Tips for Serving a Volleyball: Mental Strategies That Create More Aces

Why do some players score aces when others hope to get the ball over the net? My tips for serving a volleyball reveal the mental game behind successful serves.

What's the difference between players who consistently score aces and those who just get the ball over?

It's not arm strength - it's mental strategy.

These serving tips will transform how you think about every serve.

Lets talk about this for a minute...

Have you ever noticed that the best servers on any team aren't always the ones with the most powerful arms?

They're the players who walk back to the service line with a plan.

They've already

• identified their target 
• chosen their serve type, and 
• visualized the outcome before they even receive the ball

In my 15+ years coaching volleyball in Las Vegas, I've watched physically gifted players struggle to score from the service line while smaller, 'weaker' players consistently rack up aces.

The difference?

Mental preparation and strategic thinking.

The good news is that many of these mental skills can be learned faster than building physical strength.

These five essential tips for serving a volleyball go beyond the mechanics of 'how to serve.'

You already know the basics - now it's time to think like a tactical server who views every trip to the service line as an opportunity to score, not just start a rally.

Are you ready to make that mental shift?

Let me prove why your mindset matters more than your muscle...

If you could add just 2-3 service aces per game to your stats, wouldn't that dramatically increase your value to any team?

I specialize in teaching my 18s girls club teams and 18s guys club teams and all my private clients the mental tips for serving a volleyball with strong, flat 'hard to pass' dangerous types of serves.

Here's what separates strategic servers from hopeful ones - they've already won the point in their mind before they serve.

Why do you want to develop a tough serve?

Once you've learned the basics on serving then you want to take advantage of your serving opportunity because its the one skill in volleyball that you do alone - which you and only you... control...

This means

• you can make it easy 
• you can make it difficult

for the opposing squad to easily run a play and score points against your team

Think about who is the best server on your team.

Don't they always seem to know exactly where they're serving before they even get the ball?

That's not coincidence - it's strategy.

Once you've chosen your target, it's time to shift into attack mode.

But this isn't about power...

The easier your serve is, the easier it is for the opposing team to run a point scoring play.

The tougher your serve is the harder it is to run a point scoring play against your team.

You don't want to make an easy serve because you don't want to make it easy for the other team to score against yours. 

Here's a question to ask yourself... Are you serving to avoid mistakes or serving to score points?

Your answer changes everything.

THINK, THINK, THINK

If you don't think about scoring a point when you serve, then you're less likely to do it.

But if you don't do it, then you are passing up a golden opportunity to help your team score an easy point.

Remember to THINK about making a tough serve, not an easy one. 

From now on when you rotate back to Zone one on your way back to serve, as you are walking back to the base line you should be mentally forming this serving strategy.

• "I'm going to place the opposing team in difficulty by making an aggressive serve"

• I'm going to serve this particular player....

• I'm going to serve to this particular court zone or position on the court

Here's a question...

Would you rather face a server who's just trying to get the ball over, or one who's actively trying to score a point against you and your team?

You better believe your opponents feel the same way.

The smartest servers start gathering intelligence before the match even begins.

Here's what to look for...

You should make up your mind that you are going to go back and serve an aggressive ball to a certain spot or to a certain player on the court.

When you're serving in volleyball you should picture yourself attacking the ball with your serve.

Think about it!

When you hit the ball, you are in an aggressive state of mind, right?

Well, just like you are in an aggressive state of mind when you spike a ball you want to recreate that same state of mind when you go back to serve a volleyball.

So when I say that you should be attacking with your overhand volleyball serve I am describing a mental process that you must adapt first----even before you prepare to physically do any serving.

Quick Review

To develop a tough serve you need

• to decide early where to serve and then think about attacking the ball with your serve
• then serve aggressively to a specific player or a court zone or position on the court.

in order to improve how to serve in volleyball. 

Even Olympic servers started with these exact same fundamentals. If these steps work for players at the highest level, won't they work for you?

When you serve, its good to keep mental notes (in your head) of where players on teams have struggled in their serve receive patterns when the teammate or two before you...made a serve to a specific spot or to a specific player that caused the opposing team a lot of trouble. 

Plan to exploit these weak zones with your serves.

For example some passers pass better on the left side of the court and not from the right side.

Or some passers move forward well to get to and pass well your team's short serves but its hard for that same player to move backwards to get deep serves in the court.

Want to hear one more and this tip is for advanced servers...who serve a ton of balls in practice and they can pinpoint extremely specific targets...I do this in private training sessions...

There are many players who only pass well from the left side of their body and if you serve their right side...they can't adjust their passing platform fast enough..so they end up

• passing a ball that's not to the target,
• shanking the ball or 
• passing a ball that makes it easy for your blockers to anticipate where the setter is going to set the ball so they can get set up early.

That's an advanced passing tip.

But you see how much you can use your serve to your advantage and score points?

I've noticed these strategic questions pop up constantly on r/volleyball.

Here are my answers based on what actually works at the highest levels...

Every day on r/volleyball, beginners ask the same serving questions - and get wildly different answers from well-meaning players.

But learning to serve shouldn't be trial and error based on Reddit guesses.

Here are the most common serving questions from Reddit, answered with techniques that have helped thousands of players finally get their serves over the net

*This tactical question appears daily on r/volleyball:*

Serve aggressively when: You're up by 3+ points, after timeouts, or when you've identified a weak passer. Serve safer when: You've missed your last serve or the score is tight and you're behind. The key? Have a clear reason for every serve.

*Better than Reddit's generic "mix it up" advice:*

Watch their passers in warm-ups. Tall players often struggle with short serves.

Shorter players may have trouble with deep serves.

Also, if their setter is back row, a short serve forces someone else to set - instant advantage.

*The strategic answer Reddit discussions miss:*

Not always. Sometimes serving the second-weakest passer catches them off-guard. Or if the weak passer is also their best hitter, you might want them passing instead of hitting. Think two plays ahead.

You now possess something most servers lack: a strategic framework for every serve. These aren't just tips - they're the mental tools that separate servers who hope from servers who hunt.

Here's your immediate action plan:

At your next practice, implement just ONE of these mental tips.

• Maybe it's identifying targets during warm-ups.
• Maybe it's attacking mentally before each serve. 
• Whatever you choose, commit to it for an entire practice and track your results.

Remember:

• Every ace starts in your mind before it happens on the court.

The question isn't whether these mental strategies work - they do.

The question is: Will you be the player who actually uses them?

These mental tips are most powerful when combined with strong serving fundamentals.

If you're ready to upgrade both your mental strategy AND your technical skills, [discover how personalized training with Coach April can accelerate your serving development].

Because sometimes the fastest path to serving dominance is having an experienced coach show you exactly how to blend mental tactics with technical excellence.

Your journey from reactive server to tactical weapon begins with your very next serve.

Which tip will you implement first?

Every ace you'll ever serve starts with improving these fundamentals.

Whether you're working on your first overhand serve or perfecting your jump float, remember this: serving is the one moment in volleyball where you're completely in control.

The players who embrace this responsibility - who walk back to serve with purpose and strategy - are the ones who become game-changers.

They're the servers opponents whisper about during timeouts.

They're the ones coaches trust in crucial moments.

Tomorrow at practice, implement just ONE concept from this guide.

Maybe it's deciding your target before you serve.

Maybe it's focusing on a consistent toss.

Whatever you choose, commit to it for an entire practice.

Because here's the truth: In 30 days, you'll either have a serve that changes games, or you'll still be hoping someone else scores the points.

Which player will you choose to be?"

Follow me on Pinterest Volleybragswag to improve your game even faster!

I share alot of individual, partner and easy-to-do volleyball serving drills we do in class with my followers.

Many of these volleyball practice drills you can do at home by yourself or try at your next practice with your teammates.

If you're a B team or JV player trying to make varsity next year...your goal should be to complete 1000 reps a day of at least three of the basic skills on your own...volleyball passing, serving and setting should be at the top of the list. 

Your three options are: 

1. You can learn more about Serving by visiting the related links below.                            
2. Follow the suggested reading on our Sitemap page Learning How To Play (Sitemap)
3. Or visit the pages in the How to Play Volleyball section in the drop down menu at the top of the page to get started. 
4. Before leaving this page Say "Hi" to Miss Tattoo the Tiger wearing the #9 jersey below.  Miss Tattoo is the starting defensive and serving specialist for the All Beast VolleyBragSwag All Star team

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Congratulations to my seven Boys-18s Vegas Volley club players who played in two state championship finals yesterday, the 3A and 5A State champinship finals at Sunrise Mountain High School.

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May 2 - 4, 2025 Tournament

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