Jen Greeny: Passing Warm-Up Conditioning Drills, Transitioning into Offense from Blocking + Footwork, Serving & Communication

with Jen Greeny,
West Virginia Head Coach;
Washington State University Head Women's Coach from 2011 to 2023;
2x Pac-12 Co-Coach of the Year (2016, 2021);
2018 NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen;
6x NCAA Tournament appearances (2016-2021);
2022 Women's National Team Open Program Staff;
2016 USA Volleyball Collegiate National Team Assistant Coach;
Lewis-Clark State College Head Women's Coach from 2007-2010;
4x Frontier Conference Coach of the Year (2007-2010);
4x AVCA NW Region Coach of the Year (2007-2010);
Washington State Assistant Coach from 2000 to 2004;
played college volleyball for Washington State;
3x All-Pac-10 Conference selection

Coach Jen Greeny takes you through a live volleyball practice that is full of great drills and skill work!

Practice begins with passing warm-up drills. WSU uses the drills to work on three areas: passing skills, footwork and communication. You will see multiple drills done in an upbeat manor to get the girls ready for practice.

The team then divides into cross court pepper with four girls at the net, cross court from each other. After a few minutes, Coach Greeny adds a twist - both sides start at the same time and switch with the other side each time they execute a hit.

Serving & Position Work

The next part of practice is devoted to serving. Greeny has her players splits up into pairs. A player serves to their partner, who works on her returning footwork with a pass to a coach or manager in the setter's position. Continuing to work on their serves, the girls do a drill named "4 good to 1". Each player servers to a selected spot on the other side of the court determined by two cones and a large pad.

Once serving work has been completed, the team breaks up into middles on one court and outside hitters and defensive players on the other. The middle hitters work on their blocking footwork, while the outside hitters work on outside blocking and transitioning into an attack. Outside hitters also work on transitioning from an offside coverage into an attack position.

Team Drills

The remainder of the practice is dedicated to team drills. The first reps serve receive defense into an attack. You'll also see how Greeny's team works on specific scouting of an upcoming opponent with a fast four ball blocking drill. The final team drill is called the Melon Drill. In each rotation, the team receives a serve, a free ball, and ball that is out-of-system. On the out-of-system ball, the coach bounces a ball into the court for the drill to start. Each type of ball is played out for a point.

If you are looking for some great conditioning drills and skill work, this is a must watch video. The emphasis put on transitioning into offense from blocking and covering as an individual and as a group is very helpful to coaches of all levels.

116 minutes. 2022.