Understanding Every Position in Volleyball: The Differences in Responsibilities

In basketball, there are five basic positions: the point guard, shooting guard, small forward, power forward, and center. Thanks to the continuous evolution of the game itself, a player can now play multiple positions at any given period and that's one of the reasons why we now have players who are called "stretched" which means they can play any of the three positions in the frontline. Being able to play multiple positions gives that player the advantage especially in crucial moments and that, players can also get that advantage in other sports such as volleyball.

In last night's third episode of Usapang PSL, one of the analytical side of volleyball that veteran volleyball analyst, Tex Suter asked his guests is how players are able to switch from one playing position to the other during games as his guests were two pairs of sisters playing in the Philippine SuperLiga (PSL) in the Santiago sisters in Dindiin and Jaja and the Laure sisters EJ and Eya. Suter also noted in last night's discussion that all four players are now able to play multiple positions whenever necessary and that, the players admitted that there was a difficulty at first in their transition from one position to the other. Along the way, Eya Laure shared that coaches at the University of Santo Tomas don't allow them to play just one position alone. Now, if basketball has five playing positions, volleyball has six and yes, one can play multiple positions depending on the needs of the team and on the situation in the game itself.

Perhaps, the most important position a volleyball player could is the setter as pundits call setters as the point guards of volleyball. As a setter, your primary responsibility is to run the team's offense as setters would aim to receive the second touch which would allow them to set the ball for an attacking player. Another unique responsibility of the setter is to identify the opposing team's blockers and then single out which of the blockers is the weakest. Setters can also be blockers since they can play either in the front row or in the back row which means they should be ready to go up for blocks any time. 

In a volleyball team's starting line-up, there's always one player who wears a jersey that has contrasting colors compared to the rest of the team. That player is the libero. And the irony of it, liberos aren't part of the team's starting line-up as they can go in and out of the court any time. A libero's primary focus is on the defensive side of the game. Libros only play on the back row of the field and are usually the ones who receive the attack or serve. While liberos' focus is on the defensive side, they do have a critical role on the team's offense as they are the ones who should be ready to turn the first touch into a solid pass to the setter. A libero can also serve as the setter from the back row if the actual setter isn't available. 

While liberos are focusing on the team's defense among other things, volleyball teams do have a defensive specialist on their line-up. While many are still struggling to distinguish the differences between a libero and a defensive specialist, one key difference between the two is that the defensive specialist can play anywhere on the court while liberos can only do their thing on the back row. Also, liberos can replace anyone on the back row as that doesn't count as part of the team's substitutions while defensive specialists can make substitutions via the referees. The defensive specialist should always be ready to dig or to pursue and also, they can also serve as hitters from the back row. 

The Middle blocker or middle hitter, like Dindin Santiago Manabat, is a position that requires the team's tallest player. As the name says, middle blockers' primary role is to block the center area of the net and should always be prepared for quick attacks in the middle section.  As middle hitters, they must be able to execute fast attacks and can also be used as a decoy to confuse the blockers.

Now, there are two other types of hitters in volleyball: opposite hitter and outside hitter. 

Outside hitters like EJ Laure, are usually serving as the focal point of the team's offensive plan. They usually attack from the left side of the antenna which requires a good jumping ability. As an outside hitter, that player must be able to adjust to sets coming from anywhere and, that player must be able to hit from either the front row or the back row. Defensively, outside hitters receive the service and they usually work with the middle hitters to block shots coming from the other team.

If the outside hitters are attack from the left side of the antenna,  opposite hitters work their magic from the right side of the antenna. In general, this position requires a player to excel both in offense and defense. As hitters, they must be able to hit from both back and front rows and can also act as a back-up setter if the actual setter fails to serve a set. Defensively, they work against the opposing outside hitters  

While they have different responsibilities, all of the positions above can be played by multiple players with Santiago-Manabat even revealing in last night's episode that she will try to play every position including libero. And while it might confuse some at first, getting properly trained to play different positions can benefit a player, and most importantly, it can benefit the team in the long run. 

Photo is from Head Topics