Pass/Serve Question?

[kubricks]

Someone help me out. In the pass game, why doesn't the serving team ALWAYS serve to the setter. That would then take the setter, out of setting the ball and someone else on the team would have to set the ball. Seems like a much better strategy than serving to the libero which oftentimes you see happen?

Also can you serve underhand in college volleyball. I have middle school girls who can serve underhand and place the ball the same place everytime but are erratic overhand. Wherever the setter is, seems it would be very easy to serve underhand to her all the time.

[craftylefty]

Setters often are situated very close to the net in serve receive situations so they don't have to handle serves. There are some great "short servers" out there who can serve to that area, but they are at high risk for serving into the net as well. It's just too risky.

I don't know of anyone utilizing the underhand serve in collegiate volleyball. It can be easier for some to serve to a zone underhanded, but, with time, the same thing can be done overhand as well. It takes plenty of practice.

[craftylefty]

A short serve to the setter also tends to be fairly weak by definition and therefore very easy to receive, which makes passing to any other player simple. Yes, it causes the team to be "out of system," but it's not a very challenging scenario.

[trampas]

I can't remember what serve receive used to look like at the grammar or middle school level, but in competitive volleyball the setter doesn't pass serves even if you serve at them. They are usually standing very close to the net in the front row, or are stacked up close with another player in the back row, and that person will pass for them if the ball comes that way.

As soon as the ball is put in play, the setter runs to roughly that same spot on the floor each time and gets ready to set the ball.

[oldman]

Food for Thought: I have a wicked float serve underhand which I can place very well and on occasion can ace my college team with it but I would never teach it to my athletes as it took years to master and at least a million reps.

[tomclen]

This topic reminds me of Ashley Aratani, who played for Washington in 05, on a team with several strong jump-servers.

She was used mostly as a defensive specialist and serving specialist. She would stand as far back as possible in every arena and simply stand and serve this long, lobbing, knuckle-ball serve...usually deep to the other side. Rarely making a service error.

In the stands, you'd be thinking, 'lawdy, I could return that piece of junk,' but while she didn't have a ton of aces (IIRC), her lollipops would almost always lead to shanked passes or our of system plays. Part of it, I think, was the sudden contrast with the strong jump serves of other players, and part was deception. They looked so easy, but really weren't,

[mikegarrison]

Sometimes those super-high serves from servers standing deep behind the serving line mess up passers pretty severely.

[jiml]

Pretty much every team has a strategy for what to do when the 1rst contact is by the primary setter. As already hinted, this is more of an issue for digs than for serve receive. For 2013 and 2014 the Wisconsin strategy is to get the ball to Courtney Thomas instead of Lauren Carlini, since Courtney was our starting setter for the previous two years. More than one team has been startled by a quick set to a middle from someone other than the nominal setter :-)

[baywatcher]

Technically the server cannot be touching the ball upon serving contact, which makes underhand serving a bit dicey. So might as well get the ladies started on overhand serving as they will eventuality have to do that anyway.

[psuvbfan10]

Bring back the japanese roundhouse serve!

[oldman]

Nov 28, 2014 12:23:20 GMT -5 psuvbfan10 said:

Bring back the japanese roundhouse serve!

I love that serve and when I was younger could serve it very well.

[Paulj]

Nov 28, 2014 8:28:40 GMT -5 kubricks said:

Someone help me out. In the pass game, why doesn't the serving team ALWAYS serve to the setter. That would then take the setter, out of setting the ball and someone else on the team would have to set the ball. Seems like a much better strategy than serving to the libero which oftentimes you see happen?

Also can you serve underhand in college volleyball. I have middle school girls who can serve underhand and place the ball the same place everytime but are erratic overhand. Wherever the setter is, seems it would be very easy to serve underhand to her all the time.

LOL....my daughter is a setter and I asked her club coach about her serve receive.  He told me that if she touches the ball she will be on the bench for the rest of the day.  Just as you said, it takes the team out of system.

[Deleted]

Nov 28, 2014 8:52:36 GMT -5 oldman said:

Food for Thought: I have a wicked float serve underhand which I can place very well and on occasion can ace my college team with it but I would never teach it to my athletes as it took years to master and at least a million reps.

I wouldn't say a million reps...but you can do some awesome things with underarm and sidearm serves--I prefer sidearm since that has a different direction it causes the ball to float.

[ja]

Nov 28, 2014 12:25:53 GMT -5 oldman said:

Nov 28, 2014 12:23:20 GMT -5 psuvbfan10 said:

Bring back the japanese roundhouse serve!

I love that serve and when I was younger could serve it very well.

I am still using this from time to time at practices, just to show off:). To answer the initial question. Yes, college teams are still using underhand
serve, but most of them would be really weak teams. You can try to teach torque serve as a alternative and as a step to overhead serve. As for serve
receive, it depends on personnel and system you plays. In 6-2, if you keep your setter on the front row, she will have to pass from 4. On short serve
to setter I asked my setter to pass it straight to attacker, usually to MB, since she would be right next to her in couple rotations.