Teaching Points
- Good passing posture
- Forearm contact
- Angle platform to target
- Simple movement to the ball
- Good passing posture – feet should be set up with the heel toe relationship. This is the heel of the right foot, slightly in front of the toes of the left foot. Knees bent; body bent at the waist with the shoulders in front of the knees. Knees should be just in front of the toes. Arms should be out in front and straight. It is important that the heels of the hands be together. You can use a hand in hand grip.
Drill: 4 people at the net – tossers – pass to 1st, 2nd, 3rd and then 4th.
- Forearm contact, - Contact the ball between 1 and 6 inches above the wrist, the meaty part of the forearm. If you drop the wrists a little, then a small V should show. The ball should sit there (in the V) softest part of the arms. The passer needs to be relaxed. Let the legs do the work. Platform relaxed and the ball should be absorbed into the arms. Soft pass.
Drill: 3 people – pass go to the next spot, other person passes
- Angle platform to the target
1) vertical – closer to the target, the more parallel to the floor, the arms need to be. Stay down; the ball will go straight up. If you drop or lower the arms and keep the arms in front, then you can pass the ball farther and on a 45-degree angle.
2) Horizontal – pass the ball to the right or left by dropping a shoulder. More you drop the shoulder, the greater the angle. Right shoulder down, and then pass right. Left shoulder down, then pass left.
Drill: 3 shaggers, everyone else pass. Coach tosses the ball, person passes to the shagger, and the shagger brings the ball back to the coach. Start right, then left.
- Movement to the ball – transfer of weight from left foot to the right foot. Try to step with the right foot if you want to put a little more power on the ball. The platform must stay controlled and stationary. Work from the legs.
Drill: two people on the other side – shagger – toss the ball over the net, the passer calls and then passes to the shagger. Shagger then goes under the net and drops off the ball, next shagger steps up.