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

One Volleyball Blocking Tip For Players On Defense In The Front Row

This volleyball blocking tip describes the importance of watching the hitter when you are at the net about to block the opposing spiker in front of you.

Volleyball Blocking Tips: Texas Longhorns blocking technique watch them closing the seam of the block while keeping hips and shoulders parallel to the net. (Ralph Arvesan photo)

Using good volleyball blocking skills are important when you're in the front row and your team is on defense.

That's because as a blocker, its your job to stop the opposing team from attacking the ball in your court.

Here is one way to improve your blocking technique so that you can stop more balls at the net.

Volleyball Blocking Tips
Watch Your Hitter With Your Shoulders Parallel to the Net

Volleyball Blocking Tips: Watch your hitter with your shoulders parallel to the net as you reach over to block the ball or stop the ball on the opposing team's side of the net. (Ralph Arvesen photo)

As the opposing team sets the ball, you as a blocker, want to watch the setter as she sets the ball to her hitter.

Volleyball Blocking Tips: This is called "reading the play" and you want to read and react to what the setter is showing you. (Ralph Arvesen photo)

This is called "reading the play" and you want to read and react to what the setter is showing you so that

you can decide on who to block
where to block or
where to play defense

Volleyball Blocking Tips: As the opposing team sets the ball, you as a blocker, want to watch the setter as she sets the ball to her hitter. (Ralph Arvesen photo)

After watching the opposing team's setter set the ball to the opposing team hitter in front of you... then you watch the hitter.

You watch the hitter to get indications of how she intends to hit the ball.

Here are some things you are looking for:

Is the player approaching you with her shoulder at an angle, indicating that she is going to hit cross-court?
Are her shoulders coming at you straight on with the intention of hitting down the line?
Does she have a quick or slow armswing?
Does she hit the ball low across the net?
Does she hit on her way down?

Volleyball Blocking Tips: Oklahoma Sooner outside blocker (8) is blocking the line on this Texas Longhorn hitter while her middle blocker (2) closes the seam. (Ralph Arvesen photo)

Ultimately, you should even be able to see if your hitter is turning her shoulders to face outside the court, which will show you that she intends to wipe off your block.

"Watching" means keeping your eyes open.

Don’t laugh.

I can show you hundreds of action shots of players blocking with their eyes closed.

Volleyball Blocking Tips: Texas Longhorns blockers watch the hitter. When blocking 1.watch the ball then the setter, back to the ball finally the hitter as they contact the ball. (R. Arvesen)

Watch your blocker, then go get the ball.

I say it this way to emphasize reaching over the net to grab or block the ball.

When you reach over keep your shoulders square to the net.

This means at the height of your block jump you want to reach over the net - ideally getting your armpits as far over the net so that if possible you block the ball on the opposing team's side of the net.

When blocking a ball at the height of your block jump you want to reach over the net - ideally getting your armpits as far over the net as possible. (Ralph Arvesen photo)

This is called penetrating over the net with your arms and shoulders so that you contact the ball, blocking it on the opposing team's side of the net.

If you don't touch the ball by putting up a strong block you will still cover a particular area on your court so the hitter has to hit to another area on your court to avoid your block.

Volleyball Blocking Tips: Texas A&M blockers close the seam and block to force the Texas Longhorns hitter to hit cross court. (Ralph Arvesen photo)

Depending on the type of defense your team runs your back row digger should be covering the area that your blockers don't take.

This is how a team's front row blockers work together with their backrow diggers to cover the court in defense.

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

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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!

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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.

How To Play Volleyball:
Where Do You Go From Here?

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

Learn more about Blocking 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.

Check out these
volleyball tips on the pages below.

4 Serving Tips For Volleyball Players To Add More Power To Their Serve
Here are four serving tips for volleyball players to add power to their serve...face your target, visualize your serve, toss the same way, serve like you spike
Blocking Tips Volleyball Players Use To Seal The Net With The Block
My blocking tips volleyball players use to improve technique used when sealing the net with arms close to the net when stopping hitters from attacking the ball.
A Setter Volleyball Checklist With Tips To Improve How To Set A Ball
Learn how to improve your setting technique with these setter volleyball checklist tips that breakdown what to do with each body part from head to toe.
Learn How To Properly Set With My Can't Miss Setter Volleyball Tips
Non-setter players should regularly work on setting skill and technique with regular wall ball reps with a partner. Learn more with my setter volleyball tips.
Serving in Volleyball Tactics For Scoring Points With Your Float Serve
When serving in volleyball there are two places where you can serve to on the opposing team's court to increase the chance of scoring points with your serve.
Your Serve In Volleyball 10 Tips To Score More Aces in Volleyball
To score more points and aces in volleyball here are 10 tips to help you improve your point scoring serve in volleyball.
Overhand Jump Serve Volleyball Tips To Score Many More Points and Aces
My "Coach April Overhand Jump Serve Volleyball Tips" designed to help you increase your serving accuracy, power and the ability to serve more aces in volleyball.
10 Volleyball Serve Receive Tips: A Guide To What Happens On Offense
This page explains what happens when a team is on offense along with a reprint of my 10 Volleyball Serve Receive tips article that appeared on Active.com
3 Volleyball Player Passing Tips To Quickly Fix Serve Receive Skills
3 volleyball player passing tips like keep arms straight, feet on the ground and move your feet quickly to the ball when you need to improve your serve receive.

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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