Video:Tips for Placing a Volleyball Serve

Transcript:Tips for Placing a Volleyball Serve

Hi, I am Jim Miret, Head Coach for the Front Range Volleyball Club in Englewood, Colorado. I am here with About.com today. 

Six Serving Areas

Basically, the six areas that teams will try and serve to, the three back row positions, right back, middle back and left back, and the three front row positions, left front, middle front and right front. The question now is what is the most effective zone to serve. Usually you are looking to number one put stress on passers. anytime you make passers back up and move away from the court you are putting stress on those passers.

Serving Strategy

So serving towards the deep-right back area, or deep-left back area are always effective serves. Then you are looking to serve areas in-between players. The area in between them is a communication zone. Any ball that goes into the communication zone can cause some confusion as to who is going to take the ball.

You can serve areas of the court that make it difficult for the setter to receive the ball. Take a look at where the setter is in position in the serve, receive formation and try to serve in the area that she is exiting and interfere with her path to the setting position. So Jordan, just demonstrate where you want to go in this. That is where Jordan wants to get to run the offense. So try and drop the ball into her path, therefore causing confusion.

Taking a look at their formation and seeing if there is a front row player who is now back in the passing lanes. Remember, front row players are involved in blocking and attacking. Usually left side hitters when they are in the front row, will drop back and pass. Serve at the front row player who is back there passing. Hannah is our left front player and she is back in the passing lanes. Serve her deep into her corner, into the left-back area of the court, because she has to go all the way back there to pass it and then come in and try to become an attacker. 

Basic Serving Skills

We are always going to go back behind the service line and we are going to serve as tough, and as flat, and as hard a ball as we can. The more consistently we can serve hard, flat balls at the passers, than the more likely we are to eventually break their passing skill down.

 Thanks so much for watching today. For more information on volleyball, visit us at About.com.