A.
Stance
Before you can dig the ball, you must
get into the proper stance. Have your feet a little more than shoulder-width
apart with your knees bent. When you look down, your knees should reach out
over your toes. Keep your shoulders square to the ball and relax. Tensing up
hinders your accuracy once the ball arrives. Bend your arms out in front of
your body.
B.
Traditional Dig
Good players can anticipate the play
and head to a spot on the floor before the ball arrives. You want to get your
hips under the ball and arriving early helps this significantly. Have your
forearms under the ball and lean toward the ball as it hits your arms. Digging
the ball between your knees and shoulders gives you the best chance of
directing it toward a teammate accurately. On every shot, make sure that you
face the attacker as the ball approaches. Getting to a fast-approaching ball is
difficult, so positioning is very important.
C. Dive
If you cannot get to a ball on your
feet, you might have to dive to complete the dig. When doing so, get very low
to the ground by bending your knees. Extend your entire body forward and slide
on your chest as you dive. Since you will likely dive for a low ball, you must
keep your arms parallel to the floor to get it back into the air. You will dig
with either a closed fist or with a defensive technique called the pancake, in
which you lay your hand flat on the ground and let the ball bounce off the back
of it. Keep your chin up throughout the dive to avoid injury.
D.
Overhead Dig
If the ball approaches over your head,
you must play the ball in that position. In most cases, you will contact the
ball with your fingers, rather than with your arms together. Keep your fingers
and wrists tense as you make contact with the ball, as this gives you more
control over the ball. Attack the ball, rather than letting it hit you. Letting
the ball hit you can lead to injury to your fingers, in addition to a poorly
executed dig. Push the ball into the air for your setter, as this helps your
team finish its attack.
