How To Make Your Setters More Agressive

From Coach Houser

It is tiring to say, "That ball is yours," or "Take that ball" repeatedly, is it not? There are a number of ways to encourage setters to be the take-charge kids your team needs.

Difficulty: Average

Time Required: Varies

Here's How:

1. Ensure They Know Their Role is the BALL HOG!

   Young ladies are uncomfortable if they think others see them as the ball hog. It may sound odd to us guys, but I bet the women coaches out there agree. It is up to the coach to explain the setter’s role: "Every volleyball team has a setter. The setter is responsible for the second hits. For the team to play well, the setter must do her job. Therefore, the setter trains the most, works the hardest, and must take as many 2nd hits as possible."

2. Show Them What Their Role Is

   This will best be accomplished by watching video. You can show your players the Olympic setters, college setters, or last year's high school setters. You may have to take the girls to a college match.

3. Run Drills That Will Teach Your Setters Their Jobs

   Since you have two setters, the following drill may work for you. This was used as a warm-up drill prior to stretching at the Westover Christian Camp. The goal: For the setter to take charge and take ever second point possible. Your entire team is trying to score as many points as possible in 5 minutes.

4. 5 Minute Madness Drill

   Place any 6 of your players in a free ball formation. Six more girls are on deck and/or handing and shagging. You are on the other side of the net poking balls. The team earns 2 points if the setter takes the second hit with her hands. The team will earn 1 point if she has to take the second hit with her arms. After 1 minute, six new girls run into the drill.

5. Use the Drill and Set a Goal

   I told my campers that the record was 106 points. You can guess what happened…without any prompting on my part the passers are going "I got it," the setter's hollering, "Here I am!!" and the spikers are saying "Take it, take it," and the setter's saying "I got it, I got it!!" After two tries, they got over 100, but did not break the record. Why? Because the setters were still hesitant to go for some balls they COULD get to, but were not used to taking.

6. Don’t Go too Far too Soon

   You will have that same problem at first! They wanted to keep trying it; they were pumped. However, I said, "Let's wait until tomorrow.” They could not wait for the next day and, then, on first try, the girls reached 117 points. (I did include one addition thing: if a hitter had to take the second hit and she set another hitter that was worth 1 point).

7. Make it More Challenging!

   • Give no points for an arm set and 1 point for a handset. The record will then be 48 or something like that.
   • Have the girls earn x consecutive points w/o a "zero.” If they get a "zero," then the team score goes back to zero.
   • Change from poking to standing on a chair. Hit against your double block and have the same scoring system, except you may have to change setters more often…we do not want to kill her.