Libero

The libero is the worker bee of the team. She is high energy and hard working. She is the scrapper and the ball hog. She is the defensive leader. Liberos should:

• Be GREAT on her feet. She should be all over the court picking up every first contact she possibly can.

• Not be afraid to steal passes and digs. She should be assertive and know her job is to be a ball hog.

• Be able to read the opposing hitter and make predictions.

• Be the most vocal player on the court

  • Talking to other defenders on the court about reads and attacks during play

  • Talking to her hitters telling them where to attack the ball during play

  • Talking to her setter telling her where she can dump during play

  • Sharing information about holes and blockers between plays

  • Discussing adjustments that need to be made in the defense between plays

  • Setting up serve receive patterns and making adjustments in serve receive

• Be the best ball handler on the court. She should be able to get the ball to the heart of the court whether she is digging or passing.

• Have the highest energy and it should be contagious to her teammates

• Sacrifice her body to keep the ball off the court at all costs

• Be okay with not being a scorer. Her job is to keep the ball off our court so everyone else can get assists and kills.

• Take responsibility for every ball that drops. The entire court is her responsibility to cover.

• Build confidence in her hitters by giving them feedback on the block and letting them know she is there to cover

• Be able to see the opponent’s court. The libero should be able to look at the opponents and see holes and weaknesses before the attack.

• Expect every attack to be blocked so she can cover it.

• Expect to play every ball.

• Expect the opponent’s setter to dump EVERY TIME and be determined to never let a setter dump on her court.

• Never stand still. She should be a part of every play with movement toward the ball.

• Learn patterns and tendencies of the other team so she can make adjustments and share the information with her teammates.

• Always be in “ready” position. She almost never relaxes.

The libero is the most supportive player on the court, physically, mentally, and emotionally. She must be aware of her teammates mental and emotional states and be ready to lift up and build confidence. She does this by sharing constant information and positive feedback.

The libero is the scrappiest player on the court. She works and strives to touch every first ball and every blocked ball. She is a ball hog and knows that is expected of her.

The libero is the most vocal and informative player on the court. She is constantly assessing the opponents weaknesses and attacking patterns and shares that information with her teammates consistently.

The libero is the most energetic player on the court. She is always positive and encouraging. She celebrates every victory with every ounce of excitement she has.

From the coach:

We are looking for a libero who is always pushing herself physically. She takes total responsibility for every ball that enters our court. She pushes herself to improve in quickness and control. She does whatever it takes to keep the ball in play and off our court. She is the grinder. She is driven. She is competitive. She is confident and builds confidence.