I saw David Dobrik playing roundnet at the beach on his story this weekend. I would love to see his face after a Marino cut serve flies by him (love your videos though man). Next stop: celebrity roundnet tournament hosted by The Pocket.

Now that you all know I follow David Dobrik on Snapchat, let’s move into more pressing matters.

In today’s newsletter, we’re talking about:

1. Keys to setting

2. Diving into some exciting ventures 

3. Quick Hits

LFG!

👏 SET-sational! (see what we did there?)

We’re talking sets today, and no, it’s not because my pickup partner kept leading me into the defense this weekend and I’m using this as a hint, but because it’s something every player needs to be intentional about. 

Let’s break down how to hit a good set into the 3 F’s:

• Footwork

• Form 

• Follow Through

🦶 Footwork

This is an important skill because you see players lean instead of moving their feet. You need to set a solid foundation when setting, and that just boils down to moving your feet and not being lazy.

✋ Form

1. Hit the ball in the middle third of your hand. More control and less spin will allow you to set the ball how and where you want. 

2. Have your arm at 90 a degree angle. This position is consistent and comfortable.

3. Keep your hands at a soft clap level of firmness. That’s a strange way of describing it, but you know exactly what I mean. No floppy handshakes, but no strangling handshakes either.

Side Note: To improve consistency you want to limit the rotation on the ball. You know you’re getting pure contact when there's little to no rotations on the ball. Even when you’re in a reactionary situation where you’re forced to get any set you can back to the net, these fundamentals will improve your ability to get it there.

💨 Follow Through

A good follow through ensures the ball ends up where you want it, and can eliminate inconsistencies. A solid follow through looks like continuing the underhand setting motion up “three balls worth of distance.” Make contact, keep the hand going, make sure you got it to where you need to be and get back on defense. 

This breakdown is in reference to our favorite online coach, Scott Beeks. A full video breakdown is below, and make sure to follow his socials to take your game to the next level.

🧑‍💻 Pioneering Projects in Roundnet

There are numerous independent projects and platforms in roundnet that are doing super cool neat things in the community. We decided to highlight a few of these projects to keep you informed on what is being developed behind the scenes.

🧪 Experimental Roundnet

Experimental Roundnet will test multiple variations of gameplay—including variations of equipment, rule changes, and entirely new methods.

The brain behind Experimental Roundnet is that of Tucker Judkins—a premier qualified roundnet player who has been involved in the sport since 2017.

While still early in the process, Experimental Roundnet has already made some extremely interesting findings, such as:

More attention to these numbers will have an effect on rules, gameplay, and event strategy. But what really stands out is their commitment to introducing new ideas and testing those ideas instead of just talking about potential solutions. 

For more details on Experimental Roundnet’s initiative, you can check out their Instagram here.

🧠 Roundnet AI

Roundnet AI, utilizes AI to trim your full-length games down into each respective rally.

For anyone looking to analyze their game film—Roundnet AI is the way to go. The app will give each rally a movement score, and the higher the movement score the more likely that the rally contains a highlight. Additionally, Roundnet AI allows you to perform game reviews more efficiently than regular video.

Roundnet AI’s website, social media pages, and other associated links can all be found here.  

This application has great use cases for individual players trying to not only analyze but also share their games. We can’t help but think this tech will also be an important factor and addition when a bigger media outlet begins to consistently cover and stream the sport.

Every sport needs technology behind it for players to accelerate their skill level. Think online engines in Chess (yes Chess is a sport), or simulators in golf. AI is the future baby.

💃 Fwango vs. 🏃 Click’N’Run

Fwango and Click’N’Run are both tournament platforms that include registration, scheduling, live results, and more. Essentially, these platforms include all the features one would ever need to run a roundnet tournament. 

In 2021, Fwango was acquired by Spikeball to be their dedicated tournament platform. Fwango has become synonymous with roundnet/Spikeball tournaments, and if you’re a fan looking for tournament results, it is probably the first place you look (or first place you used to look… now you can subscribe to The Pocket for weekly updates 😆).

However, Click’N’Run is starting to gain some steam in the world of roundnet as well—especially outside of North America. Click’N’Run was used as the all-in-one tournament platform for the 3rd Mallorca Open. We spoke to some individuals who have used both platforms, and they told us that Fwango and Click’N’Run are very similar, although the consensus was that Fwango was a bit smoother to use, at least for now.  

👊 Quick Hits

🤮 Spotless announces their return

🇺🇸 The US Natty Champ will go down in Raleigh

🤓 Ben Dantowitz sits down with Max Model to talk statistics (roundnet stats newsletter COMING SOON!)

🦣 USAR’s #1 ranked men’s player Ryan Marino tests the new Mammoth Kit

🫵 YOU can design the Team USA Worlds 2024 jersey