The first time I saw her play I was recruiting for my high school team. Until the powers that be stopped me, I participated is the recruiting game for several seasons. I was moderately successful before they shut me down. In fact, my most successful team had only three girls who saw much playing time and who were originally in my district.
Anyway, on this little recruiting trip the subject of my interest was a six-foot freshman middle/opposite who I heard was unhappy with her current program. She also had her sights set on going to a big time program after high school. Just what the doctor ordered.
I arrived as the match was just beginning. She was lined up on the right side. The opposing team sent a free ball over the net. I and the rest of the crowd knew exactly where the ball was going.
The ball was passed pretty well. The setter got the ball up for her. She approached a bit too soon, jumped, took an odd swing at the ball and missed it completely. Whiffed it big time. I don’t think she even hit the air around it.
Obviously, she was embarrassed. I thought about walking right back to my car, but I stayed. Over the course of the match, she redeemed herself with nice kills and hard play. But her timing was off and her arm swing was – to put it nicely – in need of retooling.
Part of the reason she missed the ball was her funky arm swing. Something I knew she would need to change to realize her dream of playing D-1 volleyball.
She was so excited when she saw the set. Did I mention that this was her first high school match? She took off way too soon. Jumped as the ball was headed up. And obviously she was not in the air at the right time to make contact.
Long story, very short: she ended up coming to our school and getting a scholarship to Texas ... as a setter. Yes, she became one of the most sought after setters in the country. I may get into the position switch later. It’s a great story.
I tell this story to emphasize how important timing and the approach are. Even some of the best players screw it up. Most kids are late to the ball. But her excitement took over.
In the last post, I talked about eliminating the timing aspect all together to eliminate any frustration. It can be discourag
ing when a young player who is learning to jump and swing properly is never on time for a successful swing.
They have to master it at some point. So, like everything else, let’s go at it slowly.
Remember, not only do the kids need to recognize WHEN the ball is coming down. They also must recognize WHERE it will come down.
Of the two, the where may be more difficult than the when.
Great story if you have time ...
When I started coaching volleyball I had never coached girls’ anything. A few years into my volleyball coaching career the AD asked if I would be interested in coaching the softball team. He knew I had played baseball in college, so why not coach softball. Obviously, he was desperate.
I told him I would help for a few seasons until someone else could be found. On the first day of tryouts, I took the girls to a big field beside the diamond. I told them to go way out in the field so I could hit fly balls to them. That’s what my baseball coaches did with us. I had to find outfielders.
They went out and I started hitting fly balls to them one player at a time.
I hit the first ball. I looked out and saw the first girl running in with her glove up ready to catch the ball. One problem. The ball was 30 yards behind her. My first thought was, “She’s cut.”
Second girl up. I hit the ball. She just stood there. “Cut.”
This was going to be easy. Obviously, some of these kids couldn’t even catch a fly ball. Tryouts would be easy, and then it was on to working with the girls who could actually play the game. That thought was a bit premature.
Next girl up. I hit the ball a to her right. She did run in the proper direction, but the ball landed way over her head. Something wasn’t right. None of them had any idea where the ball was going to come down.
So I had them move in. Maybe I was hitting them too far. Maybe it was a bit unrealistic.
Nope. Same outcome. Not one kid had any idea where the ball was going.
Some ran back. The ball landed way in front of them. Others ran up. And you guessed it, the ball was way over their heads. Some just said screw it, and just stood there.
So I decided to have them move in further and throw a ball out to them. Success! I did have one who could catch the ball. Get her name. She will be the center fielder.
I ended up tossing the ball underhanded from about 20 feet away before most of them could catch it. They had no concept, no experience. They never learned spatial IQ needed to know when and where a batted ball would hit the ground. I was amazed. And I began to worry.
My only hope was that the pitching was going to be stellar. I also hoped these girls were not unique. If nothing else, we would learn to run out every fly ball we hit.
Let's get back to the volleyball court. Most young players will struggle with both when and where a set or a toss will come down. Parents: Play any game that involves a ball or balloon with your kids when they are young, Have them participate in activities that involve spatial awareness. If you want them to have spatial IQ, you’re going to have to get creative.
So coaches, we have to work on both the when and the where. I start with two girls and a ball. If they can’t toss well enough, I step in. Even in my condition, I toss better than many.
We don’t time the ball during the approach
Another teaching moment here...
The girls need to understand that they are not only players trying to get better, but also a big part of their teammates getting better. If they can’t toss well enough for their partners to get better, they need to practice tossing. Down the line, this will apply to hitting down balls or serves in drills. Each player is truly needed for each player to get better. They don’t want to be a “Drill Killer.”
Have the girls stand 10 feet apart. The girl with the ball tosses it up in the air to her partner. Her partner jumps and tries to catch it above her head while she is in the air. Don’t worry about footwork at this point. Just get them to jump and catch the ball in the air.
The girls toss the ball back and forth so each can jump and catch the ball above her head. Continue until the majority of the girls are doing it properly. Then, have them move apart a little more and toss a little higher.
The next step involves jumping using the last two steps of the approach. You will probably have to toss the ball. Try it with partners tossing to each other. If they can toss the ball to the correct spot, fantastic. If not, you need to step in. The tosser stands 15 feet from her partner. She will toss the ball in front of her partner so she can take those last two approach steps and jump. The tosses must be consistently the same height and distance.
Her partner will position herself so her approach steps to the ball are at a slight angle. She needs to make the two steps powerful using her arms as she did when we worked on the approach. Make sure when she jumps she is facing the tosser. Her left shoulder should be pointing at the imaginary net. The tosser is essentially in an imaginary setters box.
When she jumps, the ball should be in front of her. If she were to let the ball drop, it would pass in front of her and land slightly past her. Telling the girls to let the ball drop is a great way for them to learn how to track the ball. If the ball hits them, they need to adjust their starting point and their plant spots a bit.
To reinforce the idea of keeping the ball in front of them, tell the girls to tip the ball with their left hands. Remember, when they approach and jump, their left hands should be up, pointing at the ball.
At any time, you can have them take a full approach and do the same thing, tip the ball with their left hands. They should make full, powerful approaches. Don’t let them slack. Keep in mind they should go as hard and powerful as they can, but as slow as is required for them to be successful. You want them to go hard but do it properly. There is no prize for speed.
That sequence should be done without a net. The next step is to allow them to hit the ball. Again, I would not use a net even if it is very low. The net adds something else for them to calculate into the hitting equation. They get so focused on trying to get it over the net that they forget about every other aspect of the approach. They will have their hands full with the approach, the timing, the ball placement and trying to make contact. Adding the net may prove to be disastrous.
Coaches need to focus on each girl's technique first and worry about timing later. Tell them that regardless of their timing, do not stop their approaches. The approach needs to be fast and powerful. No stutter steps – even if the girls realize the timing is off.
We don’t time the ball during the approach. We time the ball before we start our approach. The best way to learn this is to approach hard even if the timing is poor. This will help them begin to get the timing down.
Unless they go hard at each toss, they will never learn the timing needed to hit the ball at the apex of their jump.
”Coach, when should I leave? I’m never on time.”
I’ll answer that question next time.
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