Spring 2025

Soccer or lacrosse cleats will work great. Soccer cleats might be easier to find for this age group.

Stay hydrated! Bring a water bottle to every practice and game.

A mouthguard is required for all players. You can buy them locally or online, but please make sure you follow the instructions and mold your mouthguard before playing. A second mouthguard is also suggested since children tend to lose them easily. Example 1 Example 2 *make sure you are buying a YOUTH mouthguard. Mouthguard for braces

You can buy a brand new stick or a used one. Play it Again Sports or Facebook Marketplace are great places to start for a used stick. When choosing a used stick, try to not choose a stick that is too short of a shaft and has fairly new strings. If you know an older lacrosse athlete, sometimes they are fantastic resources for all sticks. For questions about restringing a stick, contact us at info@roswellyouthlacrosse.com. For new sticks, below are a few examples: Complete Beginners Lacrosse Stick STX Exult Rise Complete Lacrosse Stick with Junior Lock Pocket STX Crux 100 Complete Lacrosse Stick - Mesh StringKing Women’s Starter Jr. Youth Lacrosse Stick Brine Dynasty Warp Jr. * Make sure it is a GIRLS stick, not a boys. And do not buy small sticks such as "Fiddle Sticks".

STX 4Sight+ S Youth Lacrosse Goggles STX Lacrosse Rookie Goggle Getting used to wearing goggles can be difficult for beginners. A ​ Neoprene Goggle Strap provides a more comfortable fit. * If you want head protection as well as eye protection, you can choose to wear a helmet rather than goggles, but it is NOT required. This is a personal choice.

Make sure you have a MOLDED mouthguard. You can buy online or in store. An extra one is always a good idea. Mouthguard for braces

Stick bag Backpack

Women's lacrosse cleats or youth soccer cleats work great. Lacrosse cleat examples

You can buy a brand new stick or a used one. Play it Again Sports or Facebook Marketplace are great places to start for a used stick. When choosing a used stick, try to not choose a stick that is too short of a shaft and has fairly new strings. If you know an older lacrosse athlete, sometimes they are fantastic resources for all sticks. For questions about restringing a stick, contact us at info@roswellyouthlacrosse.com. For new sticks, below are a few examples: Stick (dependent on ability level) Complete Beginners Lacrosse Stick STX Crux 100 Complete Lacrosse Stick - Mesh StringKing Women’s Starter Jr. Youth Lacrosse Stick Intermediate Sticks: Nike Lunar LT Complete Women’s Lacrosse Stick STX Crux 400 Aline Complete Girls Lacrosse Stick Nike Lunar Fly Girls Complete Stick

Stay hydrated! Bring a water bottle to every practice and game.

Brine Halo Lacrosse Goggles Neoprene Goggle Strap (for a more comfortable fit) If you want head protection as well as eye protection, you can choose to wear a helmet rather than goggles, but it is NOT required. This is a personal choice.

Click for lacrosse cleat examples

Stick bag Backpack

Make sure to purchase a mouthguard appropriate for your player. Mouthguards come in both youth and adult sizes. Make sure they are always MOLDED to your athlete prior to play. Mouthguard for braces

Brine Halo Lacrosse Goggles Neoprene Goggle Strap (for a more comfortable fit) If you want head protection as well as eye protection, you can choose to wear a helmet rather than goggles, but it is NOT required. This is a personal choice.

Stay hydrated! Bring a water bottle to every practice and game.

Lacrosse Stick Maverik Axiom Mesh Women’s Complete Stick Brine Edge Pro Carbon Women’s Complete Stick STX Crux Pro Elite Complete Women’s Stick

Stay hydrated! Bring a water bottle to every practice and game.

Wearing cleats is VERY important, even for throwing. Don’t wear sneakers. Also no metal cleats. Example: Literally any sports cleat without metal

Checked before games, during games, at practice, etc. Absolutely mandatory. We will make them sit out of practice and games without one. Example: Whatever fits your kid’s mouth. Your orthodontist may sell ones specifically for braces.

Avoid using goalie gloves unless your son is playing goalie. They are bulkier and less flexible. Otherwise choose based on price, availability and comfort. Example: STX Stallion 200 Lacrosse Gloves - Boys' | Dick's Sporting Goods

New gear: Dick’s Sporting Goods Used gear: Second-hand gear can save you 100’s and many go this route. Play it Again Sports is the common favorite and very affordable. Facebook Marketplace and Sideline Swap are also great options. Not all Play It Again Sports sell helmets. Stringing: Dick’s Sporting Goods, specialty store, or a college or high school lacrosse player. Choose your colors and mesh then Dick’s will string it for an additional $10-20 on top of the string purchase. Results will vary based on the stringer but are generally accepted to be well done. Brands: The bigger brands are STX, Maverick, Cascade, Warrior, StringKing, and Brine. There are others including Under Armor, Nike, and some higher end brands. 99% of what you see will be these brands. Any of those should be fine for U9/U11.

DO NOT BUY A WOMENS’ STICK. It is shallower and significantly harder to catch and cradle with. DO NOT BUY “mini sticks” or “fiddlesticks.” They look like normal lacrosse sticks but are slightly shorter with a smaller head. The stringing on a stick is by far the most important part of the stick. The sticks can be cut down and very little materially impacts your child at the U9/U11 level. Don’t obsess or overthink the shaft and head. More on this later. Sticks, including the head, should be 37”-42”. Sticks can easily be cut down to length with a hack saw or dremel tool. Shorter is better in most cases for U9/U11 (don’t worry about buying a long pole yet). I’ve never seen a U9/U11 stick break and at this level the weight isn’t a major concern. For any player cradling a ball, the difference between shaft materials will be in the single digit percentile of the total weight. Keep your kid from chunking, stomping on or otherwise mistreating his stick and you’ll be fine. The “bendy” heads on a stick are generally targeted to the specialized “face off” position and, even then, have only marginal benefits in U11/U9. StringKing is one of, if not the only, universally accepted turnkey complete stick you can buy new. The stick is quality and the included stringing is very good. StringKing Junior is great for the younger kids and beginners due to the short and narrow shaft. Example (and recommendation): StringKing Complete 2 Junior Youth Lacrosse Stick - Shorter Shaft | Dick's Sporting Goods Stick Recommendations: Cheapest ($20-30): Buy a $20-30 stick at Play It Again Sports that has a well-strung head (deeper pocket, shooting strings, reasonable condition) and then cut the stick down to size. $20-30 all-in. Use a Lacrosse ball in the store to gauge the pocket placement and depth. An employee may have the experience to recommend a stick. Balanced ($65): Buy a $20-30 stick at Play It Again Sports and cut the stick down to size. Buy a complete string kit from Dick’s like ECD HeroMesh 4.0 Complete String Kit - Semi-Soft | Dick's Sporting Goods for $35 and have them string it for $10. Turn Key ($100 or $120): Buy a StringKing Complete 2 Junior for $100 at Amazon Amazon.com : StringKing Complete 2 Junior Boy's Youth 10U Lacrosse Stick (White/Silver) : Sports & Outdoors or choose your customizations and get it for $120 at StringKing Complete Sticks for Youth Lacrosse | The Best Youth Sticks | StringKing.

If you’re getting a StringKing stick you can ignore this section. Quality stringing will make a huge difference in your child’s experience regardless of his skill level. This cannot be understated. Nearly every brand new stick is poorly strung but StringKings. Having used a “Warp” (Warp Pro/Evo Warp) style head for all three of my kids at one point, I can say they are “OK” but not great. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with them, though they are last on the list of “acceptable” in my personal opinion. ECD Hero and StringKing make great meshes and strings. Buying a used stick is a crapshoot but often has a serviceable stringing job. Generally custom stringing > StringKing default > Second-hand sticks that were custom strung > Dynasty Warp. Don’t use anything else. The detail: Strings: Shooting strings aren’t just for shooting so you’ll want to see them on your stick. People are a bit nuts and opinionated but don’t get hung up on the pattern used. “Yes” to getting shooting strings. They will look like shoe laces and add a slight friction as the ball is thrown. They help your kid get a bit of “whip,” a small boost in ball handling, and adds velocity to passes and shots. Two is most common for beginners. How many strings, the pattern, and adding a “shooting nylon/cord” isn’t going to make a noticeable effect at this level. Example: ECD HeroStrings | Dick's Sporting Goods Mesh The mesh's “softness” affects the cushion when catching and the durability. Hard and semi-hard meshes will last longer and be more durable. Semi-soft will be a tad easier to catch with. Not a huge difference but I’d recommend getting your kid to treat his stick well and go semi-soft. The difference between that and semi-hard is minor. Example: ECD Heromesh 4.0 Mesh - Semi Soft | Dick's Sporting Goods Pocket The stick pocket is where the ball rests. High, medium, or low. I’d recommend medium I recommend against a “shallow” pocket at this level. All-in-one kits are cost-effective: ECD HeroMesh 4.0 Complete String Kit - Semi-Soft | Dick's Sporting Goods Any fresh stringing will probably feel tight and shallow which can be remedied through some pushes against a baseball bat and wall ball.

Pick something comfortable your kid can run in.

Elbow pads should be comfortable and non-restrictive. Choose based on price, availability and comfort. Example: Nike Youth Vapor LT Arm Pads | Dick's Sporting Goods

Not all used sporting goods stores certify helmets. It should be NOCSAE/SEI certified. Most kids have a nondescript white helmet. Place a piece of tape on the front with your kid’s name. Example: Warrior Junior Burn Lacrosse Helmet | Dick's Sporting Goods

As of a few years ago, shoulder pads are required to be NOCSAE to better protect the chest/heart. Choose based on price, availability and comfort. Example: Nike Youth Vapor LT Shoulder Pads | Dick's Sporting Goods