How to own tryouts: 5 key traits coaches look for

Club tryouts are this Saturday, and as exciting as it is to start a new season, we understand that it also comes with a lot of nervousness! The important thing to remember, as always, is to have fun. To help prepare your athlete, we wanted to share our insight around what coaches look for on tryout day. Here are five things coaches are looking for when building their teams.

1. Energy

First, one that we feel strongly about is energy! Sports—especially volleyball—thrive on it. We look for players who elevate the team through confident body language, celebrate with their teammates after earning a point, and stay fierce through adversity.

2. Being a Great Teammate

Coaches are also looking for someone who will make a great teammate and add to the team chemistry. The cohesion amongst a team is so important to their success. A great teammate lifts up others, stays positive, doesn’t point blame, and continues believing in their group regardless of mistakes.

Things your athlete can do to show they’re a great teammate include celebrating someone else’s success with high-fives, giving encouragement like “Nice set!” or “Great pass!”, and involving others if they seem quiet or reserved. Being a great teammate shows coaches that your athlete can also be a great leader.

3. Work Ethic

Work ethic is one that really catches our attention. Coaches give 110%, so we also want our athletes to give the same. It deflates us when we feel like we’re giving more than the team is giving. But when an athlete matches that energy—or better yet, when the whole team does—it shows the power of a team moving as one. That’s the part of coaching that excites us most!

We can tell when a player works hard in the moments they don’t give up on chasing a ball, stay aggressive during a long rally, or even when they shag extra balls lying around the court. Trust me, coaches notice the small details.

4. Communication

Communication is vitally important! Look at any top-performing team, and you’ll notice they’re talking nearly the entire rally. Things like: “Set me!”… “Seam’s left!”… “Tipping!”… “Mine, mine, mine!”

By communicating, your athlete shows the team they’re involved, ready, and helping others see things they might not. Communication also helps athletes take ownership of what they’re doing. When they call “Mine!” they usually play the ball with more confidence than when they stay quiet. Talking is key to both individual and team success.

5. Skill

Last, but certainly not least, is skill! Coaches look at how well your athlete executes the fundamentals, how consistent they are, and—most importantly—whether they can take feedback and apply it.

It goes beyond drills, though. We watch to see if athletes can perform skills during game play. Are they versatile enough to serve to different areas? Can they handle tough passes? Not every player will look polished at tryouts, but what matters most is showing hunger to learn and the ability to improve rep by rep. Many coaches would rather take a player with raw talent who’s coachable over someone more advanced who resists feedback.

Final Thoughts

These five tips may seem like a lot, but even focusing on just three of them and carrying those into tryouts will help your athlete get noticed. Have them write down the three they want to commit to, encourage them to stick to it, and see how it goes.

Most importantly, remind them to have fun! Good luck this weekend—we hope everyone has a great and THRIVING season ahead!