot or hand past the cones for the rep to count.

• Reps (High School times – see below for MS and Youth Adjustments)
• Run from 1^st cone to the 2 cone and back 3 times
• Take 2 minute rest between sets
• HS players complete 4 sets of this  
• run 240 yards, rest, run 240 yards, rest, run 240 yards, run 240 yards, done
• MS and Youth players complete 3 sets.
• run 240 yards, rest, run 240 yards, rest, run 240 yards, done

• Adjustments
• MS players take a 2:15 minute rest between sets. 
• Youth players take a 2:30 minute rest between sets.  

• Goal
• HS players  - Under 1:00 minute (Middies under 0:50 seconds)
• MS players -  Under 1 minute 15 seconds
• Youth players -  Under 1 minute 30 seconds

Please complete the wall ball drills to finish for the day.

Burning River Wall Ball

• HS players  - 25 of each
• MS players -  20 of each
• Youth players -  15 of each
• Goalies – 30 of strong hand only

• 2 handed - Catch Right, 1 Cradle, Throw Right
• 2 handed - Catch Left, 1 Cradle, Throw Left

• 1 handed - Catch Right, 1 Cradle, Throw Right
• 1 handed - Catch Left, 1 Cradle, Throw Left

• 2 handed - Catch Right, NO Cradle, Throw Right
• 2 handed - Catch Left, NO Cradle, Throw Left

• 2 handed - Catch and Switch - Throw right, catch right, split dodge to left hand, throw left, catch left and split back to right hand

• 2 handed - Catch and Roll - Throw right, catch right, roll to your to left hand, throw left, catch left and roll back to right hand

• 2 handed - Twister / back handed – Throw right, catch backhanded.  Throw backhanded, catch right

•  2 handed - Twister / back handed – Throw left, catch backhanded.  Throw backhanded, catch left.

• If you want to push it do a set of throw behind the back and catch forward.

• High school players – you should be able to do most of these drills while walking or jogging down the wall.

 

Tuesday, June 2 – Conditioning (Enter Your Mile Time)

Please see our website under Covid for any of these exercises if you don’t know them.

• Dynamic Stretching

• 180s (4 x 20) – run 10 yards turn and finish backward. 
  
  
• 5 and 10 yard agilities
• This drill is a full speed backward drill in a 5 or 10 yard area. Defenders will place toes on the line in a good stance & body position (chin over toes). On command, defenders will backpedal 5 or 10 yards, plant foot and sprint forward to the line, then backpedal and plant foot again and sprint past the line.
• Do 3x at 5 yards and 3x at 10 yards
• Coaching Points - Stress chin over the toes, vigorous arm movement, leverage foot and head up as they sprint forward
  
  
• 4 x 20 yards

• 1 x Ladder drills or line drills or jump rope for 5 minutes

• A Mile Run For Time ( Post your time) 

•  Goal
• HS players  - Under 7:00 minute (Middies under 6 minutes)
• MS players -  Under 8:00 minutes
• Youth players -  Under 10 minutes 

Please complete the wall ball drills to finish for the day.



 

Burning River Wall Ball

• HS players  - 25 of each
• MS players -  20 of each
• Youth players -  15 of each
• Goalies – 30 of strong hand only

• 2 handed - Catch Right, 1 Cradle, Throw Right
• 2 handed - Catch Left, 1 Cradle, Throw Left

• 1 handed - Catch Right, 1 Cradle, Throw Right
• 1 handed - Catch Left, 1 Cradle, Throw Left

• 2 handed - Catch Right, NO Cradle, Throw Right
• 2 handed - Catch Left, NO Cradle, Throw Left

• 2 handed - Catch and Switch - Throw right, catch right, split dodge to left hand, throw left, catch left and split back to right hand

• 2 handed - Catch and Roll - Throw right, catch right, roll to your to left hand, throw left, catch left and roll back to right hand

• 2 handed - Twister / back handed – Throw right, catch backhanded.  Throw backhanded, catch right

•  2 handed - Twister / back handed – Throw left, catch backhanded.  Throw backhanded, catch left.

• If you want to push it do a set of throw behind the back and catch forward.

• High school players – you should be able to do most of these drills while walking or jogging down the wall.