Blogging has seriously been one of the BEST things I have been able to experience this year. From getting to see everyone’s many different post about the many different topics, it has been great. I really enjoyed this whole experience and getting to make several blog posts and getting to tell you all about my favorite thing, volleyball. So, for you all, this is a goodbye. This is my last blog post and I wanted to let you all know that I am thankful. Thank you for all of the sweet comments on my posts and going through and looking on my blog site. Thank you for giving me all of your awesome feed back so that I could make each post better. The student blogging challenge was awesome! I learned many new things during those several weeks and it helped me make every other post after that way better than before. So for now, this is a goodbye and I may try and post on here every now and then to keep everyone updated with how my summer break is going, I hope you all do the same. Maybe next year, I can learn a new experience and get connected back to everyone. I hope you all enjoyed blogging as much as I did!

When serving, stepping on or across the serving line as you make contact with the serve.

Failure to serve the ball over the net successfully.

 Contacting the ball illegally; (Lifting, carrying, throwing, etc.)

Touching the net with any part of the body while the ball is in play. Exception: If the ball is driven into the net with such force that it causes the net to contact an opposing player, no foul will be called, and the ball shall continue to be in play.

When blocking a ball coming from the opponents court, contacting the ball when reaching over the net is a violation if both: 

1) Your opponent hasn’t used 3 contacts. AND 

2) They have a player there to make a play on the ball.

When attacking a ball coming from the opponents court, contacting the ball when  reaching over the net is a violation if the ball hasn’’t yet broken the vertical plane of crossing over the centerline with any part of your body. Exception: if it’s the hand or foot, the entire hand or entire foot must cross for it to be a violation.

Serving out of order.

Back row player blocking (deflecting a ball coming from their opponent), when at the moment of contact the back row player is near the net and has part of his/her body above the top of the net (an illegal block).

Back row player attacking a ball inside the front zone (the area inside the 10 foot line), when at the moment of contact the ball is completely above the net (an illegal attack).

There are six players on a team, three on the front row and three on the back row.

There is a maximum of three hits per side.

The player may not hit the ball twice in succession. (A block is not considered a hit.)

The ball may be played off the net during a volley and on a serve.

A ball hitting a boundary line is “in”.

A ball is “out” if it hits an antennae, the floor completely outside the court, any of the net or cables outside the antennae, the referee stand or pole, or the ceiling above a nonplayable area.

It is legal to contact the ball with any part of a players body.

It is illegal to catch, hold, or throw the ball.

If two or more players contact the ball at the same time, it is considered one play and either player involved may make the next contact. (Provided the next contact isn’t the teams fourth hit.)

A player can not block or attack a serve from on or inside the ten foot line.

After the serve, the front row players may switch positions at the net.

At higher competition, the officiating crew may be made up of two refs, line judges, scorer, and an assistant scorer.

Like just about any athlete in any other sport, a certain amount of muscle is needed to perform the various moves with great strength and success. Each sport is specific to the types of options that are needed, and volleyball is one of them. When it comes to being successful on the volleyball court, athletes need to be able to jump high, dart quickly, and hit with force. That means that strong quads, flexible hamstrings, and powerful gluteals are crucial. This goes for both male and female athletes. Volleyball is a tough and demanding sport, requiring speed, agility, and explosiveness. And the place to develop such traits is in the weight room. Weight lifting is beneficial for just about every sport, but especially for volleyball athletes. Lifting weights is an absolutely critical part of volleyball training. It helps athletes develop the skills necessary for success on the court. From out-jumps, to out-cuts, to out-sprinting opponents, weight lifting is important. Watch for my next post for three amazing reasons on why volleyball players should work their muscles and train!

Here are 3 solid reasons why volleyball athletes should spend a good chunk of time resistance training:

1. Developing Strength and Power:

This might sound obvious, but strength and power can only become a reality after a certain amount of muscle has been built up. Lifting weights helps to develop this muscle mass by stimulating the tiny muscle fibres that make up the muscles. These fibres grow in size with each weight lifting session, producing more strength and power.

Squats are one such exercise that volleyball athletes should practice. The push phase of weight lifting develops strong and powerful hip extension strength along with upper back and shoulder power. This exercise is a basic for all athletes, including volleyball players, as it helps to strengthen just about every major muscle group of the body.

The squat works the muscles involved in powerful jumping and landing, while strengthening the back, shoulders and arms to execute powerful spikes during game play. By training the body from every angle, volleyball athletes can develop the agility necessary for effective and safe movement on the court.

2. Prevent Injury:

Without well trained muscles, injury is as good as imminent. Lifting weights can help to prevent injury. Considering all the jumping, landing, planting, and cutting, the body certainly goes through a lot.

Each time you jump, the force of landing travels through the feet, ankles, knees, hips, and back. Studies have repeatedly shown that the best way to prevent injury is through weight training. Strong muscles are better capable of absorbing the shock of landing compared to weak muscles.

3. Enhance Team Culture:

While not as obvious of a benefit compared to the first two, weight training is a great way to develop a healthy and positive team culture. Volleyball is a team sport, so why not train as a team? The gym is the perfect place to start practicing hard work as a group.

Not only are athletes united in their aim to complete their workout, they are also engaging in an encouraging team environment. Helping teammates complete their lift, or cheering them on as they finish their last rep is a great team-building exercise. When players can trust and rely on their teammates, it creates a positive space for each other.

Don’t overlook the importance of weight lightning in conjunction to skill-specific exercises. It could mean the difference between a good volleyball career, and a great one!

We are starting our volleyball season in August with new jerseys and new styles. We chose the jerseys we liked best the other day and one was purple and one was yellow. The yellow jersey didn’t get approved so we are changing it to yellow and white. The yellow one was everyone’s favorite, but sadly we can’t get that one. Our new jerseys are Under Armour and the sleeves have more padding than usual so there is more comfort when sliding on the ground. We are all so excited for the jerseys we have all been waiting so long for. They are super cute and I think we are going to rock them. We are more than ready for next season to get here so we can play volleyball and style in our new jerseys!

*The jersey pictured is not my teams jersey. It is the same brand and how the jersey is built, but it has our team name, our colors, and a different design!*

Since volleyball has officially ended until next season in August, I have been doing workouts that will build my muscle and help me become a better player. On certain days I do legs, then arms, then I mix core in with all of that. Some days throughout the week we go into the gym and we do agility. Agility helps you to become faster and have better eye coordination. We also do thirty laps around the big gym in fast walking motion. Me, and my team have been working super hard to get to where we need to be. One day soon, we are gonna win the championships that we’ve been striving for. Nothing beats the team that I have. We all work good together and know just what each player does and the position they play. I love my family and the hard work we all accomplish together!

(The weight room pictured is not the weight room we use at school!)

As I asked a couple people what their favorite thing about watching volleyball is, I got some good feedback. Someone told me that their favorite thing about watching it was the good, long rallies that occur throughout the whole game. I asked another person and they told me their favorite part was the very competitive games because they were more interesting to watch. Many people have different things they like to see when it comes to the sport that many of us love to play. This game is not just about two teams showing up to play, as some people may think, it is our life. The many good serves that lead to aces, the good digs that lead to getting a good set, and the good set that leads to a good hit, and a good hit that leads to a kill, and that kill leads to a point that is added to your teams score. Some may think this is just a game, but it is not. Points are earned by those team players who give their all and always put in 110 percent through everything. Blood, sweat, and tears is what most of volleyball takes. What do you enjoy watching about volleyball?

This past weekend we traveled about 3-4 hours to St. Louis for our very last club ball tournament until next season. We played hard and fought and ended in third. The semi-finals was a tough game, but we did not let that bring us down. We had a great weekend to end our season. Friday, the whole team did not go to school and we all left early Friday morning to head towards St. Louis and we went to the zoo there and then for supper we ate at Chili’s. Saturday, we got up early and attended the St. Louis Regional Warm-Ups tournament. That morning through the afternoon we played with heart and did good. After we were completely finished playing, we went back to the hotel to change and get cleaned up so we could go eat and finish our Saturday with each other and have a good time. We went to the outlet malls and ate Taco Bell. Sunday came around and we all got up and got ready and loaded our bags into the vehicle and headed home. We enjoyed our weekend and cherished every moment of our whole club ball season and all of the memories we made. 

Our club ball team consist of seven sophomores and one junior. We all enjoy the game that we play and nothing can change our love for it. Each player plays their heart out. Down below will be a list of each player, their height, and the position they play. 

Sophomores:

Emily Shipley (Me) – I am 5’9 and I play outside and right side and middle when it is needed. 

Keylee Gromer – She is 5’7 and she plays outside and passes in the back row. 

Harley Russell – She is 4’10 and she is our libero. 

Raegan Riley – She is 5’3 and she is our all around setter. 

Jada Sherrod – She is 5’2 and she is our right side when I play outside and when I play right side she is our passer in the back row. 

Janae Sherrod – She is 5’3 and she is our other outside and she also passes in the back row. 

Taylor Earnheart – She is 5’10 and she plays middle. 

Junior:

Kayla Gentry – She is 5’8 and she is our other middle player. 

We definitely have a variety of players on this team that have the heart and hustle for volleyball. The love we have for the game will only continue to grow from here!