Offense

Table Of Contents

by Jim Toohey E-Mail: info@vball.com

Offensive Philosophy

Each coach must sit down at the beginning of the season and determine the strengths of their team. I prefer to assess my teams strengths and determine the best ways to utilize them rather than look at my teams weaknesses and try to hide them. When you get into the fifth game of a championship match you will want an offensive system that makes it easy for your setter to deliver the ball to your best hitter.

My personal philosophy is one of relentless aggression. As Bill Neville put it "when we have the ball we want to make the other team pay." My teams look to jump and swing at every ball. Certainly we don't get a great pass, perfect set, and crushing hit on every play, but we are able to aggressively attack nearly every ball. If a play is so broken down that the hitter can't jump and swing then she knows her job is to bump or set the ball deep into the opponent's court.

My philosophy of aggressiveness extends to all aspects of the offensive game plan - serve receive, offensive patterns, back-row hitting and transition offense. The following sections will briefly describe my thoughts on each of these subjects so that you will know my over-all philosophy as future articles discuss aspects of offensive play in greater detail.

Serve Receive

Side-out offense is the most important aspect of the game. If your team is a good side-out team you will be very successful. It may take a long time to score enough points to win, but that doesn't matter as long as you can side-out. A team that consistently side-outs will also grow in confidence as a match goes on. If you can get your team to look at each serve receive play as an opportunity to attack, then you will be winning the mental game as well.

The most important decision you will face when planning your team s serve receive formations is how many passers to use. My opinion is simple-the fewer the better. You should try to develop two great passers on every team. If they can successfully pass the entire court then use a two-person serve-receive. if you need to use a third passer then designate one PRIMARY passer and stand them in the middle of the court in all six rotations. From here she can pass the middle 50% of the court while the other two passers pass 25% each along the sidelines.

I don't like to use any more than three passers. The three reasons for this are:

1. There are too many seams and gray areas with four passers. A decision- must be made on nearly every ball to determine who should pass it.
2. As you add passers you add targets for the opposition to serve. chances are your fourth passer is not nearly as good as your best passer. therefore a smart team will serve your weaker passers while avoiding your best passer.
3. Using three passers will free up some of your attackers for double quicks and fast play-sets.

Offensive Patterns

My offensive patterns are based on four principles. These principles work together to form an offense that is flexible, difficult to predict, makes good use of play-sets while still forcing the opposition to defend the entire length of the net, and provides hitters with one-on-one or one-on-none opportunities.

OFFENSIVE PRINCIPLES

1. Every hitter must be able to hit every set. All hitters should be comfortable hitting at all tempos and anywhere along the net.
2. Passers will use swing hitting techniques to approach out of serve receive formations.
3. Maximum use of both the quick and the second tempo slide.
4. Players will move laterally along the net leaving one area to attack in a different area (i.e.- a player lines up along the right sideline then loops in front of the setter to hit a 32 set).

Back-Row Hitting

All players should be available as outlet hitters when they are in the back-row. Any ball that is passed more than ten feet off the net should be set to a back-row hitter. This hitter should be in a better position to approach this set and also to hit around the block than your front-row attackers will be. An exceptional hitter should be a major component of your offense when in the back-row. Sets should be lowered to play-set tempo and the hitter should be able to hit out of all five zones (A-D and Pipe). When the game is on the line I would rather set my best player even if she is in the back-row than another player who happens to be in front-row. The best example of this principle would be the Boy's 18 and Under finals at last year's Junior Olympics. George Roumain sided-out for eventual champion Nike in eight straight rotations! Five of these rotations had George hitting out of the back-row.

Transition Offense

Transition offense is the area of play in which I am most conservative. Every time my team digs a ball I want to get a great swing for a point. I have two reasons for this thinking- it will reward your defense for digging the ball and it will increase the pressure on your opponent. Too many teams try to follow a great dig with an even greater set and hit This too often results in a missed opportunity and frustration for your defense. I would rather see the ball be set high to the best hitter who can then swing against a defense that has probably not had time to deploy properly. The Women's National team has done many studies that show the that the ability to hit the high left-side ball is the key to winning matches. I believe that this carries over to the junior level as well.

All my hitters audible during transition. I ask my hitters to be creative and vary their attack, but I demand that my setter make the smart choice to get us a good swing.

Team Offense

  Overview

A team is on offensive when the ball is in their court or about to cross into their court in an easily passable fashion -- as in serve-receive or freeball situations. The setter, whether he/she is on the front row or back row, quickly moves to the setting position, just to the right of middle front. The hitters quickly move behind the 3m line and prepare to attack. Back row players move toward the net and prepare to cover the hitters in case the ball is blocked. Regardless of the offensive scheme you are running, these transitions create a W formation, not including the setter.

If you are using a back row setter, all three peaks of the W are hitters; if you are using a front row setter, only two of the peaks are hitters while the third is a back row player. You will notice that it is exactly like a freeball defense, and for good reason: A freeball absolves your team of their normal blocking and digging duties, which allows them to go directly to their offensive positions.

There are three common types of offensive schemes. The name of each type includes two numbers: the first number refers to the number of players who are hitters when they are on the front row; the second number refers to number of players who are designated as setters.

In the simplest and safest offense, a 4-2, four players are always hitters when they are on the front row while the other two players set when they are on the front row. As soon as each rally starts, the front row setter switches either to middle front, which gives his/her team a left-side and right-side hitter, or to right front, which gives them a left-side and middle hitter. In a 4-2, the setter's defensive and offensive positions are the same -- either middle front or right front -- so they make the appropriate switch at the beginning of the rally and then stay in essentially the same area throughout the course of the rally.

In a 6-2, all six players are hitters when they are on the front row and two players are designated to set when they are on the back row. When a 6-2 setter rotates to the front row, they simply become another hitter; the person opposite her/him in the service order is now on the back row and takes over the setting duties.

As you might imagine, the defensive and offensive responsibilities of a 6-2 setter are vastly different: When they are setting from the back row, they play defense in right back and play offense in middle front. Consequently, they do a lot running during the course of every rally. When the opponent is preparing to attack, the setter digs in right back. As soon as the ball crosses the net, the setter must sprint to the net and set the dig. As soon as the ball crosses into the opponent's court, the setter must sprint to right back and prepare to repeat the process all over again.

The other basic offensive scheme is a 5-1, which has five players who always hit when they are on the front row and one player who sets all the time, whether s/he is on the front row or back row. When the setter is on the front row, a 5-1 resembles a 4-2; when the setter is on the back row, it resembles a 6-2. Consequently, this booklet will not treat the 5-1 separately -- it's easy enough to figure out on your own.

Team Serve Receive

Effective serve reception, which is the foundation of any offense, depends primarily on sound individual technique. As importantly, however, you must communicate with your teammates while the serve is in the air so that there is no confusion over who will pass the ball. Yelling "Mine!" and "Yours!" is a good start, but you should make your communication even more specific. If you're not passing the ball and want to avoid the confusion that arises when three people yell "Yours!" at the same time, say the name of the player who should pass -- that way the player knows you expect him/her to pass the ball. Also, help the passer by calling "In," "Out," "Short," "Long," etc. And if you know a server's tendencies, remind your teammates of those tendencies before the serve. In short, make your serve-receive communication as specific as possible.

There are an infinite number of serve receive formations. The formations a team elects to use depend on a variety of factors -- the type of offense they are using, who the best passers are, where the setter is, the server's tendencies, etc. -- but they all follow the same three rules, which, in order of importance, are:

1. Allow the best passers to take most of the court.

2. Position the setter as close to the setting position as possible.

3. Position the hitters as close to their hitting positions as possible.

Some teams use these rules and assign two passers to cover the entire court. Others use three passers and follow the same rules. In the diagrams below, four or five passers are employed in serve receive; your team should alter them to fit your needs.

If your team uses a 4-2 offense (the setter is on the front row) and uses five passers, the three serve receive rules above usually dictate the three formations to the left. In the first one, the setter is in left front and switches to middle front as soon as the server contacts the ball. In the second diagram, the setter is in middle front. In the last one, the setter is in right front and switches to middle front.

If your team runs a 4-2 and uses four passers, with the setter switching to right front, the serve receive rules create the formations on the right. In the first diagram, the setter is in left front; in the second, s/he is in middle front; in the third, right front. **These are same formations many 5-1 teams use when their setter is on the front row:

If your team runs a 6-2 and uses four passers, then the rules above create these formations. In the first diagram, the setter is in left back; in the second, s/he is in middle back; in the third, right back. You should realize that these formations are only consistent with a rotation in which a middle hitter leads the setter and a left-side (or swing) hitter follows the setter through the serving order. If your team elects to have an outside hitter lead the setter (with a middle following), then your receive formations will look a bit different. Just make sure you adhere to the rules above. (**5-1 teams use these same formations when their setter is on the back row.)

Quick sets and plays

The advantage of using a 6-2 is that your team always has three hitters, which allows you to use quick sets and plays while keeping at least one hitter split wide. This gives the setter three options:

1. The "first" hitter--usually the middle hitter--has a quick set near the setter.

2. The "second" or "combination" hitter--usually the right-side hitter--has a combination set, which is four or five above the net and somewhere near the "first" hitter.

3. The "third" hitter or "outlet" -- usually the left-side hitter -- has a high, outside set.

Quick sets and combination serve two functions. First, quick sets can catch unsuspecting blockers off-guard. This advantage, however, quickly wears off as blockers figure out what your team is doing. But then the second and more important function begins: quick sets freeze the blockers, opening the net for other hitters.

There are, as you recall from the section on setting, three basic quick sets: a "one," a "thirty-one," and a "back one." There are also three types of "combination" sets, which were also described in the setting section: a "two," a "thirty-two," and a "flare."

Combination sets are most effective when used in tandem with quick sets. When a blocker begins anticipating the quick set, he usually ignores what your other hitters are doing and will often get in the way of other blockers. Combination plays are designed to take advantage of this anticipation by using the quick set blocker to "pick" (as when a basketball player sets a "pick") one of his teammates and create an open net for one of yours.

Before you look at a few sample plays, you need to be aware of several general rules for running combinations:

1. Remember that the single most important key to running effective plays is ball control. If you don't receive serve well or pass freeballs perfectly, you can't run anything.

2. The first hitter in every combination (the person hitting the quick set) must make lots of noise by shouting "Here, here, here," (for a 1) or "Push it to me" (for a 31). This not only draws the blockers to him, but also helps the setter locate him.

3. The setter must call the plays before every serve. When your team serves, call only one play--a freeball play--and run that play only on a called freeball; on downballs and digs set high balls outside and twos in the middle. If the pass is lousy, the setter must cancel the play loudly and early by yelling, "No," or "Outside."

4. When your opponents serve, the setter can call two plays: a serve-receive play and a freeball play. This will seem confusing at first, perhaps even impossible, and the first few games you do it your setter and hitters will make dozens (perhaps hundreds) of mistakes. But it becomes easier with practice, and your team will become much stronger offensively.

5. Call combinations that cause your hitters' approaches to cross. In most defensive schemes, blockers follow the person directly across the net from them, and a crossing action on your side of the net will create a basketball-style "pick"--that is, it will cause the blockers to collide. If there is no crossing action or no threat of a crossing action in your play, you've made the blockers' job much easier.

6. Each play is designed to open the net for the second hitter, so keep the second set (fairly) tight to the net, where he can whack it. After you set the second hitter a few times, the first hitter will be open.

7. When deciding which play(s) to call, the setter should consider these two factors in this order: 1) give the second set to someone who feels comfortable hitting it; and 2) if your hitters have assigned positions, call serve receive plays that will move hitters toward those positions (move outside hitters to the left, middle hitters to the middle, etc.).

8. Setters must communicate with their hitters before the serve and during the rally, particularly in calling freeballs. Hitters must not call for a different play in the middle of the rally.

9. Don't feel compelled to set either combination hitter. After you've run a couple plays effectively, the blockers will tend to move toward any motion, which will leave your outlet hitter unblocked or one-on-one.

10. Backrow players must know the calls, so that they can stay out of the way and cover the hitters more effectively.

With these general rules in mind, you are ready to run some offensive plays. The combinations diagramed below fall into three categories:

1. left-side combinations, which involve the left-side and middle hitters

2. right-side combinations, which involve the right-side and middle hitters

3. front-row setter combinations, which involve a left-side and middle hitter

There are, of course, many other plays that you can design yourself. Keep in mind, however, that you should try to run combinations that cause your hitters' approaches to cross or appear to cross. Plays that rely on sheer speed -- such as a "shoot" set to the left antenna -- are low percentage plays, and combinations that neither cross nor threaten to cross will not confuse the blockers.

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