News & Updates:

Like the website?
Recommend Us To a Friend

Where to Contact the Ball

It takes little thinking to understand that if the ball is contacted underneath, or at a low point, the resulting impetus will deflect the ball upward in its flight. This will occur no matter what the angle of attack. By the same token, if the ball is hit behind and at dead center, it will fly on a straight course like a fast-ball pitch in baseball. This means that the application of some physics and geometry will be of assist­ance. The line of motion of the driving power must be from an angle above the back dead center of the ball, and it must be in the direction we want the ball to take.

The beginning spiker should practice first from a standing position. He should put the ball in the opposite-from-the-driving hand, hold it high as if on a golf tee, and then experi­ment driving it off the hand. He should watch carefully where the ball is hit, from what angle, and what happens to it on each drive. With the spiker standing about 12 feet from a wall, the ball should hit the floor about 2 or 3 feet from the wall, bounce against it, and rebound to him. Very strict attention should be given not only to the spot on the ball that is being hit but also to the direction of the course taken by the driving hand.

After the "groove" of habit has been established, the spiker may then throw the ball up, or have someone else do it, and try to apply the same powerful drive. The next step is to take the ball to the net, use a take-off, and spike the ball into the opponents' court. This should be practiced first with the net at a height of 7 feet.

It is important again, at this point, to check the effective­ness of the hand, fingers, and wrist upon contacting the ball. As mentioned previously, it is possible to hit the ball with a closed fist, the palm, or with "clawlike" fingers, but many coaches feel that the heel or butt of the hand is the best con­tact spot.

Beginning spikers can improve their accuracy by hitting from the sides of the court rather than from the middle. As illustrated in Figure #4, the diagonal line X is longer than either line Y or Z, so a ball spiked along line X has a better chance of landing in bounds than one hit along lines Y or Z. The diagonal spike also lessens the possibility of the hand contacting the net and makes it more difficult for the defen­sive players to move to the ball and block the spike.¹

Fig. #4. DIRECTION OF SPIKE

NET > Path of ball

Related terms include solana beach and volleyball hot.