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Beach Volleyball’s popularity continues to grow each year. The success of the USA Olympic Team has contributed greatly to the sports rise in prominence. Some players have migrated over from the indoor game while most have never played any form of volleyball. Some beginners may get frustrated with the speed and difficulty of the game. Here are a few easy tips that every beginner should learn to make the game a little easier and more enjoyable. Learn The Rules This tip seems obvious but the rules for beach volleyball are different than the indoor game. The basic differences are as follows: the sand court is smaller than the indoor, beach volleyball is mostly a two-on-two game, the first two sets are played to 21 points while the third set is played to 15, the sand game is best of three rally-scoring sets, and obviously playing on sand is the biggest difference. Get Accustomed to Moving in Sand You will move much slower in the sand, so practice taking smaller steps and conserving energy. Your jump height will also be much lower. Learning to move efficiently in the sand will improve your game. Practice Your Serve As a beginner, the serve will probably be the most difficult skill to learn at first. Start with the basic underhand serve. A good rule of thumb is to serve to the back middle in between two players. Improve Your Fitness Level As a beginner, you may not be able to make the best shots or pass and set very well. You can still help your team by being quick to the ball and covering a lot of ground fast. Just make sure to communicate with your teammates. Beginners usually do not have an arsenal of different shots at their disposal. That’s where good court vision helps. You should be aware of the opponents changing positions and place your hits accordingly. “Its hard to play defense against a player that sees the court well,” says Adam Hyatt. Adam has been playing volleyball since 2003. He started playing for the UNCW club team before moving on to compete in EVP tournaments. Adam also plays locally at Captain Bills where his team got out to a 16 – 0 record this past season. Court vision is a very important aspect for beginners. Another tip for beginners Adam suggests is, “Get under the ball and relax your platform so you don’t shoot the ball out of the court.” Most beginners have trouble returning hard hit balls. Beach volleyball skills can be broken down to five basic categories: spiking, setting, serving, passing, and defense. As a beginner, you should focus your practice on certain skills while adding the others in as you get more advanced. This chart shows the breakdown you should follow. *Infographic created by Jeffrey Boulden using Microsoft Numbers. Data retrieved from http://www.tristatevolunteers.org/sports/guidetovbbasics.pdf Beach volleyball is all about having fun and making new friends. With these tips, you can get more enjoyment from the game right from the start.
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Beach Volleyball Now at UNCW
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UNCW has added beach volleyball; it’s tenth women’s sport. The schedule will be released soon and the season will start in the spring of 2016. Wilmington NC is a coastal area and as such, beach volleyball is very popular in the area. UNCW joins the nearly fifty schools that now have a beach volleyball program. The beach volleyball program should be very competitive, due to the fact that the indoor program is doing so well. Coach Amy Bambenek believes that having a beach program will help her recruit better players for the indoor team. Both programs will train together to improve. The UNCW program is the first division one school in North Carolina to offer beach volleyball and one of the few in the southeast. The majority of the beach volleyball programs are in California and Florida.
*Infographic created by Jeffrey Boulden using GoogleMaps. Data retrieved from www.collegesand.org The schedule may be difficult for the first few years of the program since there aren’t many schools close by to play. As the popularity of the sport grows with the upcoming summer Olympics in Rio, more teams should be added in the southeast. The northeast and the central parts of the country do not have any programs in place yet. Beach volleyball is ideally played outside in good weather, but indoor facilities could make it possible for the sport to be played all over the country.
*Image retrieved from and property of www.vocative.com The first championship tournament will consist of an eight-team bracket with double elimination format. Each team will have five pairs of players; the first team to win three out of five matches will be the winner. UNCW’s schedule will start with six tournaments in March and April. As more and more beach programs start the question arises, where will the best players go? “With indoor volleyball, you have more teammates for support, but you also have multiple players in each position that you have to compete with for playing time. I feel like when it comes down to it, the players are going to go where they will get the most playing time and where the scholarship money is,” says former UNCW volleyball player Kelli Clear. Kelli played for UNCW from 2007 to 2010 as a defensive specialist. Beach volleyball and indoor are two very different games. Each player’s skill set determines which style suites them best. Kelli compares the two this way, “The main difference is that indoor volleyball is played consisting of a team of 6 players and beach competes with 2 players. Also, the speed of indoor volleyball is much quicker than beach. Since you only have 2 players in beach volleyball, the court is smaller but the net is the same height. In beach volleyball, you have to change the way you play in order to be more efficient.” Everything is in place for UNCW’s beach volleyball program to be a huge success. There is a lot of excitement surrounding the first season this spring and interest is growing. UNCW should be one of the nation’s top teams in the years to come. Kelli sums up UNCW’s chances this way, “I think that as long as UNCW volleyball gets enough funding to successfully recruit players, then I think they have the proper coaching and competition within the region to be competitive and successful.”
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The Growth of Beach Volleyball
| Beach volleyball’s popularity has been on the rise recently. It has seen worldwide growth ever since it’s Olympic debut in Atlanta 1996 (“Beach Volleyball Equipment,” 2015). Since it’s beginnings in California in the 1920’s, it has always been a fun and challenging game that is easy to learn (“Beach Volleyball Equipment,” 2015). The game spread quickly during the great depression because there was no expensive equipment needed. Through the 50’s and 60’s, the game continued to grow over the U.S. and quickly gained the image of the cool sport to play.
There are several reasons for why the sport has grown so quickly. This is a great game for men and women to play together and compete on somewhat equal grounds. Co-ed leagues around the country are very popular. Also, this game encourages teamwork. It is a great game to meet new friends. Beach volleyball is an excellent workout. Players burn off calories while having fun in the sun. Usually players do not have to worry about injuries as much as other sports because it is non-contact and played on sand. This sport is fast paced and keeps player’s attention. There are no long periods of inactivity like in other sports. All players will participate on nearly every play. And realistically a huge reason for the popularity is the attractiveness of the players and the uniforms they wear. The men wear swim trunks and no shirt while the women wear bikinis. This makes it a perfect product for television. The growth of this sport is especially important for female athletes. Women have always had fewer opportunities to participate in sports but beach volleyball is giving women another avenue to show off their athleticism. Women’s beach volleyball is now the fastest growing NCAA sport ever (Sorenson, 2015). In the first season as a collegiate sport in 2012, there were 16 programs. Now in 2015, there are 41 schools with women’s beach volleyball and more are on the way (Sorenson, 2015). Many schools like the idea of a women’s beach volleyball program because it increases female sport participation and has a very low costs associated with building the program (Sorenson, 2015). Some of the sports top indoor players are already starting to switch over to the sand game. This growth has been seen in the amateur ranks as well. “According to the AVCA nearly 500,000 13-25 year old females have taken up the sport since 2007” (Sorenson, 2015). The exposure that the sport gets every four years in the summer Olympics is invaluable for it’s growth. The USA women’s team of Kerri Walsh Jennings and Misty May-Treanor have captured the hearts of the country with three gold medal finishes in a row. The USA has dominated Olympic play so far with the most gold’s while Brazil has won the most medals overall (“teamusa.org,” 2015).
*Created in 2015 by Jeffrey M. Boulden using Microsoft Numbers. All data retrieved from www.teamusa.org. Clearly, the USA and Brazil are the top two countries capturing just fewer than 70% of all the medals (“teamusa.org,” 2015). The argument could be made that Brazil is the best with the most overall medals but most experts agree that having the most gold is more important (“teamusa.org,” 2015). This graphic shows a few surprising countries that have won medals. Canada, Latvia, and Switzerland have all won a medal despite being very cold countries with small populations. Another odd fact from the graph is Australia only having two medals. Australia is a highly developed country with an abundance of beaches and great weather. One would expect them to compete with the USA and Brazil. As more and more colleges begin their beach volleyball programs, the USA seems poised to continue their domination of the Olympic sport for years to come. All of this growth has seen the emergence of beach volleyball facilities opening all around the country. They offer a fun way to get exercise, compete, and meet new friends. With the professional leagues starting to pay more prize money and gain television exposure, this sport has a bright future. Its also one of the few sports where the women’s game may be more popular than the men’s. The growth of this up and coming sport sees no end in sight. References Beach Volleyball Equipment and History. (2015). Retrieved November 2, 2015, from http://www.olympic.org/beach-volleyball-equipment-and-history?tab=history Sorenson, A. (2015). THERE’S A NEW KID IN TOWN: FORTY-ONE TEAMS AND COUNTING- THE FASTEST GROWING SPORT IN NCAA HISTORY. Retrieved November 2, 2015, from http://www.ncsasports.org/blog/2014/02/25/kid-town-fortyone-teams-counting-fastest-growing-sport-ncaa-history/ (2015). Retrieved November 2, 2015, from http://www.teamusa.org/usa-volleyball/usa-teams/beach-volleyball/olympic-games-info/beach-olympic-history
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Rules and Etiquette Review
The 2015 summer sessions at Dig n Dive are about to come to a close. This year has seen some exciting new players as well as the returning veterans continuing their domination. With the slower fall and winter season approaching, I thought it would be a good time to review some of the Dig & Dive house rules and etiquette for play.
Playing volleyball at Dig & Dive is all about having fun, but I have seen a few issues with rules and etiquette this year that may need some review. In addition, I will offer up some ideas to make the play more interesting or fun. These observations are my opinion, so feel free to disagree. Most of these rules are taken directly from USAV and FIVB and modified for use at Dig & Dive.
No uniforms required for players– Not required, but it would make things more exciting to see what types of logos and uniforms that teams could come up with. Judging by some of the team names, this would be very entertaining.
No smoking in the sand– I know it looks like one big ashtray, but you would think this rule would be self- evident. I guess in the beer leagues this one is hard to resist if you are a smoker.
A player must call his or her own net, tips, and touches (honor system)– Most Dig & Dive players don’t have a problem with this rule, but when you bring in an honor system there will always be those that take advantage. Not a major issue.
Profanity is not tolerated– Moving on…
Referee calls are final– Dig & Dive has some of the finest refs around. I have heard nothing but good things about the referee quality and there is little arguing with the calls. I haven’t seen too many warnings.
Outdoor volleyball approved by referee– This one is obvious. No doctored balls allowed.
Players and guests must practice courtesy and good sportsmanship– Dig & Dive can feature some fiercely competitive matches, but I have never witnessed anything that crossed the line. Most of the players are friends on and off the court. Some of the guests may do a little heckling after a few drinks, but that can be expected and sometimes humorous.
Charity Volleyball Tournament at Dig & Dive
Dig & Dive sports bar and volleyball facility will hold a charity volleyball tournament on Saturday October 17, at 9 a.m. The purpose of the tournament is to raise money for Tess. Tess has been diagnosed with leukemia. All proceeds from the tournament will go toward Tess’ medical costs and her family well being.
Cost per team is eighty dollars for a four-man team and fifty dollars for King of The Beach play. Three skill levels will be represented (4C, 4B, and 4BB). Register in person the day of the tournament at 9 a.m. or call Dig & Dive at 910-202-9350.
A cornhole tournament will also be held in conjunction with the volleyball and requires a twenty-dollar buy in. In addition to the volleyball action, there will also be a silent auction, raffle, and live music. Dig & Dive also confirms there will be special food and drink deals for the event.
The Wilmington volleyball scene is a close-knit group and cares deeply about the community. Come out, have fun, and support a good cause for a special little girl. Dig & Dive is located at 3525 Lancelot Lane in Wilmington, North Carolina. For more information, contact Kelly at Kellydiganddive@gmail.com.
All Things Volleyball With One of The Area’s Best
Beach volleyball is a big sport in Wilmington North Carolina. With two major outdoor facilities and the local beaches, there is no shortage of places to play. The best competition in the area can be found at Dig n Dive sports bar and Captain Bill’s outdoor volleyball facility. Adam Hyatt has played in numerous leagues and tournaments at both venues and is one of the area’s best players. I recently got the chance to talk with Adam about the local volleyball scene as well as his thoughts on the game in general.
Adam has been playing volleyball since 2003. He also played club volleyball while attending UNCW. He says he started to get a little more serious into doubles beach volleyball around 2008. I asked him what he thinks about beach volleyball versus playing in a gym. Adam said, “It’s really comparing apples to oranges, It’s two different sports. You have to be able to move faster in the sand than the next guy.” At 6’1 Adam has the height you need as well as the foot speed and quickness to be a good beach player. This is evident by the current 16-0 record Adam’s team currently has in a league at Captain Bill’s. His team also recently made it to the semi-finals of an EVP tournament in Hilton Head South Carolina. Katie Marquez plays in leagues at Dig n Dive and Captain Bill’s and said, “Adam is one of the area’s best players. He has a unique style and is a great teammate.”
I asked Adam to give me some insight on what he thought his strengths were in his game. He said, “I feel I’m pretty good at chasing down the cut shots. A lot of the big guys have trouble controlling the ball when they are hitting as hard as they can. I’ve been working on controlling the hard hit balls.” Adam plays some four man as well as doubles and when asked what he thought makes a good teammate he said, “It’s all about ball control.” Adam described playing with his current teammate and how important ball control and placement are to their success.
He has seen a lot of different players and styles and I asked him about some of the harder shots he has seen. He described the “sky ball” serve. This is a serve that is hit as high in the air as possible with spin. The ball gains a tremendous amount of speed as it comes down and it difficult to hit. Adam puts it this way, “The higher it’s hit the harder it is to receive it. It looks like its coming straight down but the spin makes it move in front of you towards the net.” Another favorite shot of Adam’s is the float serve. This is done by hitting the ball with no spin and it causes the ball to move almost like a knuckle ball in baseball. “When you hit the ball it kind of moves with the wind and those can be even harder to hit than a lot of jump serves,” said Adam.
Adam’s next tournament is the Volley America regional tournament coming up October the tenth in Myrtle Beach South Carolina. When asked what he thought his chances would be he said, “It’s a really big tournament with a lot of good players. It should be fun. We will see what happens.” If you want to see Adam in action, he plays in a league at Captain Bill’s and practices with pick up games at Dig n Dive.
Volley America Event in Myrtle Beach
*All photos owned and taken by Jeffrey Boulden
King of The Beach Contest Heats Up
Highlights from Friday night’s action
The King of The Beach contest continued Friday night at Dig n Dive with four more thrilling matches. This marked week four of the eight-week contest that decides the overall best male volleyball player at Dig n Dive. The players compete in doubles matches and are paired with a different teammate each week. Wins and Losses are earned for each participant and the results are tallied at the end of eight weeks to crown a champion.
The 6:30 matches were Jason V. and Phil W. versus Xavier T. and Kevin B on court number one. Court two pitted John M. and Josh I. versus Chris H. and Nate G. The action continued at 7:30 with Josh I. and Kevin B. versus Chris H. and Phil W on court number one. On court two Xavier T. and Nate G. faced Jason V. and Jon M (Last names of players are not permitted). Jason V., Jon M., Josh I., and Chris H. all got wins tonight and separated themselves from the rest of the competition. This puts them in a four-way tie with four wins apiece. These top players all seem to have a very strong serve that sets them apart from the field. In doubles play a strong serve is even more valuable with the extra space on the court.
I got the chance to speak with Kevin B. after his match to get his perspective on the evening. When asked what he most liked about the King of The Beach contest Kevin said, “I enjoy the competition here because you get to play with the best players around.” Kevin B. is one of the older contestants at forty-eight years old. “I’m just glad I can still walk after the night is over. It’s tough trying to keep up with these young guys,” said Kevin. When asked what he thought was the key to doing well in the King of The Beach format Kevin said, “You have to be adaptable to play with different styles of players on your team. You need to be comfortable with the right side or the left side and communicate with your teammate.”
The King of The Beach contest always brings out a big crowd every Friday night. This night was no exception. Dig n Dive’s facilities manager is Nakia T. She has been with the company for two years and was excited to see great turn out for the event. “Tonight we had about three hundred and seventy five people show up. We always get really busy for the King of The Beach. Everyone just loves to see the best players compete,” said Nakia. Dig n Dive on a Friday night for King of The Beach is a party atmosphere. Everyone was cheering and shouting words of encouragement to the players. The crowd was a mix of friends and families of the players as well as spectators just looking to have a beer and see some great volleyball action.
Next week is shaping up to be a turning point in the contest. With four players all tied for first place the competition is sure to be fierce. Cash prizes as well as a trophy are on the line as we start the second half of the contest next week. As always, the action will start next Friday at Dig n Dive at 6:30.
*All photos and videos taken by Jeffrey M. Boulden
Triples Volleyball Tournament at Dig n Dive
The Dig & Dive fall tournament series continues this Saturday September 12th, with a triples tournament. Tournament play begins at 2p.m., registration starts at 1p.m. Dig & Dive sports bar and volleyball facility is located at 3525 Lancelot Lane in Wilmington, North Carolina. Besides the exciting volleyball action, the event will also feature prize drawings, giveaways, and live music. Dig & Dive offers a full menu and bar.
The tournament offers competition regardless of your skill level (A, B, and C will be represented). Prizes will be awarded for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place finishes. There will be a sixty-dollar entry fee per team. Tiffany Gainey, head referee at Dig n Dive, advises that, “All games will be played on a doubles court.”
Registration for the tournament will fill up fast so be sure to arrive early. Gainey sums it up by saying, “Come out, have fun, win prizes, and drink beer!” For more information about Dig n Dive or the triples tournament please call 910-202-9350.
Head Referee Tiffany Gainey
How to Serve a Volleyball That Scores More Points
Are you tired of all your serves being returned easily? In a few easy steps, this article will explain the best way to serve a volleyball that scores more points. The article will explain the basic steps for the overhand serve. The overhand method is the most effective and difficult to return. The underhanded serve does not deliver the amount of power we need to devastate the opponent. This method is a little more geared for the intermediate to advanced player and may not be suitable for the beginner.
The only supplies you will need are a regulation volleyball and a beach volleyball court. If you do not have access to a court, you can draw a line on a wall to represent the net and stand thirty feet away. The net height is 7’11 for men and 7’4 for women.
- Foot Placement and starting posture: Stand a few feet behind the serving line with your left foot slightly behind your right (right handed players).
- Ball placement: Hold the ball out in front of you with your left hand (Right handed players) while keeping your left arm straight. Your right hand should be held up next to your head in ready position to strike the ball. This will look similar to pulling back a bow and arrow.
- The toss: Toss the ball with your left hand two to three feet in the air. Caution- Do not let your toss drift too far away from your body. A good toss is key.
- The serve: Take a step forward with your right foot and hit the ball at the top of the toss just before it starts to come down. Make sure to hit the ball with the heel of your palm for more power. Pro tip- Try to hit the top of the ball to create topspin that will make the ball travel in a sinking motion and thus harder to return.
Extra Tips and Cautions
- Try to aim your serve towards the back line to make the return more difficult.
- Aim the serve towards a weaker player on the opposing team.
- Practice using different trajectories to see what works best for you.
- Make sure to ready yourself and get back into position after your serve.
- You can also jump while serving to add more power and get better angles.
If you follow these steps properly and practice you will turn your serves into a weapon that can lead to more points and more victories. Serving is one of the most important parts of the game that most players overlook. Using this guide will put you a step above other players. Comments and suggestions about how to improve this guide are welcomed.
*All photos and videos taken and published by Jeffrey M. Boulden
Introduction to JMBoulden and the Wilmington Sports Scene
Hello and welcome to “JMBoulden.” The purpose of this blog is to cover the sports and recreation scene in Wilmington, NC. I’ve been living in Wilmington for over ten years and I love all the opportunities for sports and outdoor recreation that the area offers. Wilmington has all the traditional sports leagues for the residents to enjoy, plus some that you can’t find many places in NC such as beach volleyball. The area is also home to Division 1 college athletics at UNCW and numerous high school sports.
The aim of this blog is to cover some of the traditional sports but mostly concentrate on the ones that get overlooked. Being a coastal area there are a variety of sports and recreation opportunities around the water such as boating, fishing and surfing. I plan on mixing up my coverage and trying to give readers a glimpse into some of the lesser known sports and recreation opportunities that are unique to the area.