Lacrosse Technical Rubric — U16
Coach-grade U16 lacrosse Technical rubric: cradling, passing, catching, and shooting anchored at 3/5/7/9 with observable, sideline-visible behaviors — not adjectives.
By Eugene · Founder, PlayerFocus · Building the development OS for youth sports academiesUse this rubric on the sideline today
- 1Watch a full possession, not just the shot — track cradle and ball protection from first touch through release.
- 2Stand behind the goal line during shooting reps to see placement and release variety, not just whether it scored.
- 3Count off-hand reps separately; note if clean catches and passes only happen to the dominant side.
- 4Watch at least one live-defense rep with a real check per sub-skill before rating — an unpressured drill rep alone overrates.
- 5Jot the anchor number in the moment against a specific behavior you just saw, rather than averaging impressions after practice ends.
Rate each sub-skill 1–10
Anchors describe what a 3, 5, 7, or 9 looks like in practice. Use the anchor that matches what you saw — interpolate to 4/6/8 when the player sits between two anchors. A 1 or 10 should be rare.
Cradling & Ball Protection
Sub-skillKeeping possession of the ball through pressure, contact, and change of direction at game speed.
- 3
- Cradles with the stick close and vertical only when standing still; under any approach or contact the head drops away from the body and the stick face opens, and the ball is frequently dislodged on a check.
- 5
- Cradles low-and-tight through moderate defensive pressure and while changing direction at game speed, using the off-hand or body to shield the stick on the approach side, but still loses the ball occasionally to a well-timed check from behind.
- 7
- Switches cradling hands and protects with body and off-arm fluidly while running full speed, cutting, and absorbing contact; keeps the stick head shielded on both sides against a shadowing defender and rarely surrenders the ball in traffic.
- 9
- Protects the ball through doubled coverage and sustained physical pressure while still scanning the field to read a slide or open teammate, without ever looking down at the stick; draws checks that miss because of positioning, not luck.
Passing
Sub-skillDelivering accurate, catchable passes to a moving teammate under defensive pressure and at game speed.
- 3
- Passes are accurate only when stationary and unguarded, thrown with a short direct release; passes under any pressure or while running are frequently off-target, low, or telegraphed with a long wind-up.
- 5
- Completes accurate passes to a stationary or lightly moving teammate at 10-15 yards while jogging with a quick release; passes on the run at full speed or over longer distances are less consistent and force the receiver to adjust.
- 7
- Delivers accurate, catchable passes on the run, off both sides of the body, and while being closed out by a defender, at distances up to 20-25 yards, consistently leading a cutting teammate into space instead of throwing right at them.
- 9
- Threads passes through tight defensive seams with minimal backswing, varies release point and pass type (bounce, feed, skip pass) to beat a slide or double-team, and delivers the ball where a teammate can shoot or cut immediately in stride.
Catching
Sub-skillSecuring passes cleanly on the move, off-target, and under defensive pressure, then transitioning into the next action.
- 3
- Catches only passes thrown directly and softly to the pocket while stationary; passes that are off-target, high, low, or arrive with velocity are dropped or bobbled, especially with a defender nearby.
- 5
- Catches accurate passes on the move at moderate speed and gives with the stick to absorb velocity, but struggles with off-target passes or catches contested by a check from behind.
- 7
- Catches passes that are off-target — behind, low, or wide — at full sprint speed by adjusting stick position and footwork, secures the ball through incidental contact, and transitions straight into a cradle or shot without a hitch.
- 9
- Catches under active defensive pressure and off-speed or awkward passes with one-handed or across-body adjustments, converting the catch directly into a shot or dodge with no wasted motion, rarely needing a second touch to gain control.
Shooting
Sub-skillProducing accurate, hard-to-save shots from varied angles, releases, and speeds, including under pressure.
- 3
- Shoots accurately only from a stationary, unguarded spot close to the goal with a slow, telegraphed wind-up; shots on the run or from distance are frequently off-target, weak, or easily saved because the release is predictable.
- 5
- Shoots with reasonable accuracy and pace while running through a set play or right after a catch, using one consistent release such as overhand, hitting open areas of the goal from 8-10 yards but with limited variety under pressure.
- 7
- Shoots accurately from multiple angles and release points — overhand, sidearm, on the run, off a dodge — with quick stick speed, adjusts placement to exploit a goalie's positioning, and finishes chances off a feed without breaking stride.
- 9
- Combines deception (hesitation, fake, changing release angle) with power and accuracy in traffic or off a tightly contested dodge, consistently placing shots into corners a goalie can't reach across varied game-speed situations.
What's developmentally appropriate at U16
- Normal range
- A normal U16 player cradles low-and-tight under moderate defensive pressure, completes on-the-run passes to a cutting teammate, and finishes an open shot from 8-10 yards with one reliable release — solid, game-ready execution without much shot variety yet.
- Exceptional
- An exceptional U16 protects the ball through doubled coverage while still scanning the field, threads passes through tight seams under pressure, and finishes with deception and multiple release angles in traffic — flashes of varsity-ready, recruitable stick work.
- Behind
- A U16 player who's behind still drops his head and loses the ball to a single check, needs to be standing still and unguarded to complete a pass or make a catch cleanly, and shoots with a slow, predictable wind-up that a goalie reads easily.
Rating biases to watch for
- Confusing a size or speed advantage with technical skill — a bigger, faster U16 can bull through defenders on athleticism while cradling loosely and still get rated a 7 or 9.
- Anchoring on one highlight-reel shot or catch from a big game and inflating the whole sub-skill rating instead of rating the consistent baseline seen across multiple sessions.
- Rating stick skills off the dominant hand only and never watching (or discounting) off-hand passing and catching, which hides a real weakness a good defense will find.
- Penalizing a specialist — a pure finisher or a pure feeding middie — on a sub-skill outside their role instead of rating what their actual position requires at U16.
- Letting last year's rating or reputation carry forward without re-observing this season, when a growth spurt, new coaching, or an off-season layoff can shift a player's technical level either way.
What to write in your evaluation
A rating without a note is half a rating. Use these phrasing templates so the parent reads a story, not a number.
- low rating
"Jake's cradling opens up whenever a defender closes in fast — he's still losing the ball to first-time checks at game speed, so we're spending the next few weeks on protected-cradle footwork under live pressure before scrimmages."
- mid rating
"Maya completes on-the-run passes to a cutting teammate and shoots accurately from 8-10 yards with her overhand release, which is right where a sophomore should be. We've logged it in PlayerFocus and next we're adding a sidearm release so she has more than one option under pressure."
- high rating
"Owen is already threading feeds through tight seams and finishing with deception off contested dodges — that's varsity-caliber stick work for his age, so we're testing him against our best defenders in every practice rep to keep pushing it."
What this rubric does NOT measure
- —Field vision and decision-making — when to dodge, pass, or shoot (Tactical pillar), not whether the stick mechanics were clean.
- —Off-ball movement, spacing, and team-defense positioning (Tactical pillar).
- —Speed, agility, strength, and stick-check power (Physical pillar).
- —Competitiveness, coachability, and composure after a turnover or missed shot (Mental/Psychological pillar).
Questions parents and coaches ask
- What changed from the younger age band?
- At U16 the bar shifts from "can execute cleanly when unguarded" to "can execute under real defensive pressure, at speed, with variety." A U14 5 can be a U16 3 — the same clean-but-unpressured skill no longer holds up against faster, smarter defenders.
- Does a 7 last season mean a 7 this season?
- No. Growth spurts, coaching changes, and off-season reps can move a player either direction fast at this age. Re-observe every season, and mid-season for quickly developing players, rather than carrying forward an old rating.
- Should I fold in other-pillar notes?
- No — keep Technical ratings limited to stick mechanics you can see: cradle, pass, catch, shot. Decision-making, speed, and competitiveness belong to Tactical, Physical, and Mental; mixing them muddies what the rating actually tells you.
- How often should I re-rate technical?
- Every 4-6 weeks during a season catches real change without over-reacting to one good or bad game. Log it in PlayerFocus right away, though, if you see a clear, durable mechanical shift like a new release or footwork change.
Related in the Standard
- glossaryFour Pillars (Youth Sports Development)
The Four Pillars are the four domains of youth athlete development — Technical, Tactical, Athleticism, and Mental — used by academies to evaluate, plan, and communicate progress holistically rather than by score alone.
- glossaryPillar Rating
A 1–10 score on a single development pillar (Technical, Tactical, Athleticism, or Mental), anchored to age-appropriate behaviors so the same number means the same thing across coaches and seasons.
- glossaryAge Band
The age grouping a player falls into for the season — U8, U10, U12, U14, and so on. Anchored to birth year, age bands keep evaluations comparable across coaches and seasons.
- toolPlayer Evaluation & Tryout Scorecard
Build a free, printable player evaluation and tryout scorecard for any sport and age group — real development pillars and skills, not a generic 1-to-5 grid. No email, no signup.
- guideHow to evaluate a youth player without bias
Relative age, recency, the halo effect, and sheer physical maturity quietly distort youth evaluations. This guide shows how to anchor ratings to a rubric, reference them to age rather than the group, separate maturity from ability, and write evaluations down so they compound instead of resetting every season.