Volleyball Tryout Plan Template (1-, 2-, and 3-day options)

A good tryout doesn’t try to measure everything. It’s designed to reveal what matters most for selection at your level – quickly, fairly, and under realistic volleyball conditions. The goal is not to rank skills in isolation, but to identify which players help a team sideout, defend, and compete once play becomes messy.

This template gives you practical 1-, 2-, and 3-day structures you can adapt to numbers, age group, and gym time.

This topic lives in: Volleyball Tryouts (Start Here)

Related: Tryout drill ideas • Tryout player assessment • Communicating results

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What a tryout needs to reveal (selection priorities)

Before planning drills or stations, be clear on what you’re actually selecting for. Most teams care about some version of the following:

• First contact quality
  • Serve receive and defensive reliability under pressure.
• Game awareness
  • Reading the play, spacing, transitions, and decision-making.
• Athletic ceiling vs current contribution
  • Can this player help us now? Can they grow within the season?
• Position-specific value
  • Setters organizing offense, liberos stabilizing play, attackers terminating or managing risk (See: Setter role and Libero role).
• Competitiveness and coachability
  • Response to mistakes, communication, effort, and adaptability.

A strong tryout plan moves from controlled → contextual → competitive so you see players in all three states.

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1-day tryout plan (single extended session)

Best when gym time is limited or cuts must be made quickly.

Time	Focus	What you’re evaluating
0:00–0:15	Warm-up + ball control	Movement quality, coordination, communication
0:15–0:35	Stations (passing / setting / attacking)	Baseline skill competence
0:35–0:55	Serve & serve receive	First contact under light pressure
0:55–1:15	Small-sided games (3v3 / 4v4)	Reads, transitions, competitiveness
1:15–1:40	Wash or scoring games	Decision-making under pressure
1:40–2:00	6v6 (if numbers allow)	Role fit, game flow, positional value

Coaching tip: In a 1-day tryout, don’t over-rotate drills. Fewer activities with clearer evaluation beats more variety with shallow looks. For station and game options that fit this structure, use: Tryout drill ideas and the Tryout player assessment to stay consistent in what you’re scoring.

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2-day tryout plan (recommended for most programs)

Allows separation of skill identification and game performance.

Day 1: Skills + context

Time	Focus	What you’re evaluating
0:00–0:15	Warm-up + movement	Athletic base, coachability
0:15–0:45	Skill stations	Passing, setting, attacking fundamentals
0:45–1:05	Serve / receive reps	Platform, serve pressure
1:05–1:30	Small-sided games	Reads, spacing, competitiveness
1:30–1:45	Scoring games	Composure, choices

Day 2: Game play + decisions

Time	Focus	What you’re evaluating
0:00–0:10	Warm-up	Retention from Day 1
0:10–0:30	Targeted re-checks	Fringe players, positional questions
0:30–1:10	6v6 or modified games	Role clarity, contribution to winning
1:10–1:30	Wash / bonus-point games	Pressure response
1:30–1:45	Final looks	Tie-break decisions

Need more activity options? Start with Tryout drill ideas and then align your note-taking to Tryout player assessment.

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3-day tryout plan (optional, depth-focused)

Useful for large programs, older age groups, or when roster spots are very tight.

Day 1: Broad identification

Skills, athleticism, and baseline competence.

Day 2: Role testing

Players spend more time in-position (setters setting, liberos passing/digging, attackers attacking).

Day 3: Competition + chemistry

Time	Focus	What you’re evaluating
0:00–0:15	Warm-up	Consistency
0:15–0:45	6v6 blocks	Role fit, lineup balance
0:45–1:15	Situational games	Sideout, down-ball defense
1:15–1:35	Pressure games	Decision quality
1:35–1:45	Final review	Confirmation, not discovery

Key idea: Day 3 should confirm decisions, not introduce brand-new criteria.

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Stations (what to include + why)

Stations let you see repeatability, but they must connect to game value.

High-return stations:
If you want a larger menu of station formats (by objective), use: Tryout drill ideas.

• Passing lanes (serve receive + free balls)
  → Platform control, footwork, seam awareness.
• Setter movement + delivery
  → Early movement, location consistency, decision speed.
• Attacking off imperfect sets
  → Shot range, error management, adaptability.
• Defensive reading
  → First step, posture, recovery.

Avoid stations that:

• Reward one-off success (one great swing).
• Remove decision-making entirely.
• Take too long to rotate.

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Scoring games that reveal players

Scoring constraints expose habits fast.

Examples:

• Wash games: must win two rallies in a row to score.
• Bonus-point games: extra point for a sideout or transition kill.
• First-ball sideout scoring: only points scored on serve receive count.
• Process scoring games: score or get bonus points for doing specific things you’re looking for.

What these reveal:

• Risk tolerance
• Communication under stress
• Who makes teams better when points matter

For a simple, repeatable pressure format that works well in tryouts, see: Servers vs passers (scoring).

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Evaluation notes (simple rubric ideas)

Keep evaluation simple and observable.

Instead of 1–10 scales, try 3 buckets:

• Helps the team
• Neutral
• Hurts the team

Track separately for:

• First contact
• Second contact / decisions
• Competitive behaviors
• Position-specific actions

Write short notes, not essays:

• “Late to seam”
• “Calms group”
• “Forces low-percentage sets”

These notes matter most when you review borderline decisions.

For a fuller checklist of what to watch (and how to separate borderline players), see: Volleyball Try-out Player Assessment.

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FAQs

How long should tryouts be?

Long enough to see players in game-like situations. For most programs, 90–120 minutes per day is sufficient.

What if I have 30+ players?

Use stations early to manage reps, then cut to smaller groups for games. More players means more structure, not more drills.

How do I evaluate setters and liberos fairly?

Give them repeated reps in their role, then evaluate how the team functions with them on the floor – not just isolated technique.

Should I test jumping or speed?

Only if it informs a real decision. Volleyball-specific movement and play reading usually matter more than raw testing.

How many days do I need?

One day can work; two is better for clarity; three is about confirmation and chemistry, not extra data.

How do I handle mixed ages?

Evaluate within age context, then compare ceiling vs readiness. Younger players often show value in learning speed and decision growth.

Should everyone play 6v6?

Not necessarily. Small-sided games often reveal more than full 6v6, especially early.

When should I make cuts?

After you’ve seen players compete, not just perform drills.

Next step: once you’ve made decisions, use this guide for messaging: Communicating tryout results.

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