Serve Receive Drill

Sometimes drills can do amazing things if they're thought out so carefully that they fit your team's needs EXACTLY. This drill is designed to do just that.

Prior to practice, split your girls into four groups. These groups will most likely have four players in each group, so some players will have to serve receive twice. As the coach you will have to let them know which person who has to go serve receive twice. At the beginning of the season, split them evenly; put your best receivers on one group when there is a "must win" match coming up (or after 4 to 6 weeks into the season) so that they can play together.

The first group will begin the drill as the serve receivers, the second group serves, the third group conditions and the fourth group shags/scorekeeps. As the drill goes along, the groups will rotate to each "station."

The drill starts off with the servers serving to the receivers while the conditioners condition. In the drill, only the group receiving can score or loose points. The scoring system is simple and you might even want to adjust it (or simplify it!) to meet the skill level of your team.

If the receiving team:

• is aced: -2 points.
• fails to pass a valid serve: -1.
• takes the ball over on the first or 2nd hit w/o attacking, -1.
• takes the ball over on the 3rd hit w/o attacking: 0.
• takes the ball over on the 2nd or 3rd hit by attacking: +1
• witnesses a missed serve: +1.
• takes the ball over on the 2nd or 3rd hit by attacking with a correct 3-step approach: +2

The drill can stop when:

• the accumulated score becomes either +6 (receivers win) or -6 (servers win!), or;
• the conditioners say, "We're all done!, or;
• 6 minutes have expired, or;
• the servers have served 30 total balls. In the final 3 cases, a positive final score wins for the receivers, negative wins for the servers.

Duties of the shaggers/scorekeepers:

1. one player will keep balls out of the drill;
2. The second player will keep the cumulative score of the drill after the coach calls out, "That's a +2" or "That's a -1".
3. Keep the pressure on your team to perform by having a third player keep serve receive stats on another sheet. That player will need a table, chair, pen, and a pre-made list of the players names. The coach (or coach's assistant) will say, "Player A made a perfect pass," or "Player B's pass was OK," or "Player C was aced". Team mates should not make that decision.
4. A fourth player will keep up with serves in the court & aces served, putting pressure on the servers as well.

After running this drill 4 to 6 times, the best statistical passers will emerge. Always post the stats up the NEXT DAY each time the drill is run where everyone can see them. The players should know before the drill starts that the stats will be posted the next day after the drill is run where everyone can see them. Seeing that the sophomore is the #1 ranked passer may motivate some of your older players to action.

After the goal or time has been reached, holler "ROTATE!!" There is no set rotational method but here is one example:

1. Conditioners should score keep next..... try to never have conditioners do skill work in their next rotation. After they having been squatting , lunging, jump training, etc., they will need some time to rest before hitting the court.
2. Scorekeepers become passers; they have been watching the drill and should be anxious to get their turn on the court
3. Passers serve; time for revenge.
4. Servers condition.

OTHER LITTLE THINGS THAT YOU CAN DO!

• Give the servers 3 FREE no-penalty misses. Any misses beyond that not only scores a point for the passers, but causes the guilty person to run 3 laps, do 30 pushups or crunches, etc. The players must learn to play under the "this serve HAS to be in the court" pressure.
• if a girl takes a big swing at a set but the swing results in a hitting error, that's ALWAYS a "0" score, not only in this drill, but in all my drills. I never penalize my players for trying to pound a really good set. However, a tip, a roll, a floor spike, etc. MUST be put in the court......not even the rookies fuss about that.
• have your setters (not the non-setters!!) do your setting in this drill, and suffer the same consequences of the receivers lose. If you allow just anyone to set, the servers should win easily every time!
• As you can see, this drill takes a lot of pre-planning. I have all names and all teams (and who has to serve receive twice!) on paper before practice starts. I rarely ask for volunteers. Get a girl from the shagger/scorekeeper team to be the extra receiver.
• Figure up a way to keep up with which team has the best total score, receiving + serving. Have candy/choc/gum/drinks for the winning team.

Want to make the drill more challenging?

• Give the serving team 2 free jump serve attempts. A PROPERLY EXECUTED jumper that's an ace will be an EXTRA -1 for the receivers.
• Running a quick, a slide, a back row attack, etc. will earn the passing team an extra +1.