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Tennessee Athletics Honors April Chapple at Champions Weekend for Legendary Volleyball Achievements

A Middle Blocker in Volleyball What Makes A Good Middle In Volleyball?

A middle blocker in volleyball needs to have good upper body technique including hand positioning, shoulder penetration and full arm extension over the net.

A middle blocker needs to have good upper body technique including hand positioning, shoulder penetration and full arm extension over the net. (Ralph Arvesen)

A middle in volleyball needs to have good upper body technique including hand positioning, shoulder penetration and full arm extension over the net. (Ralph Arvesen)

As a middle blocker you need to use your upper body - specifically

your middle blocker's hands
your middle blocker's arms and
your middle blocker's shoulders

when you block in volleyball.

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Middle Blocker in Volleyball
Upper Body Skills
Hand Positioning

Middle Blocker in Volleyball Upper Body Skills Hand Positioning(Shakes KC)

If you're a middle blocker in volleyball, at the max height of your block jump, you want to have your arms, shoulders and especially hands angled towards where you want the ball to go, once its blocked.

Middle Blocker in Volleyball Upper Body Technique: Stanford blockers hands face the middle of the opposing court so ball deflects back to the middle of the court. (Penn State News)

As a middle blocker in volleyball, you want your blocking hands and arms angled towards the middle of the opposing team's court while penetrating the net to block.

The ball will be deflected back into the court and not out of bounds.

Middle Blocker in Volleyball Upper Body Technique: Iowa State triple block with blocking hands/arms angled towards the middle of the opposing team's court while penetrating the net. (R. Arvesen)

Middle Blocker in Volleyball
Hand Positioning Full Arm Extension at Max Jump

Middle Blocker in Volleyball : Full Arm Extension at Max Jump (Matt Van Winkle)

Another thing to remember when you learn how to block a volleyball is to try to fully extend your arms across the net at the maximum point of your block jump.

A middle blocker in volleyball has to block quick sets which are so fast that they only have time to just get there hands over the net to stop the ball.

A Middle Blocker in Volleyball Needs To Penetrate Arms and Shoulders Over the Net (Matt Van Winkle)

But outside blockers who block 4's and 5's, balls that are set high to the outside or shot out at a quicker pace to the outside have time to use the full extension of their arms to block the ball.

If you were born with arms that are 45" inches long then you should be reaching some 45 plus 1 or 2 inches as far over the net as you can get to perform your maximum block jump with your longest arm reaching ability.

A Middle Blocker in Volleyball : Keep your arms and shoulders fully extended over the net, without touching it for as long as you are jumping. (Ralph Arvesen)

Thanks for visiting. Be sure to check out more of my volleyball passing articles by clicking one of the links below! (April Chapple)

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.

Volleyball Positions Where Do You Go From Here?

We know where you need to go now! Here are three options:

Learn more about Blocking Skills by clicking one of the links in 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.

Here's what to read next about volleyball positions!

Being A Left Handed Volleyball Setter in the Front Row Has Advantages
For a left handed volleyball setter who receives a good pass, the ball will get to your dominant hand first, which means that you can dump the ball faster.
Volleyball Setter Position: What Makes A Good Setter And Team Leader?
Like quarterbacks in football, the volleyball setter position requires the setter to run the offense by deciding the volleyball plays her offense will run.
Volleyball Positions on the Court: Backrow Rotations in Volleyball
Learn the descriptions and the different backrow volleyball positions on the court and how the rotation in volleyball works in the backrow player positions.
Volleyball Positions and Rotations 3 Front Row Positions in Volleyball
Learn the descriptions and what the different volleyball positions and rotations work for each of these front row player positions.
Volleyball Positions: What Are The Six Volleyball Roles On The Court?
Here's an extensive breakdown of the volleyball positions on the court you can pick to specialize in.including setter, hitter, opposite, middle blocker libero.
The Volleyball Outside Hitter: How To Be The Smart Spiker On Your Team
A volleyball outside hitter has options for scoring against opponents to score points including tipping deep or short in the court to mix up your attack hits.
Setters Volleyball Player Roles, Rules and Responsibilities Explained
Setters volleyball player responsibilities are to run her team's offense and they call the plays hitters run against blockers like a quarterback in football.
The Setter Volleyball Position Five Traits Good Setters Always Have
The player in the setter volleyball position gets to every second ball in a rally to set that ball to a hitter who attacks it for a point or sideout.
The Setter In Volleyball: How and Why You Set The Ball To Your Hitters
Be a setter in volleyball who knows how to run an effective offensive attack with two or three front row hitters to beat the block and opposing defense.
6 Positions in Volleyball: Setter Libero Hitters Middle Blocker, D.S.
Setters, liberos, middle blockers, defensive specialists or spikers are the 6 positions in volleyball that players specialize in on varsity high school teams.
Each Player Position in Volleyball And The Court Zones They Play In
There are specialized areas that each player position in volleyball plays in. Learn where setters, opposites, middle blockers, liberos and outside hitters play.
Outside Hitter Volleyball Position What Is The Left Side Hitter's Job?
Outside hitter volleyball position. The left side hitter usually receives the most sets during a game and are required to pass well and hit to score points.
The Middle Blocker Position in Volleyball Rules and Responsibilities
For the middle blocker position in volleyball what're the requirements and skills needed? Learn what the middle volleyball blocker rules and requirements are.
The Middle Blocker Volleyball Position Offensive and Defensive Duties
Everything you need to know about the middle blocker volleyball position including hitting responsibilities, strategies, tactics and tips.

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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

Coach April's 2025 Private and Semi private Volleyball Training

Pre-Registration now open for 2025 Private and Semiprivate Training Sessions with Coach April . Get prepared for club tryouts or train with me during club season!

Email now for information on semiprivate or private indoor skills, individual or small group training volleyball classes and my Breakfast Club for College Players training for 2025.

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

Email me right now to register or for more information.

info@improveyourvolley.com

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

katepriorallwestcoastconferencebyufreshmanformercoachaprilchappleprivateclient3years

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Dear Vegas Parent

Read my open letter to Las Vegas Jr high/high school volleyball parents about my predictions on individual and small group volleyball training trends for 2019/2021