We arrive back at the Pennsylvania Convention Center for Day 2, bright and early. The first session started at 8:30 and there were definitely some coaches who were very sleepy!
We began our morning with Helen Knull (Michigan State) discussing a balanced attack in the circle. She gave us some awesome advice and told us that our players really need to have a great shot selection and to use different types of shots. She also said, “the first touch needs to go towards the goal and have your hands already prepped.” Lots of repetition and one on one practice are needed for your forwards to feel confident and comfortable using different shooting techniques.
The next presentation featured Jennifer Stone, coach at Lafayette College, who discussed how to adjust to a player up or down situation. What does your team do in this situation? Do all of your players know when you are in a numbers up and/or numbers down situation? How do you relay this information to your team? These are the first questions that need to be answered to be successful on either end of the play.
The last presentation of the day was a coaches choice. You could either listen to Jennifer Stone discuss 3D skills or Beth Gottung (Montclair State) describe ways to maximize your practice time. Jennifer gave us some great strategies on how to incorporate 3D skills into your players game and the most important piece is your footwork, your feet and body have got to go with the ball to be successful. She broke it down piece by piece and we saw a great progression from basic to advanced. Beth discussed the preparation needed to plan your practice. She mentioned that you should name your drills so that you can use them again later in the season and the players will remember what it was. She gave us a copy of her practice plan which really outlines and organizes her and her assistant.
All and all the Coaches Academy was a success and we really took a lot of great information with us. Coaches, if you have never been to a NFHCA event, we recommend that you go, you will definitely enjoy it! We are looking forward to the next one!
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