Serve Receive - I'm Lost! (5-1)

In this post, we help you master serve receive rotations for an offense using one setter! We explain what a 5-1 volleyball offense is and show you where to stand for the six serve receive rotations.

A 5-What??

As a reminder, a 5-1 offense is a volleyball offense that utilizes one setter who stays on the court for all six rotations.

(Note: In a future post, we will go over common serve receive positions for a 6-2 offense)

5-1 Serve Receive

Most serve receive rotations are organized based on the number of setters a team rotates into the game and whether or not the setter remains in the match when he or she gets to the front row. Here, we focus on a 5-1 offense and common serve receive positions for a 5-1 offense.

A 5-1 offense is an offense that utilizes one setter who remains on the court throughout the entire volleyball match. Opposite in the 5-1 rotation is the Opposite Hitter. Opposite Hitters are players who play opposite of the setter in the rotation and hit from the right side of the court. The Opposite Hitter and the Setter play both front row and back row, rotating all the way around the court.

Typically, a team uses fewer substitutions because the same Opposite Hitter and Setter remain in the match. Of course, if a substitution needs to be made, substitutions are possible for all players on the court.

Important: It is most common for Opposite Hitters to be opposite of the Setter, but it is possible for any player to be opposite of the Setter in a 5-1 offense. Here, we focus on the most common 5-1 set-up: the Opposite Hitter opposite of the Setter.

For the diagram, find the position you play and that is where you stand when the other team is serving. For each rotation, you will rotate clockwise.

(Important: Coaches are able to tweak around the serve receive setup, so double check with your coach in case they have a slightly different set up)

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