Coming in December-New Website and Logo for Volleyball Training Solutions

In conjunction with the upcoming VTS website remake, we are introducing a new logo.  Along with the new logo, we will be initiating some great new services.  These will be detailed on the new site, but in a nutshell, we will:

• Streamline the sign up/renewal procedure- You'll never leave the VTS site and there will be more payment options including easier processing of purchase orders.
• Interactive Level of Membership- your club or high school staffs will be able to participate in members only VTS webinars that will focus on the items of most importance to your situation.  VTS staff will also be available to comment of training sessions, competitions and offer suggestions for improvement.
• Private folders for your program on Dartfish TV.  VTS will create a private folder just for your team or club.  You can upload/download videos of training sessions, past competitions, scout video, etc.  This will be accessible from anywhere with an Internet connection.  This is will be wonderful communication tool for both coaches and players.  As part of this, if desired, the VTS staff can comment and offer suggestions.



Dartfish Analysis-a great learning tool !

• Skill analysis for players-Any player will be able to upload video of their skills for analysis.  For all skill analysis, we will use Dartfish Analysis Software.  The VTS staff will make sure that the players will benefit from a quality analysis with suggestions for improvement.  Players will download the video and be able to save on their computers.

So, we are making every effort to provide an increased level of service for both players and coaches.  If you have thoughts or suggestions, feel free to pass along to VTS.

AVCA Convention

Stop by the Exhibitors area at the upcoming AVCA Convention and say hello.  Our staff would enjoy the opportunity to meet you and talk about how we can serve you better.  We will also be taking some video about how you use Volleyball Training Solutions and the positive (I hope) impact it has had with your staff or players.

Also, Front Range Head Coach Jim Miret and I will be presenting at the AVCA convention on Friday12/16 @ 2:30 on "Innovative Training Methods in Volleyball". Stop by and ask some tough questions.

Help us Grow

VTS on Facebook and Twitter- Like and Follow

The next time your on Facebook, go to the VTS page: Facebook-VTS and click the Like button.  We want to use Facebook and Twitter: VTS on Twitter as a important tool of communication with members.  We all get tons of e-mail, so if we can communicate via these tools, it will help make your inbox less congested.

If you like VTS and can help us grow, all help is appreciated.  Word of mouth is the best advertising, so mention us to colleagues, on chat rooms and forward our website to interested parties.  

VTS Staff at Clinics and Conventions

If VTS can assist in finding great staff for your state or area coaching clinics, we'd be glad to help out.  All the contributing coaches on VTS are obviously very willing to assist in the growth of volleyball.  If their schedules allow, I know they will assist you in any way.  Just drop a note to the VTS office and we will follow up right away.

Simple Drill to Work on Movement and Posture

This is a very simple drill for younger players that will provide lots of contacts, movement and work on posture.  We put cones on the floor to be used as guides for the players to work on movement in specific directions.  Keys for the drill; 1) keep head level when moving, 2) just shuffle step to the ball, 3) work on platform management with a focus on angle the platform to the target.

Front Range Volleyball Club Implementing Dartfish TV into Staff/Player Development

Volleyball Training Solutions and Dartfish TV will be a major focus of staff and athlete development in the upcoming year.  With the use of tools offered in both Dartfish TV and Dartfish  "EasyTag", the ability to share video information will be at the fingertips of coaches, players and parents within the Front Range program.  

For Coaches

• Every team within the Front Range club will have a folder on VTS-Dartfish TV that is accessible by both coaches and players. The coaches, using "Easy Tag" will be able to mark video events within practices and competition.  The "tagged" video will be uploaded to the team folder for viewing by players either at the practice facility or at home.  This will allow timely feedback for players on recent practices or tournaments.  Also in the video folders will be "model" video so players can have a visual of the desired skill being performed.
• There will be a coaches video folder that Front Range Head Coach, Jim Miret, can place video of drills, skill keys, or points of emphasis for staff coaches to view and implement into their training sessions.  This will allow Front Range coaches  to be consistent within the club as to teaching skills and planning practices.

For Players

Testing Leg Strength

• Front Range physical therapist, Djimmer Bosman, will video athletes during physical screens.  These screens are performed to identify potential physical issues with athletes.  The video is placed into a player folder to show the athlete the video of the screen, along with video of rehab exercises that can be done at home.  The parents of the players will be part of this so they know the exercises to be done by the athlete.
• Players will have skill video uploaded to VTS-Dartfish TV and using Dartfish software, will have their skills analyzed with drawings, voice overs and suggestions for skill development.
• Players will be able to download video from matches and training sessions to their personal computers to develop their own video library.

For Club Directors

Jim Miret- Front Range Head Coach

• The challenge for all club directors is to create a communication tool so all coaches on their staff are constantly developing their coaching skills.  Dartfish TV allows for the easy distribution of video teaching keys that staff members can access from anywhere.  In the Front Range program this is being used for practice organization, teaching cues, sport psychology presentations by staff member, Tim Engels, physical training concepts by Billy Gilsan and video feedback of training sessions.

So many clubs have multiple teams and training sites.  To monitor the progress of coaches and athletes is a never ending challenge for club directors.  Using the Volleyball Training Solutions site on Dartfish TV is a wonderful tool for club directors to disseminate video information and feedback to both athletes and coaches.  

Visit to Kansas State

Suzie Fritz

I had a great visit to Kansas State to watch a training session as they prepared for their upcoming match with Missouri (which they won in five sets).  Head coach Suzie Fritz and her staff, Jeff Hulsmeyer and Jeff Grove were wonderful hosts.  I thought the practice was very productive and the players were engaged.  The emphasis upon statistical evaluation of performance within the practice, as well as coming into practice was extensive.  The coaches, based upon statistics, focused upon transition attack and defending against specific sets.  During drills the statistical performance of the team during that drill was provided with the appropriate feedback.

There are two specific items that I will relay that were good ideas for all coaches.  Jeff Grove indicated that in every drill, there were three items to be considered 1) how to score or evaluate the drill, 2) how the ball is entered (serve, toss, etc.), 3) the focus of the feedback.  Jeff indicated if the focus of the drill was hitting, for example, they probably wouldn't give a lot of feedback on defense.

The other item that I thought was nice was that in advance of practice a player would write down what she was going to work on that day.  A teammate would then volunteer to help her in that effort.  The thought was that if players are working to both improve themselves and a teammate, the training really becomes a team effort.

Dartfish TV for I-Pad Coming Soon

VTS members have expressed a desire to be able to view videos on Dartfish TV via their I-pads.   Many coaches would like to take their I-Pads to practice so players can view from the VTS libary on Dartfish TV the drills or skill keys that might be of emphasis on a particular day.  This will be happening soon as Dartfish TV is in the advanced testing stage of allowing the viewing of Dartfish TV via various mobile units.

In advance of that, if there are favorite videos in the VTS library that you would like to view on an I-pad, let me know.  I will need to re-upload the desired videos in a different format to allow viewing on your I-pad. 

Observations from the Road

I've just returned from a 10 day road trip that allowed me to visit some highly successful programs.  I always find these opportunities to visit other coaches in action both exciting and fun.  So often I will see or hear things that I definitely put into my coaching routine.  I also am so happy there are successful coaches "out there" that want the game to improve and are willing to share their knowledge.

I was at the University of Illinois, the current AVCA #1 team in the country.  Also, six time Indiana state champion, Indianapolis Cathedral and NCAA Men's Champion, Ohio State University.  I mixed in 2010 NCAA tournament teams Indiana and Dayton.  As I visited the training sessions of these successful teams one theme was common to all.  That theme was the focus on detail in every aspect of the training sessions.  All these coaches have an eye for detail, organized to the minute practice plans, focus on the part of coaches and players to every aspect of every repetition during training.  The coaches know exactly what they want from every drill and provide quality feedback for both team and individual performances.  They are also very aware of and attempt to influence the "atmosphere" in the training sessions. There is a difference between implementing a drill and really understanding what is necessary for the drill to accomplish desired goals.  These coaches really understand the nuances of a drill or a skill that take on importance at the higher levels of play.

Jean Kesterson

Coach Jean Kesterson, from Indianapolis Cathedral, ran all drills by the scoreboard clock.  Again, a high level of emphasis placed on serving with hoops placed on the floor in the target areas of the day.  Lots of drills were organized with the number of successful contacts.  Upon completion of the drill, players would touch the team/school logo and yell "I'm a winner".  Coach Kesterson explained that not all young players feel that they are winners and she is making the attempt to reinforce an important attitude.  Also, with every successful serve to target, players would yell "Irish" (school mascot).



Coach Hambly was very focused on serve and pass.  I have never seen a team serve as many balls during a training session.  The serve reps took place in small increments periodically during practice.  But, if you total the number of serve attempts for the entire session, it would be a significant number.  He also placed a high priority on video feedback during practice.  Players would go back and forth from the video station back to the drill with keys to focus upon. 

Coach Sean Byron, fromt the OSU men's staff, did a wonderful presentation on blocking.  It is very obvious that the OSU men focus on every detail of the skill.  The blocking video that I was able to gather is valuable for coaches of every level.

Indiana Coach Sherry Dunbar ran a great practice in Bloomington.  Great attention to blocking footwork and execution.  All the middle blockers went through countless repetitions of moving from the middle to the outside.  This combined with lots of focus hand movement above the net was a valuable session for the middles.  From my perspective, blocking is always the last thing that young players learn.  With the focus that Sherry is placing upon the skill, I have no doubt that Indiana will bring this group of young athletes along very quickly. 

 Dayton v St. Louis- VTS lets you listen in!!

It was an interesting experiment when Dayton played St. Louis last Friday.  Both Coach Sheffield from Dayton and Coach Miller from Dayton agreed to wear a wireless microphone during the match.  It was a well played match and both coaches were impressive relative to the information they were giving to their team.  Lots of keys that provided important information to their players.

Videos from the above training/competition sessions, as well as training video from Ohio University, West Virginia, Cleveland State and the Ball State Men will be on the VTS site in the upcoming days.

Club Mentoring

We will be sending out information in the upcoming weeks about a new level of service designed primarily for clubs, however, there is also a potential use for high school programs as well.

So many clubs are in a situation of having a majority of their coaching staff being relatively inexperienced in designing, implementing and evaluating practice sessions.  In addition to this, there is some inexperience in developing team systems, organizing a line up and game management.  Club directors and lead coaches are often too busy handling administrative responsibilities to address this situation in a manner that allows for the coaching development of their staff.  VTS will offer to assist in this important aspect of operating a club.  This mentoring program will offer:

• Access to the VTS video library (presently over 220 videos from top coaches) for all your club coaching staff
• Webinars designed specifically for your club staff addressing the needs within your staff.  These would cover topics that are suggested by the club coaching staff. 
• The ability to upload video for comment and exchange of ideas by VTS staff and your club coaches
• Access to VTS staff to answer questions and serve as mentor to club coaching staffs

This should be an exciting addition to the VTS lineup of services.  More information will be out soon regarding the "Club Mentor" program.

Support VTS Staff 

I cannot encourage you enough to support the contributing coaches on the VTS staff.  All are allowing me to include them in the site without compensation.  Their sole focus is to provide you with the best volleyball instruction.  So, if you can catch one of their matches, attend a camp or clinic, or drop a note to say thanks, it would be appreciated. I'll be sending out e-mail addresses of staff coaches.  Feel free to drop a note.

AVCA Convention

Jim Miret and I will be at the AVCA convention in December presenting "Innovative Methods of Coaching Volleyball".  I hope that if you're attending the convention you'll stop by and give a listen.  Both Jim and I feel the development of a team is based on the mastery of the fundamental skill development.  We will explore how to organize training sessions to maximize use of time, repeat skills as much as possible, put players into situations that mandate point management and creativity.  This will be a classroom session that will afford a lot of interaction.

Men's and Boy's Volleyball 

Pete Hanson-Ohio State

VTS is making a concerted effort to place more instructional video designed for the coaches of boy's programs.  I've attended recent training sessions for both the Ball State and Ohio State men's programs.  Just as in girls volleyball, there are good male athletes everywhere.  If we can channel these athletes into quality boy's volleyball programs, our sport will continue to grow.  We want encourage all the clubs "out there" to consider offering programs that will encourage the development of boy's volleyball in your area.

The Use of Video in Training Sessions

 

The importance of video to assist in the learning process cannot be understated.  This short video shows how #3 ranked University of Illinois organizes their drills to incorporate video into their training sessions.  I would also encourage the use of Dartfish TV to allow players to access training video or scouting video outside the practice sessions.

September Update

FIVB Youth World Championships

Molly McCage-USA

Just returned from Ankara, Turkey and the Youth World Championships.  Some general observations:

• Wonderful organization.  Travel, logistics, hotel, playing facilities were excellent.  You can tell the Turkish fans love volleyball.  They have a women's professional league that is one of the best in the world.  Signs promoting the event were all over the city.  


• Level of play was excellent.  Different styles of play from the various countries.  The Serbs were very tall and played a very simple game.  Serve was tough, big block, very strong attackers.  China a lot quicker, but still very strong attack.  Turkey combined all the above. All the countries had excellent libero play.


• The top teams have all placed a major emphasis on results.  Turkey, the gold medal winner, identified players four years ago to compete for a championship.  The players trained together in the same club and competed in many international events.  Poland has their players together year around as they play on the same club and attend the same high school.  China had trained together since April.  Success doesn't happen in a vacuum.  All the top teams have a very organized development program at the

• The final was a wonderful environment.  About 8,000 fans, lots of flags, noisemakers, enthusiasm.  


• Our team was composed of wonderful players and people.  The players worked hard, learned a lot and were a lot of fun to be around.  They are capable of competing at this level, just a little more international experience is needed.  Our block, pass and defense were very strong.  Serve and attack were a notch below the top teams.  We had the "pool of death" with both Serbia and China in our first pool.  Although we competed well, to play those teams so early in the tournament proved to be a bit much.  We finished with five consecutive 3-0 victories to finish 9th.


• What was learned by the players?  The speed of the game with the better teams takes some adjustment.  The velocity put on the ball when serving and attacking was something that the players just don't see in this country.  The other thing not normally seen is how high above the net the game is played.  Both Serbia and China hit over the top of our block quite often.  Not that our block was small, just these teams had a very high contact point.

On a side note, I've never seen traffic or driving like I saw in Ankara.  The traffic lane markings were just a suggestion which everyone ignored.  The amazing thing it works for them.  No accidents, but you better bring your "A" game.  Driving a car is a very aggressive sport in Turkey.

VTS Fall Video

I'll be leaving soon for fall video updates within the VTS site.  I have a good idea on the college programs I want to visit.  However, if there are suggestions for good high school coaches that we can feature please let me know.  I'll do my best to make it happen.

Video as a Learning Tool

Of course, since I operate a website dedicated to bringing video to the instructional process, I have a fairly strong opinion as to the importance of providing a visual model to expedite the learning process.  This is one of the items that I wish I had used more during my own collegiate career.  In the attached video, Jim Moore, successful coach at the University of Oregon, shows the importance he places on having video involved in all his training sessions.  Of course, the setup that Jim has in his practice gym is not possible in a lot of facilities or programs.  However, the fact that he will have each training session available for coach and player review demonstrates the importance he places on video instruction.

Skill Analysis

Members of Volleyball Training Solutions can send some video of their players to have their skills reviewed and analyzed by Dartfish software.  This can be an excellent tool for the players to improve their skills.  We want VTS to be a tool that can impact the teaching of the sport in this country.

A Book Recommendation 

I read an interesting book that has some potential to impact how you might train your players physically. The book is: "The Last Nine Innings" by Charles Euchner.  Amazon Link: Amazon Link

This book is an analysis of baseball in a very interesting writing style.  One of the parts I particularly enjoyed is the explanation as to how Steve Findley, center fielder for the Diamondbacks goes about his physical training program.  The focus on core strength, flexibility and quickness over lifting weights.  Something to consider for volleyball.  The last I knew core strength, flexibility and quickness were ok attributes for our sport.

I hope all the coaches "out there" have very successful seasons.  Feel free to contact me if I can be of assistance in any way. 

Volleyball Training Solutions July Update

Rachel Holloway Freemyer Talks Setting

It was a joy to do some video work with Rachel Holloway Freemyer, former All American setter from the University of Nebraska.  Rachel was at the Front Range club to begin her preparations for her first professional season this fall in Holland.  On the VTS site, Rachel and Jim Miret demonstrate some advanced setting moves and some drills to work on these moves.  Also, Rachel talks about her setting decisions and technique in live situations.  This is something we haven't done before and it came out great. A brief clip of the interview with Rachel and Jim Miret can be found below.

Video Schedule for July/August

I'll be pretty busy with the Youth World Championship preparation and tournament from July 20-August 22.  The team will begin preparation in Tucson on July 20, proceed to Lake Placid on July 29th, then off to Ankara, Turkey for the World Championships from August 12-22.  The first pool will be challenging with Serbia, China and Puerto Rico as the competition. 

Upon return, the normal flow of upload will resume.  I will be taking a lap around the country in the fall which I am looking forward to a lot.  Hopefully, I can catch some VTS teams in action.

Recommending Good Coaches 

If there are top flight high school coaches that would make positive video contributions to the site, feel free to recommend them.  I know there are excellent coaches at all levels and I'd like to provide visibility to top coaches of younger players.

Observations from Atlanta and the Junior Olympics

I must be allergic to the ATL.  Once again, Big South in April was the first, I leave with some disease.  Perhaps it's mental?  Anyway, a couple random observations in no particular order of importance:

• Level of play was ok, good athletes for sure, but not great skill, very average defense.  The outside hitters were very good.  Hopefully, these players can be six rotation players in college?
• The court set up makes quality serving impossible.  The courts are waaaay to small.  The athletes, especially in the older age groups need more room behind the courts.
• The format makes consistent play challenging.  Too many matches, players going from scoring responsibilities to playing inside of ten minutes.  Barely enough time for a bathroom break.The fact that players are used to this format doesn't make it right.

VTS Summer Newsletter Update

VTS Schedule in the Upcoming Months

Terry Liskevych-Oregon St.

We will be uploading some final video from a recent trip to Oregon, Oregon State, Penn State and Minnesota in the upcoming days.  Then it will be a fairly hectic summer.  I'll be at the AAU's and JO's with my Front Range 16's.  Feel free to stop by court 9,418 to say hello.  Then I'll be coaching the Youth National Team at the World Championships that will take up five weeks in July/August.  At that point, I'm shooting for a lap around the country, stopping at VTS member schools as well as top collegiate and high school programs to add to our video library.  I'm certainly hoping for the gas prices to drop for at least the month of September. If you are a VTS member and have an interest in having the VTS entourage (me) drop by your campus or school, let me know.  We will try to work in a visit.

Team Folders

We are initiating "Team Folders" for programs this fall.  These folders will allow you to upload video for your team or coaching staff, provide your team and/or staff access with user name and password, and they will be able to view the video in your folder from their homes or dorm rooms.  They will also be able to comment, point out key positions, etc.  We can also provide video that demonstrates systems and skills for your staff.  Since every program has different needs, give the VTS office a call and we can talk about your needs and how we might assist.

Rachel Holloway Freemyer

Rachel Holloway Freemyer Talks Setting

Former All American setter at Nebraska, Rachel Holloway Freemyer, spent a few days at the Front Range facility this week. Fortunately we were able to grab her to do some instructional setting video and do a voice analysis of some of her setting moves.  I hope to get this up on the site in a few days.  Just watching Rachel set was a joy.  Great setting mechanics and athleticism.  One of the things that Rachel spoke about was the amount of time and repetitions that is needed to become an elite setter.  This is where the NCAA rules that restrict the time that players can spend with a coach outside the season really impacts the level of play.  The repetitions that are missed are, indeed, significant.

Nice David Brooks Article

The author and commentator for the New York Times wrote a very interesting article relating to what messages we send young people as they graduate and move on with their lives.

Referral Program

VTS is initiating a referral program for members.  If a new member joins VTS and drops me an e-mail indicating that a specific VTS member referred them to the site and fostered the membership sign-up, the referring member will receive a $25 discount on the cost of a renewal.  This will hold true for every referral, with a cap at the cost of an membership.  So, ten referrals will result in a Silver Membership for free for the referring member.  This program will begin immediately.

Youth National Team Tryouts

We had 25 players in Colorado Springs two weekends ago for a YNT tryout.  Our goal was to select 12 players, plus alternates, to attend the World Championships in Turkey this summer.  One of the interesting by products of the tryout was the sentiment of the players that they enjoyed the opportunity to play with and against some of the best players in this age group in the country.  As coaches, we saw players visibly improve in just a weekend, primarily due to the fact that they were forced to improve by the competition.  One can hope that a program can be established that this type of competitive environment can take place more often than once a year.  There is no question that the players would be the beneficiaries of such a development program.

On a different note, the USA is in a pool with Serbia, China and Puerto Rico.  The Serbs took a silver medal two years ago at the World Championships.  The teams from China and Puerto Rico are always good, so there will be definite challenges.