Game version
Target-zone serving: two teams of two take turns serving into zones. Each team counts only its own zones hit.
Deep and Short Serves
Change the length of your serve so passers must move forward and back.
By Coach Evan Waechtler Youth coach (U11, Cache Valley, Utah) and founder of SSTracker Updated October 30, 2026
Set up
Mark a short zone near the far 3 yards (3 m) line and a deep zone near the end line.
Core: Medium. Beat your own best out of 10.
- Ages
- 11 and up
- Time
- 12 min
- Players
- Just you
- Space
- Gym or court
- Bring
- Volleyball, net, cones
- Level · skill
- Developing · Serving
The steps
How it works
- Mark a short zone near the far 3 yards (3 m) line and a deep zone near the end line.
- Serve 5 short, then 5 deep.
- Count how many land in the right zone.
- Repeat 3 rounds.
Coaching point
Change the swing, not the toss.
Safety: Warm up your shoulder first, keep serve and hitting sets short, and stop if your shoulder hurts.
Make it fun
Play it, don't drill it
Challenge
Pick a zone: Less (big), Core (medium), More (small). Beat your own best out of 10.
Story
You are opening the match with a serve that lands exactly where you aim.
My best
Beat your own count
Beat your own best out of 10. Only your own number counts: today against last time.
Practice makes progress
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