Tryout Planning and Positional Keys

It’s early June, and high school coaches are scheduling open gyms, organizing summer team camps, and planning the fall tryouts. Early summer is a good time for the coach to evaluate the previous season, assess the strengths and challenges ahead, and decide what they want to implement in the upcoming season. Here are a couple of considerations for the summer activities and fall tryouts.

Know Thyself

A coach’s solid grasp of what they seek in a player or team will undoubtedly benefit them as they make player decisions and implement systems.

• Are you looking for ready-made volleyball players or athletes who are not well skilled at this point in their career, but might become good volleyball players down the road?
• Do you have a system (offensive or defensive) in place and you want to plug players into positions, or do you create a system based on the available talent?
• Do you care about a player’s attitude, work ethic, and personality, or are you solely focused on their skills?
• Do you value players with all-around skills or prioritize what they do well and deemphasize their skill deficiencies?
• Do you value athleticism over current skills?
• What are your strengths or weaknesses as a coach? Are you good at developing raw talent, or prefer players with a ready-made skill set?

These questions are legitimate as they will impact the players selected for your team. It will also provide a springboard for the items you want to implement in the upcoming season. Some coaches will approach tryouts in an offhanded manner as their squad is already selected. Although you may have a good idea of the makeup of your team, organizing a quality tryout will set a positive tone for the upcoming season. In addition, you may learn some things about your players that may prove valuable.

Considerations for a High School Tryout

Physical Testing: Incorporating physical tests into your tryout has several benefits. It might help identify players who lack skill but exhibit physical traits indicative of future potential, provide feedback for players who have worked hard over the summer, and provide information relative to positions a player might play.

Here are a few physical tests that are predictors of volleyball potential.

Basketball Chest Pass for Distance: This test will measure upper body and leg strength and the ability to coordinate the upper and lower body. The player must 1) stand with both feet at the line, 2) no approach is allowed, 3) pass the ball with two hands from the chest, 4) incorporate the legs to increase the distance, and 5) the player can land in front of the line. The coach measures from the line to the point where the basketball hits the floor.

Standing Broad Jump or Triple Jump: I prefer the triple jump as it indicates leg strength, arm power, and upper and lower body coordination. The athlete must initiate three consecutive jumps for distance, with no stopping between jumps.

Shuttle Run or Sprint: Many of these types of activities are available for coaches. I prefer a shuttle run that mandates a change of direction, which indicates leg power and core strength.

Coleman-McKenzie Test: This test measures current ball control skills. For sixty seconds, the player alternates forearm passing and setting to yourself, at least 6′ over the head. The number of contacts is recorded. A similar test can be done by marking off a target area on the wall, and the player will pass or set into the target area for sixty seconds.

Jump-Reach Test: I value how high a player touches over measuring their vertical jump. A high jump touch might predict future potential even if the current skill set is rudimentary. Although how high a player can touch might indicate potential, don’t discount players who don’t have a high jump reach. Poor jumping mechanics often impact a player’s test scores. It is possible that, with instruction on how to jump correctly, a player might score higher on this test. Additionally, some players have a great skill set and can offset a relatively low jump reach with great skill and vision.

Tryout Activities

Coaches can easily identify the top and bottom players in a tryout environment. However, the players in the middle group should merit the most attention. That is the group of athletes where it is a struggle to differentiate. Therefore, construct the drills so that this middle group of players receives the most attention. When organizing tryout activities, I recommend investing most of the available time in some form of playing activity. I would script much of the play so you can evaluate specific skills. Some sample activities:

• 1v1 or 2v2 narrow court: These activities will reflect the current level of ball control, specifically with serve, serve-receive, and setting. In addition, you will see an indication of a player’s competitiveness level. I will play 90-second games on multiple courts, with the game winners rotating in one direction to get on the champion’s court and the losing teams rotating in the other direction. Generally, I make the court 10′ in width, a little wider for 2v2.
• 2-Across the Back: This is a 5v5 drill that will demonstrate movement and skills relative to attack, defense, and ball control. The middle front is the setter, attackers on LF and RF. No blocking is allowed, and the attacker must attack cross-court. The two backrow defenders and the drop-off front-row defender will move to defend the cross-court area.
• Scripted 6v6: A game in which you can script a portion or all contacts. For example:
  • All serves must go to the libero (evaluate the libero’s passing efficiency and the server’s accuracy).
  • All first attacks must go to the left-side attacker. You can also have the serve go to the front-row attacker. (Evaluate the passing and attacking of the hitter, the blocking abilities of the RS/MB, and the accuracy of the server)
  • Record the attack efficiency with each setter. Note if a setter is producing higher numbers from their attackers.
  • Scoring modification: For example, all attacks by a middle hitter are worth two points.
  • A team must execute three consecutive first-attack kills
  • Any game element can be incorporated by modifying the rules or scoring.
  • Keep individual statistics and post them for all players to see.
• Positional Changes: play 6v6 games, but have your setters switch after a set. The other players will remain on the same squad. Keep track of which setter is winning more. You’ll find that some setters find a way to be on a winning team regardless of which team they are leading.
• As the play unfolds, make notes on what you’re seeing. You can probably plan your first couple of practices.

Positional Criteria

• Setters: Possess quick feet and move around the court efficiently. Be a good communicator and decision-maker. Takes direction well, is competitive, and connects with the best hitter.
• Libero: Take charge personality. Being a good passer can be more important than being a good defender. Can they set the second ball? Possessing a good defensive mentality. Have an effective serve.
• Middle Hitters: Quick lateral movement is more important than height. The tall but slow player might be channeled to a right-side position. A competitive spirit to never give up on blocking or working hard to be a transition attacker. The ability to pass a short serve.
• Outside Hitters: Good movement to facilitate going from serve-receive to attack. The ability to terminate on the attack as they will most likely receive the most sets. Possessing a good all-around skill set.
• Super-sub: There is always a role for a player who could start but will be used as a super-sub. When things aren’t going well, this player can enter the court and change the direction of a match through their play and personality. The coach will need to be salesmanlike in selling the super-sub role, as players who might have the ability to be starters might not be convinced of the importance of this role.

Things to Keep in Mind

• Tall players are generally slower to develop at younger ages. Be hesitant to drop a tall player from your team due to current skill or movement abilities. With time, they will become more graceful and skilled (and they will still be tall).
• Resist the urge to place players into positional boxes at a young age. Focus on developing as many players as possible who possess a well-rounded skillset.
• Focus on what a player can do instead of what they can’t do. Challenge yourself to find a way to take advantage of their strengths while you work on their liabilities.
• Using statistics in the tryout can assist in multiple ways. First, it will help address any bias the coach may possess. Second, the statistics should reinforce player selection. You can also post these statistics so players can see their ranking.
• When playing 6v6, move players into different positions. Doing so may foster your creative juices in systems that might be implemented. More importantly, it will demonstrate if a player can play more than one position, making that player more valuable to the team.

Takeaway

Every school district has its policy regarding cutting players from the team. I would make every effort to avoid cutting players, especially at the younger ages. You can never predict who will grow or improve their skills. However, this policy entails extra work for the coach, as you want to create roles for all the players. Coaches need to be clear-minded about what they seek in their team regarding skills, athleticism, attitude, potential, etc. If you possess a sound philosophy and core values, the tryout process, although always challenging, will go smoothly.