Serving Up, Well, Serves

For my last technical post for a while, I thought I would talk about the one super-important aspect of volleyball that we have yet to discuss. I'll give you some hints to see if you can figure out what it is: it's how you start every game, all positions have to do it, and it can be the difference between winning and losing a game.

If you guessed serving, you're right.

Although many people think that serving is just a simple, necessary way of starting each rally, serving in reality is much, much more than that. 

Yes, serving is how you start every rally. But that doesn't mean the serve can't be the way you end many rallies as well. The ultimate goal of a serve is to get an ace. The word "ace" can be interpreted in different ways in volleyball, but the general gist is as follows: an ace happens when the serve either hits the ground on the other side of the net or one of the players on the opposing team shanks the ball, making it unplayable. 

A basic serve is not a hard skill to learn. All you need is a little power, a little technique, and the tiniest sprinkle of aim. However, mastering a serve, or serving in general, is a much bigger task. 

To start, there are many different types of serves. The two most basic types of serves are float serves and topspin serves. Float serves are serves with little to no spin on the ball, and they have a tendency to "float" or move while they are in the air. Topspin serves, on the other hand, have a heavy downwards spin on them, and then often drop sooner and sharper than they appear to.

Another common way to separate serving styles and techniques is into short serves and deep serves. Deep serves are typically supposed to land in the last five or ten feet of the court. With deep serves, the hope is that either the players on the opposing team will think it's out of bound, or they will be caught on their toes and not be able to move back in time to give a good pass. 

A short serve, on the other hand, is meant to be served within the first five or ten feet of the court. With short serves, the hope is that either the players will think the ball is too short to be over the net and not even try to get it, or that the players will be caught on their heels and not be able to get to the short ball in time. 

There is also the all-impressive jump serving, which incorporates all of the above techniques and styles, but with a jump. To learn more about serving in general, click here. Until next week, practice some topspins or some short serves (whatever FLOATS your boat) and happy holidays!