Looking for lessons learned in a disappointing loss? As a coach you have just been a part of a close match which your team loses. You feel the frustration and kick in the gut that your team is also feeling, but you are the adult and teacher, so you have to have words of wisdom for your sad team. Separating your emotions and putting them on the back burner to grab this teaching and learning moment is crucial. I know for my young team, who is trying to do what we are teaching, it is tough to see their efforts not rewarded. They can now pass, set and hit, but they can't always put it together without an error somewhere along the line. Meanwhile, the
opponent is just hitting the ball back over the net allowing us to make the error. Coaches, we need to see the bigger picture at this stage of their development. Work hard on serving so they can score points that way. Keep working on the skills of the game. Passing, of course, is number one. Then, teach them to set to a spot, not to a person. Next, teach your hitters to get ready to hit. In the long run, teaching the skills and the sequence they are trying for will help them in their future. Praise them for trying to play correctly. In practice do competive drills that reward effort for 3 hits on a side. Then, coaches, after you have given them all the support they need after a disappointing loss, you can go to your car and scream and yell to let out all the pent up emotions you have suppressed. Have a great day!