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Calling Service Zones
An Often Overlooked Valuable Offensive Weapon.
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Guide to Coaching
By Steve Stout
Lake Norman (NC) VB Club

Every coach has had the experience of noticing a reception weakness of the opposition - perhaps a huge hole is left uncovered, or the receivers are plastered at the back line, or one of them is sobbing uncontrollably because she just broke up with her boyfriend.  At that moment you would love to signal to your server to aim for that zone, but alas, if you did so, she would look back at you with that deer in the headlight look.  Even though she consistently serves 90%, on that occasion her fingers graze the ball and it falls short of your own attack line.  SO much for calling serves.

However, all coaches worth their salt know that serve calling is a powerful offensive weapon.  A purposely directed serve to a particular zone is so much more effective than a thoughtless swing toward the net.  Yet, so many serves from our younger players seem to be just this.
 
 

How you can get your team to make an extra 5 seconds part of their serve:
  • First is the confidence the servers gain that they can drop the ball into the desired zone.  Of course comes they get this confidence from repeated practice.
  • Insist that all members of the team will learn to serve into a designated spot. To accomplish this, I suggest on the first day that you announce that within a set time they will be expected to serve to all 6 zones at will.  Develop this skill by placing cones in that zone and have your players practice hitting the cones. At first, you will hear the accustomed complaint, "I can't do this," to which you reply, kindly, "You will learn to do so," and then and see what happens.
  • Inexperienced servers must overcome two basic hurdles:
    Hurdle # 1: Learning the basic biomechanics of the serve and getting into the same routine on every serve. <more information>
    Hurdle # 2:  Maintaining concentration during the serve and not merely running to the back line and swinging away; instead, players need to learn to pause, survey the opposing court, and mentally pick a target
    Hurdle # 3:  Comes in a game situation, when play calling from the bench begins. Announce well in advance that by a specific time, you or an assistant will call the serving zones from the bench.  At first it, may be no more than signaling a 6 or a 3, in an effort to keep the ball in the court, but as the players become more confident, then your can start branching out into the other zones. 
    I think coaches often underestimate the abilities of our players in this area of serve placement. There is no good reason why a player who can consistently place the ball over the net cannot also learn to place serves into the various zones, if the coach persists that they do so.  When they see the advantages of placing serves, especially when the number of aces rise, they will get excited about the prospect and will quickly come to trust your judgment from the bench. Just watch what happens the first time your most hesitant server drops an ace into the #2 zone right behind a penetrating setter.  That will be the pay off for your coaching patience!

    Give it a try, and let me know how you can improve on it (sostout@juno.com).

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