Volleyball drills need not be overly complex; sometimes, simplicity is the key to improvement. In this guide, we’ve gathered a set of some outside-hitting drills suitable for players of all levels.
These drills are quick to learn and execute, allowing athletes to concentrate on honing their techniques without the distraction of intricate routines.
What makes them even more versatile is that they can be adjusted to match your skill level and involve varying numbers of players, making them adaptable to your specific needs.
Volleyball Outside Hitter Drills: Volleyball outside hitter drills focus on enhancing skills like hitting accuracy, defensive reading, and adaptability to game scenarios. These drills are essential for improving your performance on the court.
Beyond skill development, these drills prepare outside hitters to tackle the diverse in-game scenarios they’ll encounter while playing this pivotal position.
Whether you’re a novice or a seasoned player, these drills are geared toward enhancing your performance and proficiency as an outside hitter.
Volleyball Outside Hitter Drills: 14 Effective Drills
Here are details for 14 volleyball outside hitter drills:
1. Hitting the Corners in Volleyball:
In the Corner Shots Drill, practice hitting the ball accurately into your opponent’s corners. Focus on control, not power. As you progress, we can add blockers, simulating real-game scenarios and helping you master corner shots without needing super strength!
2. Hitting Lines with a Downball:
This drill is well-known; a player passes the ball to another who gently hits it back, creating a back-and-forth motion. Focus on on-court movement and timing, vary the speed, and aim for the back corners while swinging vigorously.
3. Swinging and Approaching Dril:
This drill mimics real-game situations for outside hitters. You start away from the court, and someone tosses a ball high, like a pass. You walk up, jump, and pretend to hit the ball, even though it’s not there.
The goal is to make it feel like a real game by working on your approach, arm swing, and timing. We can make it tougher by tossing the ball differently, so you have to adjust your jump and swing – it’s like getting ready for the game!
4. Drill Involves Passing, Setting, and Hitting:
In the Set, Pass, Hit Drill, start with a pass, then set, and hit the ball. Practice passing, setting, and hitting accurately and powerfully.
As you improve, we can add challenges like blockers and different sets to prepare you for real games. It’s all about mastering the basics for the big game!
5. Drill for Releasing Balls:
This drill mimics challenging situations where the setter makes a distant, tricky set to the outside hitter. In the “Release Ball” drill, a high pass comes from the back/right court to the outside hitter, who spikes it over the net.
The goal: a perfect set for hitting or a toss if it’s far. The outside hitter works on jumping high, timing, and hitting powerfully toward the back of the court. You can amp up the difficulty by adding blockers on the other side of the net.
6. Drilling Line Shots:
The Line Shot Drill helps outside hitters practice hitting the ball precisely down the opponent’s court sideline. Players start at the net, receiving a set, and focus on accuracy over power.
Adjusting their approach and swing is key. To challenge them, blockers or varied sets can be introduced for adaptability practice.
7. Drilling Pipe Hits:
In the “Pipe Hitting Drill,” players hit from the back/middle zone, not the left side. Position 1 sets to the setter, who sends a downball back. The player digs to the setter, who sets for the outside hitter.
Target the backcourt’s last 2 feet, stay away from the middle, and aim for the corners or gaps between positions 1, 6, and 5.
8. Serve Receive Drill:
The Serve Receive to Attack Drill trains players to receive a serve and swiftly transition into an attack. Starting with a serve from the opponent, players must pass the ball to a setter and quickly prepare for an attack.
This drill emphasizes speed, coordination, and adjusting to serve variations, mimicking real-game scenarios.
9. Drill For Cut Shot:
The Cut Shot Drill hones players’ ability to hit precise cut shots that cross the net sharply. Starting near the net, players receive a set and aim for this specific shot.
Precision and control are key, and as players improve, blockers can be added to replicate real-game conditions, adding to the challenge.
10. Drill for Block Tooling:
The “Block Tooling Drill” is a variation of the downball dig drill with added blockers (1 to 3). Blockers intentionally reveal their position early, providing targets for the outside hitter.
The hitter’s goal is to use various techniques like hitting off the blocker’s arms, tipping, or aiming high off their hands. To increase difficulty, blockers actively defend, simulating real-game scenarios. This drill enhances hitting skills and strategic play.
11. Transition from Block to Spike Drill:
The “Block To Spike Transition Drill” simulates the fast shift from blocking to hitting in a game. The outside hitter starts at the net, jumps to block, and quickly moves back.
The setter provides a high toss or set for hitting, mimicking a less-than-perfect situation. The focus is on sprinting back into position swiftly after blocking, honing transition skills.
12. Drilling for Cross-Court Hitting:
The Cross-Court Hitting Drill sharpens players’ ability to hit the ball diagonally across the court, vital for outside hitters. Players receive a set at the net and target the opposite end.
It emphasizes control and accuracy over power, requiring adjustments in approach and swing. Adding blockers adds real-game challenges, enhancing adaptability.
13. Hitter Defensive Drill:
The Hitter Defensive Drill enhances players’ ability to protect their teammate who’s hitting the ball, crucial for outside hitters and the team. A player receives a set, and the team readies to cover if the hit is blocked.
It emphasizes teamwork, quick reactions, and understanding of roles. Adding blockers or varied sets increases the challenge, focusing on team support.
14. Drill for Tipping and Rolling:
The Tip and Roll Shot Drill helps players improve tip and roll shot skills, important for outside hitters. Players receive a set and must gently tip or perform a roll shot over the net, following the coach’s command.
It emphasizes precise control and targeting. Adding blockers or specific court targets increases the challenge, replicating real-game situations.
Back Row Hitting Drill
Now, let’s delve into the drills for hitting from the back row:
Back Row Target Drill:
In this drill, six players (three on each side) work together. The coach tosses a free ball to a passer, who sets up a back-row hit. Hitters aim for precision, missing by a step results in elimination. The last passer wins, emphasizing accuracy in back-row attacks.
Precise Back Row Attacks:
In this drill, teams split with one player and a setter starting in the back middle. They pass and set for back-row attacks, focusing on control and precision. Players rotate positions.
Solo Volleyball Hitting Drills
The Hitting From The Box drill mentioned earlier is great for solo practice, but sometimes you might not have a net or a hitting box available. In that case, here are some other drills to help you improve on your own.
Exercises of Jump Squat:
To boost your jumping power for hitting, try jump squats. You can start without weights, but using a bit (like 5-10 pounds with dumbbells or a barbell) adds challenge.
Here’s how: Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, squat quickly, then explode into a jump. Land softly and repeat in sets of 20 for improved hitting ability.
Wall Hitting Practice:
You can always practice against a wall, just like millions of volleyball players have done. When hitting against a wall, remember it’s not like serving practice, so don’t give yourself an easy toss. Imagine your setter sets the ball high above your head, simulating real play.
This helps you track the ball and time your movements. Also, focus on using good form, even without a coach. Occasionally, stop and check your position and swing to ensure you’re doing it correctly.
Exercise with Bouncy Medicine Balls:
Boost hitting power by increasing arm swing speed. Faster swings mean more options and control mid-air. Grab a bouncy 5-10-pound medicine ball. Stand on a 1 to 1 ½ feet platform if needed.
Hold the ball above, slam it down quickly, catch the bounce, and repeat. Do 3 sets of 10 reps, focusing on your lat muscles (sides), core, and triceps for the slamming motion. These muscles make your hand move swiftly for hitting the volleyball.
Enhancing Outside Hitter Skills: Volleyball Drill Focus
Here are some detailed tips and volleyball drills to enhance the skills of outside hitters:
Enhancing Hitting Skills:
In this drill, the outside hitter stands in the front row, and there are two blockers from the opposing team facing them on the other side of the net. There’s also a setter standing next to the hitter.
The goal of the hitter is to hit the ball in a way that either touches the blockers’ hands and goes out of bounds (this is called “tooling the block”) or lands inside the court. If they can do this, they’ve succeeded in the drill.
Improving Passing Abilities:
In this drill, the outside hitter is in the middle back, a setter is in front, and someone on the opposite side tosses the ball to the hitter. The hitter passes to the setter, who bounces it back to the coach under the net.
The coach passes it to the hitter quickly. This trains the hitter’s fast response to passes.
Mastering Transition Techniques:
This drill helps outside hitters become better at switching between attacking and defending. The hitter starts near the net but needs to quickly switch to a defensive position when the coach or a teammate hits the ball over the net.
While this is going on, the setter gets ready to set the ball, and the hitter gets prepared to spike it. After that, a teammate on the opposite side tosses a ball, imitating a blocked spike.
Now, the hitter must rapidly transition back to their defensive spot to pass the ball back to the setter.
Developing Defensive Reading Skills:
This exercise teaches players to analyze the opposing team’s defensive strategies and make appropriate choices. It starts with the outside hitter positioned on one side of the net and a single blocker on the opposite side.
The ball is sent to the outside hitter, who must then determine whether to launch an attack if the defender advances toward the net or to exercise restraint if the defender retreats. The focus is on making the most strategic decision in response to the defender’s actions.
FAQs:
Q:1 What are the methods to train as an outside hitter in volleyball?
Training methods include skill-specific drills, strength and conditioning, video analysis, practice matches, and seeking guidance from experienced coaches.
Q:2 What techniques can enhance hitting for an outside hitter?
Focus on refining footwork, perfecting the arm swing, mastering shot placement, reading the opponent’s defense, and communicating effectively with teammates.
Q:3 What steps lead to improved volleyball hitting skills?
Improve through consistent practice, receive feedback from coaches and peers, study the game to understand tactics, maintain physical fitness, develop mental resilience, and foster teamwork with teammates and setters.
Conclusion:
In the world of volleyball, becoming a skilled outside hitter is all about simplicity, adaptability, and practice. This guide has presented a comprehensive set of drills and exercises designed to elevate your performance.
These drills, whether focused on hitting corners or mastering defensive reading, provide the tools you need to excel on the court.
With dedicated training and the right techniques, outside hitters can be ready for any in-game scenario. Whether you’re just starting or a seasoned player, these drills are your path to improved proficiency.
So, remember, success as an outside hitter in volleyball lies in consistent effort, precision, and the ability to adapt to the game’s ever-changing dynamics.
We hope you will be well aware of volleyball outside hitter drills, after reading this comprehensive article. If you have any questions, feel free to comment below!