The Athletic Trainer

As a hitter, there’s nothing more annoying than a blocker that seems to read your mind and get a hand in front of you every time. Well, it may be annoying to the hitter, but it’s the greatest thing in the world to the blocker!!

If you want to be a good blocker, you have to know a little about geometry. Angles are everything when it comes to blocking, which is nothing more than simple geometry. When you realize the hitter has a very limited number of angles to choose, it makes the job of a blocker much easier.

When a hitter makes his/her approach, they will be choosing cross-court, line or tip . The line is the lower percentage choice so you should set up your block for the cross-court shot and make a change if the hitter gives away his/her choice to go down the line. Don’t worry about the tip, it belongs to someone else.

If you are the outside blocker and you have a middle blocker moving your way, set up directly in the path of the hitter’s approach so when the middle blocker sidles up next to you the cross-court angle is completely covered. If you notice the hitter’s approach become more perpendicular to the net you can take a quick step toward the line, cutting off that angle. Likewise, if you’re in the air and see the hitter’s left shoulder drop, you can reach hard to your left, knowing he/she is attempting to cut the ball cross-court.

A good blocker studies the hitters, watching for little clues that give away their target, i.e. angle of approach, direction of their vault (jump), previous hits, etc. All these things can help you set up correctly and stop the shot from getting to your back row.

Please keep in mind that blocking is about putting up a wall and cutting off the court. If you don’t actually block the ball, don’t be angry or frustrated, you’ve still helped your team by eliminating a large section of the court, reducing the area that must be defended. Okay, with that in mind, let’s talk about body and hand position when blocking.

Be in position early. Don’t be away from the net and have to take a step or two forward when the set goes up. This is what causes net violation. When the other team is making their pass, be at the net, hands wide open on either side of your head, elbows pulled back away from the net. Set yourself up according to the hitter’s approach, coil deeply, wait for him/her to leave the floor and then explode into the air with arms and hands extended, watching the hitter, not the ball.

It is very important that your hands are not angled toward the hitter causing any blocked ball to land out of bounds. Instead, try to keep your hands parallel to the net and tilted forward slightly, causing the blocked ball to carom down into the court. It’s natural to face the hitter when blocking, so this will take practice and mental discipline. You want your hands to be a wall above the net, at the same angle as the net.

Body position is far less important than your hands. No matter what position your body is in, your hands still need to be parallel to the net when the ball is hit. If you are late arriving at the block you can still be affective if you’re hands are up and angled in the right direction. I’ve seen some of the craziest blocks happen when the center blocker, faked out by a good setter, finds him/herself way behind the set, but still throws up a hand and gets in front of the ball. Any effort is better than none. However, if you are playing center blocker and find yourself moving the wrong direction, be ready for the ball right where you are.

Hitters hate blocker, but ironically they themselves are blockers, depending upon whether they are playing offense or defense. So, when you find yourself on defense use your knowledge of how hitters think and adjust. When you put on your blocker’s hat, watch everything the hitter is doing and learn from what you see. It will make you a great blocker and feared on the court.

Over the years I’ve noticed a consistent problem that plagues young and inexperienced players, and that is the inability to correctly interpret what the opponent is going to do, also known as reading the play. This is one of the biggest challenges for athletes in team competition. Your ability (or inability) to divine what your opponent is attempting, and making the appropriate adjustments, will be the difference between you starting the game or watching from the bench, and ultimately your team’s ability to win.

In volleyball, anticipating where the opposition’s hitter is about to slam the ball will help you move into position earlier, play the ball better, and aide in a smooth transition to offense. Good play reading skills makes you a better defensive player and much more valuable to your team.

Now that I’ve got you thinking about the other team, I’m going to grab your cyber head and turn it around to look at your own court. That’s right, this is not only about reading the opponent’s plays, you also need to know what to look for on your own team. You not only need to know precisely where you should be to defend your area on the court, you need to know all the other positions as well, which will allow you to see if someone on your team is out of position and warn them, or adjust to cover for them.

Let’s talk about some specific tactics for back row defense players that may help you read an opposing hitter’s body language, which will in turn help you anticipate his/her decisions.

I want to begin by offering this caveat; don’t over-analyze the play! The process of reading a hitter from the back row is very similar to playing the front row. Your first job is to assess the direction and speed of the set and move into position. At that point you must analyze the hitter’s approach and any subtle clues that may give away his/her intended target. The hitter that sweeps wide on the approach will usually aim cross-court, but if the approach is perpendicular, or straight at the net, watch for the shot down the line .

Your own blockers present the next big challenge for the back row. A big part of your preparation is seeing, and hopefully knowing, where your blockers are going to be and covering the high percentage spots outside of their block.

In my article Volleyball 1,2,3 I talk about the necessity of preparation. When playing in the back row it is vitally important to be ‘prepared’ which will give you time to read the hitter. Besides observing where the set is going and the direction the hitter is facing when he/she leaves the floor, you also need to be ready to play the ball off the block.

If you are playing the number 6 position, or middle-back, you need to stay deep so you can recover any ball that is hit off the block and sails deep. You might also want to take an extra step opposite the set so you can play the hard angle cross court shot.

If you are playing the number 1 or 5 position, left or right-back, make sure you always start just behind the 3 meter (10 ft.) line so you can cover the quick middle hit, called the ‘#1′, or the tip from the front row setter.

Do not release from this position until the ball is set outside or to the opposite position. Now I know what you’re thinking, “If the set doesn’t go to the middle hitter I’ll be out of position if I start at the 3m line.” Don’t worry, if you’re on your toes you’ll have time to transition deeper into your court if the set goes up and out.

If the set is away from your side, quickly release into the court with a big step/leap back and one toward the center of the court. As Hayley Merrett says in his tutorial, you must stay ‘in the sunshine’ of the ball when playing defense. He says, “Think about the ball as being a sun, and the block is shielding the sun’s light. On defense, it is important to change your position so that you are never behind the block, because you want to be ready to play the ball
where there is no one else to stop it. When taking your step into the court, make sure you are moving into an area that is not being covered by the block, or in the ’sunshine’.” Hayley offers an interesting metaphor and a good visual to help get you in position.

If the setter puts the ball to your side, take three or four quick steps backwards sticking close to the side line. It is imperative that you are completely stopped and ready to move when the ball is hit. If not, your reaction time will be diminished, and so will your pass. Also, if the ball is hit off the block you may need to spring from your position and run after it, or the ball may be tipped, and you will have go to the floor after it. If you are still moving when the ball is hit, your ability to react properly will be greatly affected.

After the approach and vault, if hitter begins to slow his/her arm swing at all you’ll know a tip is coming , or if the player is attacking a poor set that is tight to the net. If you see a tip coming, react first, call it out second.

When you are anticipating the ball, one necessary preparation is to turn your feet in slightly giving you the ability to explode forward with your first big step toward the ball. Otherwise, get low and be ready to take that hard
shot down the line.

If you watch the direction of the hitter’s approach you’ll know which direction he/she is going to hit… usually. It’s difficult to hit the line if your approach sweeps in from the side, but it can be done. However, for the most part a player approaching the net at an angle will usually hit cross court. If the approach is more perpendicular to the net the hit will most likely go down the line. Always be in ready position, because a hitter may suddenly change the direction of the ball by hitting across their body. This leads to our next point.

Every player has habits, or styles of play that will help you anticipate future moves… if you are paying attention. It will be of great value for you to study the habits of each player throughout a match. So, be a student of the other team’s players, knowing how they serve, hit, pass, etc. We are all creatures of habit, so learn to recognize others’ habits.

I know this is a lot of information, so don’t expect to master this in one day. Your goal in reading the play is to see things before they happen and act accordingly. You need to react to everything on the court, including what your own players are doing. Your coach expects you to be accountable for the space you are defending, so be in position, ready to react, always studying the other team. You’ll be way ahead of the game if you keep this in mind.

There are three basic offenses in volleyball; the 4-2, 6-2 and the 5-1.

The 4-2, rarely used in modern volleyball, is considered by most to be the first true offense. What I mean by true is this, if you play pickup volleyball at the park, most likely you’ll see the person in the middle front acting as the setter. This is known as center sets volleyball.

In the 4-2 offense, the team consists of four hitters and two setters, with the setters playing opposite positions from each other. This arrangement guarantees a setter in the front row at all times. While one is setting the two front hitters, the other is in the back row playing a passer until he/she rotates back up front.

Since the object of the game is to win, every coach wants a powerful offense. This means having as many hitters/blockers on the front row as possible and why the 6-2 was developed. I may have to take a moment to clarify that running a 6-2 offense doesn’t mean you have eight players on the court. It’s a simple way of explaining the presence of six hitters and two of them designated as setters when in the back row.

Unlike the 4-2, the setters in the 6-2 offense never fill the positions of a passer in the back row. Instead, the setter, playing in one of the back court positions, comes forward to set the three front row hitters. Two players cover the back court while the ball is on your side, but they will get help from one of the front court player during defense, i.e. when the opposing setter puts the pall up the right, the blocker on the left side of the court quickly drops into a defensive position, providing three back court defenders. The right side blocker does the same if the set goes to the left. So, after the ball is served, the setter in the back row moves to the front to set and the other setter, now in the front row, moves to the right to be the off-hand (or soft side) hitter. After the ball is put up to one of the hitters, the setter moves to assist the other players in covering the block. On defense, the setter moves to cover the tipped ball behind the blockers. Using the 6-2, you will have four players in the front row, with the setter unable to jump to attack or block a ball. With this kind of offense it is imperative that every player has well defined roles on the court and sticks to them.

The 5-1 is used when you have two many hitters and not enough good setters. There are 5 hitters and 1 setter in this offense and it’s run just like the 6-2 when the setter is in the back row. When your setter is in the front row, you run your offense just like a 4-2 and when he/she is in the back, play it like a 6-2. The obvious advantage to the 5-1 offense is that the hitters always have the same setter which fosters a great deal of trust when they become accustomed to the setting styles of the setter. The disadvantages in this offense is that your setter does a lot of running and needs to be in great shape and during half of your rotations your team is left with only two hitters/blockers in the front row.

I myself teach the 6-2 offense the most because of its versatility and flexibility. With two good outside hitters and a center blocker/hitter that you can give a #1 set to, your setter has loads of weapons at his/her disposal and your offense becomes very formidable.

I’m a firm believer in the idea of mastering the fundamentals of any sport and volleyball is no different. This is why I put so much emphasis on PASSING. It’s your first line of defense against your opponent’s serve and if you spray the ball, your team will have to compensate. And when both setter and hitter have to adjust their game, your offense suffers.

The goal of competitive sports is to reach the finals and if you want to give your team a chance at reaching their goal, then every player on the team must develop a strong passing technique. So, that’s what we’re going to discuss today!

To be a great passer you need to start low. Stagger your feet slightly, bend your knees and get you butt down. I recommend having you arms floating in front of you, elbows bent, just above waist level.

If you start with your arms in their receive position you may not be ready to set pass the ball if it comes high, at your chest or head. So, keep your arms half-way between the over-hand set pass position and the platform position.

As with most things, there are multiple techniques when it comes to the proper platform position and I won’t confuse you with them all. Instead, I’ll explain the one I’ve found to be the easiest and most effective.

One mistake I’ve seen with inexperienced players is interlocking your fingers. Unless the ball is miss-hit, or “dinked” you need as much mobility as possible, and interlocking your fingers greatly limits your movement and reaction speed.

Instead of interlocking your fingers, lay the fingers of one hand across the fingers of the other… the choice is yours based upon comfort. Now, close your hands until your thumbs are together, side-by-side. When you extend your arms straight out your platform will have a nice flat surface for the ball to rebound off. (see photo)

Resist the temptation to swing your arms up when making contact with the ball. Whether you are digging a hit or passing a serve, the velocity of the incoming ball will provide enough energy to get it to the setter.

Instead of swinging your arms up to meet the ball, your movement needs to be more of a shoulder shrug, while squeezing your triceps to bring your elbows straight. This will press your arms together and give you a flatter platform. Try to move as little as possible, not jerking or swinging your arms at the ball. This will help control the path of your pass, lofting the ball up to your setter. Keep your arms at a 90° angle to your chest. (see photo above)

When executing a pass off a hard driven hit, make sure you get your butt down low and your arms underneath the ball. This is where the term ‘dig’ came from because you are literally ‘digging’ the ball off the ground.

The higher the loft of your pass, the more time your hitters will have to transition from the net to their approaches. But,
too much loft on the ball and the opponent will read your offense and adjust their block. You’ll have to find a happy medium between the two, minimizing the time the defense has while giving your own hitters the time they need.

Every setter is a little different, so keep a good communication going so you will know where he/she likes the pass. If you work with the same setter all the time this will be much easier, but most teams have several setters, sometimes on the court at the same time. Discover their preferences and work hard to provide the best pass possible.

In order to become the type of player your coach trusts and relies upon, you will need to show him or her that you have an understanding of the game worthy of attention. You must show your ability to competently play offense and defense and move seamlessly between them.

To help you do this, I’ve broken the game down into three equally important parts, which cover everything you do on the volleyball court. An understanding of these components will help you stay ahead of the game and anticipate what your opponent is doing. They are:

1. Preparation

2. Execution

3. Transition

Preparation is exactly what it sounds like; preparing yourself for the up-coming play. If you are on defense, preparation is seeing what the opponent is doing, analyzing their strategy and preparing for what’s coming. If you happen to be on offense, it’s getting yourself into the optimum position to help your team put the ball away.

If you don’t stay ahead of the play it’s impossible to prepare in time to be a viable asset to your team. That’s why a good coach spends a great deal of time teaching preparation. He/she sets up scenarios that help the young player anticipate what the opponent is doing and to make the appropriate adjustments.

Execution is the doing of what you’ve prepared for, whether it be setting, hitting, passing, or any other job on the volleyball court. If you’re the hitter, execution is the actual hit, which if you made proper preparation you will make good contact on the ball, even if it doesn’t score a point. If you are playing defense, your execution is receiving the ball that’s hit and putting it up to your own setter in a playable manner.

Transition is what you do between your execution and your preparation, which is to get back into the most strategic position to help your team. For example, if you’ve just hit the ball, and the other team dug it up, your transition will be to move back into position to block the ball your opponent is about to bring back to you.

Some coaches don’t teach transition, believing it to be part of preparation, but I find it to be a very helpful component when teaching volleyball to inexperienced player. I try to get the young player to visualize their job on the court in these three steps, preparation, execution and transition. To get themselves prepared, in advance, of what is happening, to competently do their job and then quickly move into the position that best serves the team.

Now that you’ve got a thumbnail sketch of the three components of this game, you might want to go to Staying Ahead Of The Game, to read more about good preparation.

To learn more,

Volleyball uses just about every muscle in your body to some extent, but one of the muscle groups that is used extensively, and often not as strong as it needs to be, is the shoulder. We will explore the different muscles that make up your shoulder, and in another article how you can strengthen, stretch and protect them.

Please allow me to offer a simple caveat at this point, which is, I’m a volleyball coach, not a doctor. The following is a simple explanation of the shoulder muscles, offered in hopes of helping volleyball players understand their bodies. That said, I hope I don’t offend any medical personnel.

So, the major shoulder muscles are:

Deltoid

Subscapularis

Infraspinatus

Supraspinatus

Teres Major

Teres Minor

Now, if you’re like me, who took Spanish instead of Latin in school, this list may seem confusing. Don’t worry, we’ll go through each of these muscles and I’ll do my best to explain things in everyday English so you can understand them and how they affect your ability to play volleyball.

The Deltoid is a large, thick, triangular muscle, which covers the shoulder-joint in front, behind, and laterally. It is attached to the Trapezius (the muscle that extends from the top of your shoulder to your neck) and the Pectoralis major (your chest muscle). It is the large muscle that is commonly referred to as “the shoulder” and is responsible for raising your arm to the front, side and back and is therefore one of the major muscles used in volleyball. Without realizing it, your deltoid is used in just about everything you do on a volleyball court, e.g. when you serve, spike, set, bump, run, wave at a friend, or even wipe sweat from your brow.

The Subscapularis is also a large triangular muscle which attaches to the Teres major (discussed below) and the long head of the Triceps brachii, ( the muscle on the back of your upper arm). The term “subscapularis” means under (sub) the scapula (the wingbone or shoulder blade). If you hold your arm at your side, palm facing forward, the Subscapularis muscle allows you to rotate your hand until your palm faces backward, which gives you the ability to move your arm into the passing (bumping) position.

The Infraspinatous is a dense fibrous membrane that stabilizes the shoulder by drawing the humorous (upper arm bone) toward the scapula (shoulder blade). It is an abductor and rotates the arm laterally at the shoulder which allows the arm to extend to the side, e.g. if you hold your arm at your side with your elbow bent 90° and your hand on your stomach, the Infraspinatous muscle is used to move your hand off your stomach and away from your body. It also extends your arm backward from a hanging position at your side. This muscle is used every time your arm moves in toward your body or out away from it. I hope the importance of this muscle on the volleyball court is obvious.

The Supraspinatus is a medially thick muscle that attaches the top of your shoulder-joint to your scapula (shoulder blade) and pulls your humorous (upper arm bone) toward your body. The Supraspinatus is critical to the stability of your shoulder and without it your shoulder would pop in and out of joint every time you moved suddenly. Again, the importance is obvious.

The Teres major is a thick but somewhat flattened muscle, which attaches to the back of your shoulder-joint and your scapula (shoulder blade). The Teres major is an adductor, which is a muscle that draws a part toward the median line. To use everyday language, it pulls your arm in toward your side. It also rotates your shoulder medially, which means it is the opposing muscle to the Infraspinatous, discussed above which is an abductor.

The Teres minor is a narrow, elongated muscle, attached to the clavicle and the humerus, between the Infraspinatus the Teres major. It works in conjunction with these two other muscles and adds stability to your shoulder.

If my brief explanations aren’t enough for you, there are a number of sites you can visit if you wish to study more about the shoulder. You can Google any of the shoulder muscles and you’ll get more of an education than you probably want. I definitely recommend spending as much time as possible learning about the muscles that affect your play on the court.

One thing that is very important to remember is that the musculoskeletal system works in a chain reaction fashion. What affects one part, affects another, and another etc. Because the shoulder is so close to your neck, protecting your shoulder joints from injury will assist or enable the neck to remain pain free.

There are numerous books available on the subject of shoulder injury treatment and prevention. One good ebook, “How to treat and prevent shoulder injuries: Stretch, Stabilize, Strengthen,” is very informative and worth checking out. Below are some testimonials about the book and a link.

Don’t take your shoulders for granted. Take the time necessary to educate yourself so you can protect them from injury. They are one of your greatest assets in volleyball.

To learn more;

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When a setter tosses the ball up for an outside off-hand hitter, the opposing center blocker quickly moves to take away his angle to the center of the court by setting up next to the outside blocker. This will, in most cases, present an obstacle that shouldn’t be attempted. It’s risky to believe you can get around four giant hands and arms, which leaves the outside hitter with few alternatives. However, one of those alternatives, if mastered, will put the ball on the floor and leave the blockers feeling foolish. That’s right, I’m talking about hitting down the line.

Before I explain this technique I’ll back up a step to Volleyball 101 and briefly explain what I mean by off-hand. Assuming you are right handed, your off-hand side is in the front row, all the way to the right, also known as position #2 on the court. This means that your dominant hand is off the court, furthest away from your setter. And, of course, position #4, all the way to the left, would be your on-hand side, with your dominant hand on the court, closest to the setter.

If a blocker is worth his salt he/she will always watch the body language of the hitter in an attempt to divine the direction the spike is going to go. The approach to the ball, the position of the hips, and direction of the shoulders will usually give away the hitter’s choice. That’s why it’s vitally important to say “angle” with your body while your mind is all “line.” This will keep the blockers a half-step inside and leave the line open.

Now, telling the blockers you’re going angle with your body will make it very difficult to get a good shot at the line unless you allow the ball to travel further across your body before you make contact. This will also put you slightly off balance because you will have to lower your left shoulder at the last second, which will pull your weight to the left.

One of the wonderful things about our bodies is that we have the ability to recover from the most awkward positions with slight adjustments with our other limbs. For example, if a gymnast is on the balance beam and she gets slightly off center, she will throw an arm or leg the opposite direction to compensate, bringing her back on center.

Letting the ball travel across your body before you make contact will cause your left shoulder to drop, rotating your body to the left. You can compensate for this torque by turning your head and twisting your torso to the right. This will bring your weight back on center and bring you down evenly.

One thing you must keep in mind is how close you are to the net. Since you are waiting a little longer for the ball to cross your body, your follow-through will be almost straight at the net, leaving you vulnerable to a violation if you’re not very careful. This threat can be reduced by good communication with your setter, who can put you a little further off the net when you are on the off-hand side.

The great thing about this technique is that if you like to hit cross-court, the blockers will only be fooled a few times before they, or their coach, picks up on your ability and makes an adjustment. At that point they will move to their right a full step, leaving the center of the court open for you to pound your favorite shot.

Get together with your setter and try it a few times. You’ll be delighted with the results.

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