Incoming high school volleyball players who transition into playing women's college volleyball often experience the culture shock that happens when a tourist visits a foreign country. Here are 5 physical adjustments incoming college volleyball players should know to prepare for their first year as a women's college volleyball student athlete.
1. Incoming high school volleyball players must learn to adjust to the increased speed of the game in women's college volleyball.
Among top women's volleyball coaches interviewed volleyball Volleyball magazine the number one adjustment incoming freshmen must make is to learn to readjust to the increased speed and tempo of the women's college volleyball game.
College players routinely practice how to accurately deliver a lower faster serve received pass, how to set a lower faster paced set, how to transition off the net faster, how to hit a lower, faster ball, how to defend a faster quicker set in college to compete in women's college volleyball.
Top college coaches highly recommend that freshmen learn to increase their speed to become faster athletes on the volleyball court. In women's college volleyball you're no longer playing with high school or club team friends you grew up with. Now you're playing with better players recruited from all over (and often outside) the U.S. To compete with and against taller, faster players incoming freshmen MUST increase their physical strength.
2. High school volleyball players must learn how to become physically stronger athletes in order to increase their vertical jump they have to develop, strengthen and build their leg and butt muscles.
To build and increase stamina, to give 100% effort in a 90" minute match college volleyball players must strengthen and build muscle. To concentrate and maintain the same focus in the 35th minute of a volleyball match that you had in the 10th minute- you can't be tired so you have to build muscle to keep up your strength. And in order to run and dive after a ball in the 5th match with the same energy and accuracy you used in the first match once again it takes muscle and strength.
3. High school volleyball players must learn to adjust to the higher intensity and frequency of women's college volleyball practices.
As one member of a large incoming class of freshmen and sophomores recruited from all over the U.S. to play volleyball at the University of Tennessee Knoxville it was quite a shock for all of us to have 3 practices a day during our two week preseason practices. That's 3 practices a day plus weights on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays or sprints on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Sleep was optional. Okay just kidding about sleep being optional but nowadays I believe women's volleyball athletic teams can only practice 2 times a day during preseason and a limited amount of hours of practice in season.
The intensity of women's college volleyball is high also because better players are competing among themselves to win a starting position on their team. If you want to play at game time you are going to have to earn your spot pushing yourself 100% every day and in every moment you can.
4. In women's college volleyball there's always a big(ger) block.
In girl's high school volleyball the big girl in the middle is obviously the tallest one on the team but in women's college volleyball many times the "big" girl is replaced by an even taller girl. Very simple math the big girl is transferred to the outside and the "bigger" girl is usually moved to the middle.
I was a 5'11" middle blocker all through high school but I was moved to the left as an outside hitter and replaced in the middle by a 6'1 Texan and a 6'3 Alaskan. Now there's a front row or a team full of mostly big girls who present a bigger block which freshmen hitters have to learn to hit over, hit by or hit past.
5. In women's college volleyball incoming freshmen players volleyball to develop characteristics necessary to give 110% in volleyball practice or a volleyball game.
In women's volleyball you are required to focus, concentrate and play hard all the time. For most freshmen it takes a period of time for the brain and body to develop so they react and respond at faster and higher BUT controlled (and comfortable) intensity levels.
The body and brain need to adapt to new stress levels, new pressures, new speeds and once it does a player becomes comfortable playing at that new level.
April Chapple created Volleyball Voices.com where high school and club female volleyball players learn about the indoor volleyball game and its heroes, with news and stories of college and women's pro volleyball players, self-coaching information, volleyball pictures and videos.
The former USA Volleyball national team member and pro indoor/beach volleyball professional is a regular columnist for the AVCA Coaching Volleyball magazine, the USA Volleyball magazine and the Active.com volleyball newsletter in addition to writing numerous articles on playing and coaching elite volleyball.
Author of the upcoming ebook "How to Stop Serving Like a Wimp" April can be reached at april@volleyballvoices.com
