Improve Your Digging Skills With These 4 Digging Volleyball Drills

Want to know how to improve your digging skills successfully this season? Start with these 4 digging volleyball drills that'll prep you for your club season.

We do a ton of digging volleyball drills in my private training sessions to help improve Vegas players defensive skills in the back row.

I like to regularly do digging volleyball drills every week in my clinics, semiprivate and private training sessions as all position training drills which I do  because this practice supports a huge part of what my coaching philosophy is about.

I developed a big part of my coaching philosophy around my belief that players should not be pigeonholed. 

I firmly believe that my tall middle blockers and outside hitters need to be as good in the back court as they are in the front court. 

Ask the tall guy or girl on a middle or high school team and 9 times out of 10 they'll say their coach only sees their height and they're automatically put in the middle and hardly ever get to do anything in the back row. I hear about it all the time with my clients.

Same for a libero middle or high school player who may be a really talented hitter but rarely gets put in games to hit or even block. 

I believe that middle and high school is the time to learn and become good at all the positions regardless of height.

Period. 

If you're a good coach who knows the game you can teach tall players to pass, serve and play defense and you can teach smaller players to hit point scoring hard hits and smart shots and to time their block so they touch or even stop a lot of balls at the net. 

Now, if you're that "coach" who'd rather harvest players and just recruit/ask/find/discover the players you think you need that already fit the mold of what you want your team to look like...then you'll probably always have tall players in front..and when they rotate to the backrow put your smaller players in the back.  

I like to teach players the whole game and not parts of it so they can walk onto any court and be good at all six skills. 

Which means that I always include defensive themed (okay that's a funny phrase) digging volleyball drills in pretty much every session so my setters, middles and pin hitters get a ton of quality defensive touches and reps.

Remember my goal in training is always aiming for a minimum of 500+ reps in an hour with the intention of touching a 1000 balls in a session. 

Totally doable if you're a focused, disciplined player intent on doing more work in practice and less talking ...and especially if you have a coach who shares and embraces your goals of improving your skills quickly. 

If you are the defensive specialist or libero on your team, or a player looking for individual digging volleyball drills, then bookmark this page for a selection of new defensive technique drills to try. (Photo Al Case)

It takes a lot of practice reps to be able to defend a ball back up from the back row to the front row.

That's a huge focus on why I do these drills in each practice. 

My digging volleyball drills are designed to improve a wide array of skills necessary for successful digging.

Here's a breakdown of the benefits and improvements you can expect from each drill:

I believe this drill enhances digging precision and early platform angles while improving a player's agility to run down balls.

In my private trainings with clients I talk to them about how many steps it takes to cover half the court and this is a great drill to work on and reinforce that. 

One of my previous students, Sydney, after consistent practice, managed to more accurately read the ball and to predict the trajectory of incoming balls, which helped to significantly improve her individually defense.

For me this drill trains players to focus and concentrate on the ball in the middle of chaos and the frenzied play that happens during a rally, a necessary trait during bustling matches.

A great example of the effectiveness of this drill is demonstrated by one of my players, Cassidy.

After incorporating this drill into her regular practice, she was able to anticipate hit directions better even during the most chaotic phases of her matches. 

When you do this in the drill your ability to read, run down and react to balls is improved. 

I think this drill helps players quickly adjust their angled platform while providing a great rep workout to increase your defensive and digging reflexes.

One of my clients, Sisi a middle blocker, wanted to improve her backcourt skills since that wasn't what she was doing alot of in club and high school. 

At first, she struggled initially with controlling her digs but after using this drill, she now digs with much better control, and it shows in the improvement in her game performances.

Messy Pepper Digging Drill:

I like this drill because it develops quick reactions to "crazy unpredictable balls" or unpredictable hits that you need to react to quickly.

One success story from this drill is Carmela, who used to be hesitant during fast-paced matches.

After weeks of diligent practice with this drill, Carm was now not only comfortable but also was in control of her body parts which helped her immensely control the ball to the target in high-speed rallies, efficiently handling unpredictable hits.

By integrating these drills into your volleyball practice routine, you'll be able to see growth in your abilities over time just like the players above did. 

Becoming a stronger digger requires a combination of different skills and these drills are designed to work on each of those aspects.

Remember, the key to improvement is consistent practice and diligence!

1. Blocking and digging:

These are the two primary elements of volleyball defense, blocking and digging. Blockers, are the first line of defense to prevent the ball from entering their court while diggers, the second line of defense, cover the areas blockers don't while working to keep the ball off the floor.

2. Blockers and diggers work in tandem:

Blockers station themselves in specific areas at the net. Diggers adjust their positions based on the blockers' locations.

3. Effective communication:

Direct communication between blockers and diggers is vital for covering open spaces on the court. It makes the defense stronger and more synchronized.

4. The importance of consistent blocking:

Keeping a consistent block helps the backcourt players set up effective defense around the block.

They can trust their blockers and position themselves appropriately based on the blocker's actions.

5. Continued learning and practice:

As players progress, more advanced volleyball defense strategies such as rotational defense, perimeter defense, man up defense, and man-back defense can be adopted.

Remember, a good defense often translates to a good offense. So, keep honing your defensive skills and strategies for better game performance.

Private or semiprivate volleyball indoor/sand lessons are an excellent way for young Las Vegas high school volleyball players to quickly improve their individual skills through a private or semi-private coaching experience. These lessons are conducted by former pro volleyball player, former USA Volleyball High Performance instructor and Evaluator and Tstreet Vegas 18s head Coach April Chapple on a weekly basis. Sign up now!

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. 

1. Improve Your Volleyball Playing with Private Volleyball Coach April Chapple
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2. Best Volleyball Drills For Setters, Hitters, Liberos, Passers and Blockers
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3. Improve Your Digging Skills With These 4 Digging Volleyball Drills

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