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Hit a Held Ball

A coach holds the ball up high near the net so you can practice the hand contact at full reach.

By Coach Evan Waechtler Youth coach (U11, Cache Valley, Utah) and founder of SSTracker Updated October 30, 2026

Set up

A coach stands on a sturdy box beside your landing spot and holds a ball up high and steady near the net.

Core: Approach. Beat your own best out of 10.

Ages
11 and up
Time
10 min
Space
Gym or court
Bring
Volleyball, coach
Level · skill
Developing · Hitting

The steps

How it works

  1. A coach stands on a sturdy box beside your landing spot and holds a ball up high and steady near the net.
  2. Take your approach and jump.
  3. Swing and knock the ball out of their hand with a full wrist snap.
  4. Do 10 swings.

Coaching point

Full reach, snap over the top.

Safety: Land softly on two feet with bent knees on a non-slip surface. Stop if your knees or ankles hurt. At a net, jump and land on your own side, under yourself, and never cross the centerline.

Make it fun

Play it, don't drill it

Game version

Toss-and-hit pairs: a partner tosses and you approach and hit to a target zone, then swap. The pair counts clean hits together.

Challenge

Pick a level: Less (stand and hit), Core (approach), More (call the zone first). Beat your own best out of 10.

Story

You are a thunderbolt: one clean approach, one bright flash.

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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