There are two skills that win volleyball matches – serving and passing. The beautiful thing is you don't have to be 6 feet tall to master either one. You don't even need to be a great athlete. Does it help? Sure. Is it necessary? Nope.
Let's start with passing.
Passing serve is probably the most important skill young kids need to master.
First, change the vernacular when teaching this skill.
I had an epiphany one afternoon at practice. I realized that the term “passing” in other sports brings up images of body movement or movement in general.
In football the quarterback passes the ball by throwing it
In soccer a player passes the ball to her teammate by kicking it
In basketball the ball is pushed to the target
In NASCAR cars speed by each other when passing.
In each case, movement is key to a successful pass.
I wanted players to stop moving their bodies when they passed. It looked like they were trying to hit the ball to the setter. For years I wore out the phrase STOP SWINGING YOUR ARMS when we practiced passing. Maybe these kids hear the term “passing the ball” and they try to move the ball by moving their arms. Kids are trying to swing at the ball to pass it to the setter. They think they need to learn how hard to swing to get the ball to the setter. The result? Ugliness. Pure disaster. The ball flies into the ceiling, over the net, or behind the player.
Something had to change. STOP SWINGING YOUR ARMS was not gettin’ the job done.
I know this is not the only reason kids swing at a served ball to pass it. Misjudging the ball accounts for lots of swinging too. No one wants to get hit in the chest by a hard-driven serve. That’s a bit embarrassing. We’ll talk about that in a few paragraphs.
In case my epiphany had merit, I decided to have the girls “block” the ball when doing passing drills. When I introduced the change in terminology, I threw a ball against the wall. Naturally, it came back to me. The wall did nothing but get in the way. I explained I wanted them to create a wall with their arms. Their platforms would do with a serve what the wall did with my throw. Just allow the ball to bounce back. After the concept is demonstrated and understood, we can worry about direction.
I wanted that image planted in their brains. So we began.
First, convince them the ball will bounce off of their platforms if they create a solid wall with their arms. There is no need to swing at the ball to propel it forward. With young players, they need to lose the fear of pain when the ball makes contact with their platform. Have them wear a long sleeve shirt. Peer pressure will eliminate the shirt as time goes on.
I guess I should stop the music right here and discuss creating a solid, flat platform. You can’t assume kids understand how to create a good platform or even know what the term “platform“ means.
A good platform begins with the hands. If the hands aren’t correct, it will be almost impossible to create a good platform. Play close attention to each player’s hand position. Demand that everyone has the same hand position.
Remember, bad habits are like polyester shirts. Once they get pit stank, that stank ain’t going anywhere. You can wash that shirt until the you run out of water. It‘s not losin‘ the stank.
Have them place their thumbs together as pictured.
The thumbs remain fully in contact and pointed down as they block the ball. Having the thumbs in this position is the best way to assure a strong, flat platform.
Interlude ...
In my first or second year of being head coach, we held a formal tryout. We had one even though the only girls who did not make the team were those who ran a real risk of hurting themselves or hurting someone else.
One little blonde freshman showed a great deal of athleticism. She was fast, could strike the ball pretty well, and looked strong. She was a gritty kid. Right away I’m thinking she will develop into great little defensive player.
I didn’t pay a great deal of attention to the freshmen. I was focused on the varsity kids. But I kept seeing the little blonde freshman struggle to pass the ball. She contacted the ball below her waist, as you should, but It was flying everywhere. So naturally I started yelling at her to get her thumbs together and straighten her arms so her platform would be flat. The more she shanked the more frustrated I got.
Finally, I’m ready to explode. It was like she was defying me. I called her over and ask her what part of my instructions did she not understand. “You keep bending your left arm. Keep both arms straight!”
My frustration upset her. I could tell she was a little scared. She was almost in tears. Finally she said, ”Coach, I can’t straighten out my left arm. I was born that way.” Well now. Excuse me while I extract a size 9 1/2 that is tickling my tonsils.
Damn, I felt like an ass.
No. I was an ass. (To no one’s surprise, this was not the last time.)
To her credit, she figured it out. Didn’t do a bad job. Not only did she play volleyball, but she also played basketball and softball.
Another image the girls need to have ingrained is they never lose sight of their hands. Obviously, the focus is on the server and the ball, but their hands need to be in their periphery. With this image, the passer always has awareness of where her platform is and will find it easier to put it on the ball. Never lowering her hands out of her periphery also keeps her from wildly swinging at the ball.
The last part of creating a solid, wall-like platform is to tighten their shoulder and arm muscles as the ball is about to contact their platform.
Next, while we are introducing the new terminology for passing serve, we need to start the process of teaching them to block the serves to the setter instead of trying to hit it to her.
Next time ...
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