The Volleyball Serve Is Your First Opportunity To Score A Point

The serve is the only skill you can perform in volleyball all by yourself. Learn how to take advantage of this opportunity.

The volleyball serve is the one skill you control all by yourself.

The serve is the one individual skill in volleyball that you have complete control of.

From the moment you pick up the ball behind the service line, to once it leaves your hands for the toss after the ref blows the whistle, you literally have the ability to score points for your team, if you use the correct volleyball serving technique.

What Is The
Volleyball Serve?

The serve is the way the ball is launched over the net to start the rally after the ref has blown the whistle.

Technically, if you can't serve the ball, you can't play the game, since throwing the ball over the net isn't allowed.

This is why the serve is often the first offensive skill a player usually learns.

Moose works on improving her serve during the Brunch Club clinic on Mondays.

When your team is on offense they have the right to serve.
Only one player can serve the ball at the beginning of a rally.
The player on the offensive team, who starts in Zone 1, is the only one who can serve the ball.

The server must be behind the service line until the ball has been contacted.

Each official match must begin with a serve from one team which is sent into the opposing team's court with the intent on starting the rally and possibly scoring a point.

Before I get too technical let's review, exactly what a serve really is.

What Is A Volleyball Serve?

The volleyball serve is the skill used to start a rally. The serve puts the ball in play once the referee blows the whistle.

The serve is your first opportunity to serve a ball. The volleyball serve is the skill used to start a rally. The serve puts the ball in play once the referee blows the whistle.

Who Is A Volleyball Server?

Who's the server?

If you are the server, then at the beginning of the rally, just after the referee blows the whistle, you are the player standing behind the end line in the service zone, and within 8 seconds after the ref has blown the whistle, you serve the ball over the net.

What Is The Volleyball Service?

Also known as "the service" according to volleyball serve rules its the action taken by a player who is in the right back position in their team's rotation.

During the course of the game this player, while standing behind the service line, tosses the ball to herself with one hand and contacts the ball with the other hand to send it across the net into the court of the team that's in serve receive.

Iowa Hawkeyes Libero Serving a Volleyball Photo by Jon Fravel

Do You Follow Me on Instagram?

Follow me on Instagram @coach_apchap 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.

Follow me on Instagram @coach_apchap to improve your game even faster!

I share alot of individual, partner and easy-to-do volleyball passing 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.

View this post on Instagram

The toss…for the Standing Float Serve . . . Your toss…has to be consistent. You have to learn to toss the same way, …the same height, putting the ball in the same spot…every single time. . . If you have a problem with your serve, one of the first places to look..is your toss. . . I have a formula that we use … . . …two feet up in the air and one foot in front of your front foot. . . Two feet up in the air …gives you time to rotate your hips and arm to the ball…. . . One foot in front of your front foot …gives you a specific target area to place your ball that’s in the path of your serving arm when you bring it around to contact the ball.. . . With this little formula you can check yourself ..to see if . . you are leaning over to one side to contact the ball or . . you are bringing your serving arm across your body to try and contact the ball . . If you are..then your toss is throwing you off balance. . . For the standing float serve you want to start in a balanced position and you want to finish in a balanced position. If your toss is making you do or add unnecessary body movements then you need to fix it. . . If your toss is in the right place then you should be contacting the ball ..in front of your serving shoulder with your elbow above the level of your ear.…and not outside of your body line. . . Here’s your homework..at home drill. . . Just practice your toss. Use this formula to start instilling the correct muscle memory for your toss. Today go out and do 50 tosses. Tomorrow do 60. Tuesday 70. Add 10 everyday until you do 100 tosses on your own at home. . . To get consistently better at tossing…you have to practice tossing. Just tossing. This will improve the consistency of your serve because now you know exactly where the ball will be when you contact it. . . Two feet up in the air, one foot in front of your front foot, in front of your serving arm. . . How do I know? Because I did this and it helped me improve my serve in high school and again in college. . . . Thanks Carm! . . . . . #vegasvolleyball #volleyballtraining #libero #liberolife #volleyball #volleyballplayer #vegasbabyvegas #volleyballcoach #vegaslocal #toss #serve

A post shared by Coach April (@coach_apchap) on Dec 4, 2018 at 3:05am PST

The Volleyball Serve
Where Do You Go From Here?

Your three options are:

You can learn more about Serving by visiting the related links below.
Follow the suggested reading on our Sitemap page Learning How To Play (Sitemap)
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.
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.