Hitting System Part 1
I did plan to give you a sequence of drills I use when introducing hitting to young players. Thus the su
btitle. After all, I have given you the basic concept of how it should be done and the general rules for the skill. The least I can do is give you steps to take and lead-up activities I use to teach players how to correctly strike a ball. But ...
OMG! I watched another YouTube video on teaching young players to ”spike.” Yep, I was searching for some LIV Golf coverage, and there it was. How do I pass up a clip titled “Teaching Young Players to Spike a Volleyball?” I know, the term “spike” should have been the red flag, but I clicked on it anyway.
It started out questionable. The coach had them take five swings. I hope you understand it is very difficult to pretend to use a game-like swing without a ball there. As they were swinging, some of the girls were lifting their left foot and stepping through. Some were following through past their body. Most were swinging with their hips facing the net. He corrected no one. Ahhhhhhhhhh! Ahhhhhhhhh!
After the swinging, they began the approach. I liked where he started. He said he works on the last two steps. I’m thinking, “OK. I like this.” That admiration quickly dissipated. He had them work on the steps straight at the net instead of at an angle. If that wasn’t enough, he had them jump and swing. Of course none of them swung as they would swing at a set ball ... if they even knew how to do that. What a freaking waste of time. Ahhhhhhhhhh! Ahhhhhhhhh! (I feel like Sam Kinnison.)
The last thing he had them do was hit over the net from a little toss after their two-step approaches. A few of these girls were under 5 feet tall. I knew we were in trouble when I noticed the net at regulation height. As if it wasn’t a foregone conclusion before he started the drill, not one girl swung correctly. Oh, most did get it over the net, but how they got it over did not resemble a proper swing. I’m not sure any of them could jump high enough to put her hand over the net ... let alone hit the ball down into the court.
W
ith the net at regulation height, even if he had them approaching and swinging properly, none of them could have done it. I have absolutely no clue what he was trying to accomplish. Whatever it was, it would have been easier with the net a foot lower.
Rant has ended.
Let's talk about stuff you can do that will speed up success and allow the kids to feel successful.
With young kids, I begin with a whiffle ball or tennis ball. As I said earlier, I teach them the proper throwing motion. I have them throw the ball against a wall. (It didn’t take me long to learn the skill of "catching" might be lagging behind that of "throwing." Thus the use of a wall instead of a partner.)
As they begin throwing properly, I add targets for them to hit. I place the targets on the throwing line at different heights. I have to stress that the throwing motion must remain the same. The only change is the release point of the ball. Watch for the kids dropping their elbows to aim instead of just throwing the ball. Also, don’t let them take big steps.
To engage the core and to make sure they keep their hands in the proper position – relaxed and turned – have someone stand behind them holding a ball which the thrower must grab to throw. Be sure the ball is being held in a realistic spot for grabbing.
To introduce hitting a ball while standing, I have the kids hop from a defensive position to the ready-to-hit position, the throwing position, when I say “ball up.” Make sure the arms are up with the hitting arm up and pulled back, hand turned. I do this over and over so it becomes second nature.
Next I have a small group, three or four kids, stand in a line. I stand 10 feet in front of them with a ball. Hitting a ball that is coming directly at you is the easiest ball to hit. The first player starts in a defensive position. I say “ball up.” She immediately goes to the ready-to-hit position. When she has the correct position, I toss a ball on her hitting plane. Make sure your toss makes her stretch to reach the ball. Her objective is to hit the ball at my feet. She will then go to the end of the line. With older or more advanced girls, you can have them jump to hit instead of staying on the ground. The girls not in the hitting line shag the balls.
The next girl hops into the defensive position, and I go through the command, check form, and toss the ball routine.
Be sure each girl keeps her elbow up with an extended arm as she makes contact. Make sure she uses her body as previously mentioned. She must drag the toe of the back foot up to the front foot. Don’t require anyone to follow through. Let the arm do what is natural after contact with the ball.
For the next step, eliminate the command ”ball up.” Get them in the defensive position, toss the ball, and make sure they react to the toss by hopping into the ready position. Continue to have them strike the ball at your feet. The ability to toss the ball where it needs to be is important. If the ball is tossed correctly, the only thing the girls need to think about is good swing. If you toss the ball off line, be sure they move their entire bodies so the ball is on their hitting planes. Don’t let them lean to hit it.
When they hop into the ready position, gradually move your tossing position from in front of them to facing them. You should work your way into the setter‘s position. As you gradually move your tossing position, they continue to hit the ball to where you were standing when the drill began.
You will do a great deal of corrections. It’s nice to have someone else toss the ball so you can help more. It would be nice for the girls toss the ball, but I have not had much success doing that.
After they hit the ball at your feet, move to hitting the ball over a six-foot net. Again, your toss is important. The ball needs to be tossed so it would land on their heads. Remember, the only thing that needs to change is the contact point. Now that they are hitting it over the net, the contact spot is much closer to the body. Make sure they take the same swing they took when hitting at your feet. Many girls will change their swing to get the ball over. Remind them the net is lower and you don’t care if the ball goes over. You are interested in the swing. They will begin to connect the contact point with the trajectory. It will be slightly different for each player. If you stress technique and contact point, praising them for a proper swing instead of the result, they will gain confidence and learn to make the needed contact-point adjustments to hit the ball with some pace over the net.
Let’s add an approach to the swing ... next time.
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