Divison 1 Volleyball

Question
Hey Steve, I'm going to be a junior in high school and I would want nothing more than to play volleyball in college at a divison 1 school.  I am currently on the varsity team as a sophmore and we are in Divison L.  I was wondering what you really look for when recruiting players, as a setter i would really like to know what i should work on to get noticed and improve my skills do you have any suggestions?
Thanks,
kristyn

Answer
Kristyn,

There are many things that we look for in our setters.  But every coach looks for and at different things through different eyes.  For example....I really like the setter that we have but the other two coaches don't like her as much.  She ended up being second team all conference, which means other coaches liked her also.

With that said here is what I look for.  First is height. How tall are you?  Being left handed helps but this is not a must.  The most important thing is the consistency of your sets.  Being flashy may get you noticed but if the hitter knows where a set is going to be all the time they will put many more balls away.  The next thing I want to see is how many sets you can set.  We like to set the middle first and then the opposite next so I want to know that you can set 1's, 3's and slides.  If you are tall and are going to play front row I want you to be able to set up a good block.  I am very impressed by defense so every position I recruit I look for a good defender.  Finally, I want to see that you make good smart sets.  Do you see the mismatch (small blocker/against a big hitter), do you spread the block, do you use X plays or Tandems at the right time.

Are you on a club team?  If you are not you need to play club to be seen and to get better.  If you are on a club team when you go to tournaments make sure you are always playing at your best and with plenty of energy.  A recruiter will see that and he/she may remember you a little more than someone who may have been a little better.

Good Luck
Steve