Volleyball Ball Control Drills
Improving Skills Through Chaotic Play

Volleyball ball control drills are important because in order to become better at volleyball, players and teams need to compete in game-like situations. This is why game-like drills are so important. 

Half-court 2 vs 2 Volleyball Ball Control Drills

These drills are great for developing ball control skills. Divide the court in half from endline to centerline.

1) First Progression: Start with 3 hits on a side (all bumps). Players rotate position after the ball goes over the net. 

2) Second Progression: Bump, set, bump. 

3) Third Progression: Bump, set, set. 

4) Fourth Progression: Set all 3 contacts. 

5) Fifth Progression: All players inside the 10 foot line. Bump, set, tip. Only one player is playing defense. This is great for working on learning to tip the ball. 

6) Six Progression: Add a blocker at the net. Remember, these are cooperative drills. Players aren’t trying to win the point. Bump, set, tip. When tipping, the attacker needs to find the defender to tip to. Have one player at the net setting, one player back passing, and one attacker ready to tip at the net. Have the defender go somewhere each time and the attacker needs to see them and tip the ball to them. All of this happens inside the 10 foot line. 

7) Last Progression: Bump, set, hit. Defender is halfway off the net. Set the ball just inside the 10 foot line. 

Partner Setting Volleyball Ball Control Drills

1) Set to yourself, set to your partner. Left-right foot transfer. Follow all the way through to your partner. 

2) Set to yourself, turn around and backset to your partner. You’re still doing the left-right foot movement and follow through. We are focusing on putting ourselves in body positions we aren’t used to.

3) Set to ourselves, set to our partner. Be sure to not rush the follow through. Focus on finishing the hand position (freeze hand position for a second). 

4) Set to ourselves, then jump set to our partner. You can set the first ball in front of you then jump set. 

5) Set to yourself, turn and jump backset to your partner. 

6) Set to yourself, turn and side set to your partner. 

7) Set to yourself, turn and side jump set to your partner. 

Triangle Pepper Drill

The purpose of the drill is to pepper more game-like. In traditional pepper, you pass the ball back to your partner. In triangle pepper, you dig to your buddy, not back to where the ball came from. This is a cooperative drill. Pass, set, swing. You have 1 hitter and 2 diggers. The player that digs passes to the buddy, which then sets it to the hitter.

The player that sets the ball can set it to the player that dug it to switch hitters. Now, the player that used to hit is now one of the diggers. This is a chaotic drill where players need to communicate. When digging, before you play the ball you need to be stopped squared to the hitter. Players work much harder in Triangle pepper than in a regular partner pepper drill.