page_title: Goaltender (box lacrosse)
section_title: Styles
hierarchical_section_title: Goaltender (box lacrosse) / Styles
caption_attribution_description: English: Devan Mighton, men's masters lacrosse practice 2009.
context_page_description: The goaltender or goalie is a playing position in indoor or box lacrosse. More heavily armoured than a field lacrosse goaltender, since the invent of indoor lacrosse in 1931, the box lacrosse goalie has evolved into a much different position than its field lacrosse cousin.
context_section_description: Goaltending in box lacrosse tends to be more like goaltending in ice hockey than field lacrosse.  The box goalie's stance is similar to an ice hockey goalie.  The goalie crouched, but with his knees spread, not pinched like in ice hockey.  Heels shoulder-width apart, toes generally pointed on an outward angle to allow for stepping into the shot.  One hand sits on top of the thigh, holding the goal stick in a position to cover the five-hole (the area between the legs) and the other hand is resting or propped out in the vicinity between the waistline and the outside of the upper thigh.  The elbow is propped out, ready to swing out towards a high shot.
  The two main styles of box lacrosse goaltending are "playing the stick" and "take away".  The playing the stick or positional style is all about staying on angle with the shooter's stick, challenging the shooter by stepping towards him to limit the amount of net he can see, and using your size to your advantage in blocking the shot.  Take away or give-and-take is where the goalie stays on the inside of the post on the same side of the shot of the shooter, giving him the opposite side intentionally.  This gives the shooter a bad angle shot that the goalie is trying to force him to take.  When the player shoots, the goalie quickly steps across and covers the other side of the net and blocks the shot.  This style can be highly effective but can fall victim to fake shots.
caption: Box goalie challenging shooter on angle in basic stance.  Gear typical of the early 2000s.
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