Tips And Help On How To Develop An Ace-Scoring Good Volleyball Serve

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Good Volleyball Serve Techniques, Tips, Tactics and Strategies

I spend alot of time with my clients, club and college players teaching the correct technique needed to develop a good volleyball serve to score regular aces.

servingfrombehindhighelbowreachgoodtechnique

When you look at my players you'll see that all of them have the same good volleyball serve form and technique.

We work hard on -

keeping the elbow close to the ear
watching their hand when they contact the ball
watch how their hips are facing where they want to serve the ball (we were working on serving line to zone 5)
all of them are or will contact the ball at the same spot on the ball, so the upper part of the palm just below the knuckles contact the middle panels of the ball
working on a consistent toss on every serve so I know exactly where to contact the ball

Ryanwils, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Mastering the proper technique is important for a consistently good volleyball serve that scores points.

Regardless of the type of serve you choose, the following elements are crucial.

Volleyball Serve
Float Serve Grip

For the float serve, it's important to have a loose and relaxed grip on the ball. Place your tossing hand underneath the ball, allowing your fingers to spread naturally.

For the float serve, it's important to have a loose and relaxed grip on the ball.

Place your tossing hand underneath the ball, allowing your fingers to spread naturally.

Keep your hand and wrist relaxed to avoid generating excessive spin on the ball.

This type of grip promotes a clean surface contact with the ball, allowing it to float unpredictably over the net.

Volleyball Serve
Jump Serve Grip

With the jump serve, a firmer grip is recommended to generate power and control.

Hold the ball firmly in the palm of your hand and use your fingers to secure it in place.

Maintain a steady grip throughout your serving motion to ensure that the ball doesn't slip from your hand.

This grip helps maximize your ability to impart spin and power on the ball.

Volleyball Serve
Topspin Serve Grip

A 12-year old with a tough top spin jump serve!

The topspin serve requires a strong yet controlled grip on the ball. Hold the ball tightly with your palm and fingers.

Keep your hand slightly behind the ball to allow for a clean strike and effective topspin rotation.

The firm grip helps you generate the necessary spin to create a downward trajectory and make it difficult for the opposing team to handle.

Regardless of the serve type, it's crucial to find a grip that feels comfortable and natural to you.

Experiment with different grip pressures and positions to discover what works best for your serves.

Remember, a balance between a firm grip and maintaining a relaxed and fluid motion is key to executing accurate and powerful serves.

By emphasizing the importance of a firm yet comfortable hold on the ball, players can optimize their serve technique and improve their overall serving performance.

Common Serving Mistakes

To help players avoid common pitfalls, I address some common serving mistakes and provide tips on how to rectify them in order to insure you consistently make a good volleyball serve.

Some examples include:

Volleyball Serve - Serving into the Net

Explain the common causes of serving into the net and offer techniques for creating the necessary height and clearance.

Volleyball Serve -
Serving Long or Out of Bounds

Discuss the importance of proper aim and provide suggestions on adjusting power and technique to achieve better control.

Serving Strategies and Tactics To Use During A Match

During a match you as the server can use certain strategies of serving that can give you an advantage during a match.

Some strategies to consider include:

target weak zones on the court
mix up your serves
learn to read your server's body language

Tips On How To Develop A Good Volleyball Serve
Targeting Weak Zones

-Targeting Weak Zones

During warmups you get a chance to see how players pass and that's the time to identify who has strong passing skills.

Also during the game you as the server need to remember which zones to serve on the opposing court that cause them trouble in serve receive.

Serving deep to the opposing team's cross court to zone One when the setter is backrow in defense in Zone One is always a good idea because the passer has to pass a perfect ball from the right back of the court ..in front.. of the setter... who is moving to the net ...while having to turn and look over their shoulder ...in order to deliver a good set to their hitter.

If they dont pass well the setter has to work harder to get to the ball and the set becomes an easy ball for your team in defense to dig because the hitter doesnt get a good set.

All this chaos is the result of a smartly placed serve from you.

Tips On How To Develop A Good Volleyball Serve
Varying Serves

In practice you want to learn to mix up your serves. My teams regularly know how to serve short in one rally and then serve deep in another rally which keeps the opposing team's passers guessing all the time.

-Varying Serves

Tips On How To Develop A Good Volleyball Serve
Reading Opponent's Positioning

Learn to watch and identify where the opposing team's passers are in their serve receive formation on their court. If the three primary passers are deep in the court, then you want to consider serving short so your serve falls just behind the ten foot line.

-Reading Opponent's Positioning

Learn to watch and identify where the opposing team's passers are in their serve receive formation on their court.

If the three primary passers are deep in the court, then you want to consider serving short so your serve falls just behind the ten foot line.

If the opposing team's passers are standing closer to the ten foot line then consider aiming your serve either at their heads or deeper in the court so they're forced to move backwards.

Serving Tips for Beginners That Want To Develop A Good Volleyball Serve

For beginners who are just starting to learn the serve, here are some tips and advice to help you improve your skills.

focus on consistency
start with a basic serve
practice regularly

Serving Tips for Beginners That Want To Develop A Good Volleyball Serve
Focus on Consistency

- Focus on Consistency

As a beginner you want to practice your reps so that you develop consistent technique and repetition to develop muscle memory.

Give yourself a goal of completing 30 repetitions. And then keep track of the repetitions that you get right to your target.

If you get 15 to the target out of 30 total attempts that means you made half of them or 50% of your serves to the target.

Every time you practice at home by yourself see if you can do better than 50%..This is how you can test yourself each time and how you can keep track of your improvement.

Serving Tips for Beginners That Want To Develop A Good Volleyball Serve
Start With A Basic Serve

If you're a beginner you'll probably start with a fundamental serve technique, such as a simple standing overhand serve, before moving onto more advanced types of serves in volleyball.

- Start with a Basic Serve

If you're a beginner you'll probably start with a fundamental serve technique, such as an underhand serve or a simple standing overhand serve, before moving onto more advanced types of serves in volleyball.

Get consistently good with your simple serve before moving on to more advance types of serves in volleyball.

Serving Tips for Beginners That Want To Develop A Good Volleyball Serve
Practice Regularly

- Practice Regularly

Practice, practice and practice your serve.

The serve is the one skill you by yourself control and can use to score points without the help of a coach or a teammate so wouldn't you want to get back behind the service line and confidently serve as many points for your team as possible?

The only way to be able to consistently do that is to practice serving to consistent spots to the opposing court so that at any stressful time during a match you are calm enough and consistent enough to serve tough no matter what.

Players are given a specific amount of time to serve a pre-determined number of balls to the target area formed by the chairs. hitting the middle of the chairs is rewarded more than just hitting the chairs in this case but coaches can come up with their own rules in irder to make this a tougher or easier drill.

Frequently Asked Good Volleyball Serve Questions Answered

Volleyball Serve Questions Answered: Which team can serve the ball first? The team that wins the coin toss at the beginning of a match is the team that can serve first. (Richard Yuan)

Which team can serve the ball first?

The team that wins the coin toss at the beginning of a match is the team that can serve first.

How many players can serve a ball and when?

Only one player can serve the ball at the beginning of a rally.

Who can serve the ball?

The player on the offensive team, who starts in Zone 1, is the only one who can serve the ball.

Where can you serve the ball from on the court?

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

What is the purpose of the volleyball serve?

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.

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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.

A Good 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.

Meet Tatoo the Tiger, Serving Specialist on VolleyBragSwag's All Beast Team

Trying out for varsity? There are 6 basic volleyball skills, you need to learn beforehand: setting, passing, serving, hitting, blocking and digging.

From Lady Vol to Legend: Coach April Honored At UTK Champions Weekend

Lady Vol volleyball legend and record holder Coach April Chapple a University of Tennessee, Knoxville Hall of Fame Inductee, 3-time All American, 3-time SEC Champion, SEC Tournament MVP, 2-time All SEC Team is celebrated with her 1984 SEC champion teammates at Neyland Stadium during Champions Weekend on November 1-2, 2024.

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Tennessee Hall of Fame inductee, Coach April Chapple is

the first First Round Draft Pick for the first American pro indoor women's league
named to the first First Team All-Pro team for Major League Volleyball in USA volleyball history
former USA National team member
one of the few American women players named as an Italian Pro League D-I Championship Finalist, Italian Cup Finalist and Cup of Cups Tournament Finalist

April Chapple The first First round Draft Pick For Major League Volleyball the first American Women's Pro League Honored At Athlete Unlimited Pro Volleyball Match

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Invest in your improvement while preepping for your next level and college goals while working hard and training smart.

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Serving slang is not just about individual techniques; it also relates to overall game strategy. A coach might instruct a player to serve a "short serve" or a "deep serve" to target specific areas of the opponent's court or exploit weaknesses in their serve receive formation.

Ari, my private training client and I are working specifically on serving on jump float cross court serves ...short to Zone 2

There's so much we work on to get to this point where she can contact the ball with

the same toss height and same toss location
the same armswing speed
the same timing for when her serving hand contacts the ball
the middle of the hand contacting the middle of the ball every single time
getting use to watching her serving hand contact the ball at the highest point of her jump ...before she starts to land
and finally contacting the ball in the precise spot on the ball so it goes where the coach wants the player to put it so in this case ..a short serve in the farthest short right corner on the court also called Zone 2.

kamiminerpac12setteroftheyearformercoachaprilchappleprivateclient3years

Tommi Stockham All Big West Conference sophomore former Coach April Chapple private client 3 years

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