By April Chapple
Okay some freshmen girl volleyball players CAN rely on pure physical raw talent when it comes to being considered for the Varsity team but there are some things you can do if you are a little less physically endowed to get the volleyball coach to notice you. Just check out these tips and apply them to your next volleyball practice.
1. Come Early, Leave Late to Practice.
For girls volleyball practice I use to come to my high school gym one half hour before practice and lay in the middle of the gym and just visualize that the court was mine. Seriously, I convinced myself that anything that happened on that volleyball court, any ball that came on my side I was personally going to be responsible for. Nothing was going to fall in defense and no one was going to dig my hits.
I think something worked because we made it to the California State Championships for the first time my senior year. I chose to to come early and/or stay late to exercise my mental skills but I also did it to practice serving and perform individual wall drills for setting and passing as well.
2. Become the most effective server on your girl's volleyball team.
Read the article the "Girl's Volleyball: Top 5 Places to Serve After a Team Timeout" to learn how to become your volleyball team's most effective server.
3. Okay its not a movie about girl's volleyball but still GO rent the DVD movie "Rudy" starring Sean Astin...Watch it...then adopt his "never quit" attitude. Period.
Yeah, it's a football movie - but it's the best one you will ever see AND you'd be surprised how many conditioning drills in football are similar to the ones we do in girls volleyball. Just watch the movie.
4. Go After EVERY volleyball in defense.
For your girls volleyball practice adopt the "Rudy" attitude in defense and make any ball in defense YOUR ball. Decide that nothing falls around you or in your immediate area. Take pride in TRYING to get every ball up so your team has another chance to play it and make a point or side out. You may not get it the first or second time but you'll get closer and closer each time and most importantly your coach will notice your effort.
5. Become the backrow quarterback for your girl's volleyball team.
Talk to your teammates before, during and after the game and give them valuable information about what you see happening. Direct traffic by calling out plays you see developing.
This isn't difficult because many times a backrow player - if she's concentrating can see a play developing just like the front row player or sooner. So if you see the Right Front player sliding over to run the "X " Don't keep this information to yourself! Call it out "Watch the X" Watch number 15 coming around" Say it Loud enough so everyone can hear it. If you see the fake "X" developing which is what a lot of setters call after running the X "Call it out" out loud..."watch number 15 coming around for the fake X".
Let the blockers here you, let your defense hear you...just commentate. Secrets?
There are no secrets on the volleyball court. Let your teammates know what to expect.
If a player goes through the front row rotation and all the points she made were by wiping off the block or hitting cross court, the next time she rotates up to the left front YOU go up and out loud and tell YOUR front row blockers in a LOUD voice "Hey that #15 the last time hit everything Xcourt. Be ready for her Xcourt attack."
Besides this being a very good way of "getting inside" your opponent's head it let's your coach know that you are a smart volleyball player, making yourself aware of what is going on in the game and you're doing what it takes to help your team win.
Question: How Tall do you have to be a good Backrow Quarterback? Answer: Size just doesn't matter!
Okay some freshmen girl volleyball players CAN rely on pure physical raw talent when it comes to being considered for the Varsity team but there are some things you can do if you are a little less physically endowed to get the volleyball coach to notice you. Just check out these tips and apply them to your next volleyball practice.
1. Come Early, Leave Late to Practice.
For girls volleyball practice I use to come to my high school gym one half hour before practice and lay in the middle of the gym and just visualize that the court was mine. Seriously, I convinced myself that anything that happened on that volleyball court, any ball that came on my side I was personally going to be responsible for. Nothing was going to fall in defense and no one was going to dig my hits.
I think something worked because we made it to the California State Championships for the first time my senior year. I chose to to come early and/or stay late to exercise my mental skills but I also did it to practice serving and perform individual wall drills for setting and passing as well.
2. Become the most effective server on your girl's volleyball team.
Read the article the "Girl's Volleyball: Top 5 Places to Serve After a Team Timeout" to learn how to become your volleyball team's most effective server.
3. Okay its not a movie about girl's volleyball but still GO rent the DVD movie "Rudy" starring Sean Astin...Watch it...then adopt his "never quit" attitude. Period.
Yeah, it's a football movie - but it's the best one you will ever see AND you'd be surprised how many conditioning drills in football are similar to the ones we do in girls volleyball. Just watch the movie.
4. Go After EVERY volleyball in defense.
For your girls volleyball practice adopt the "Rudy" attitude in defense and make any ball in defense YOUR ball. Decide that nothing falls around you or in your immediate area. Take pride in TRYING to get every ball up so your team has another chance to play it and make a point or side out. You may not get it the first or second time but you'll get closer and closer each time and most importantly your coach will notice your effort.
5. Become the backrow quarterback for your girl's volleyball team.
Talk to your teammates before, during and after the game and give them valuable information about what you see happening. Direct traffic by calling out plays you see developing.
This isn't difficult because many times a backrow player - if she's concentrating can see a play developing just like the front row player or sooner. So if you see the Right Front player sliding over to run the "X " Don't keep this information to yourself! Call it out "Watch the X" Watch number 15 coming around" Say it Loud enough so everyone can hear it. If you see the fake "X" developing which is what a lot of setters call after running the X "Call it out" out loud..."watch number 15 coming around for the fake X".
Let the blockers here you, let your defense hear you...just commentate. Secrets?
There are no secrets on the volleyball court. Let your teammates know what to expect.
If a player goes through the front row rotation and all the points she made were by wiping off the block or hitting cross court, the next time she rotates up to the left front YOU go up and out loud and tell YOUR front row blockers in a LOUD voice "Hey that #15 the last time hit everything Xcourt. Be ready for her Xcourt attack."
Besides this being a very good way of "getting inside" your opponent's head it let's your coach know that you are a smart volleyball player, making yourself aware of what is going on in the game and you're doing what it takes to help your team win.
Question: How Tall do you have to be a good Backrow Quarterback? Answer: Size just doesn't matter!
Post a Comment