Hayden Conner gets it done on both Offense and Defense. Hayden is the kind of player that gives spectators confidence that she will make the play happen. Watch and learn from Hayden’s timing. She begins in serve receive from the left front position, strategically utilizing the entire court for her approach. Upon identifying the pass, she swiftly positions herself, ready to commence her slide approach. With a glance exchanged with her setter, Hayden initiates her seamless series of footwork, a right-left-right-left jump off of one foot. It is a flawless slide approach. With precision, she makes contact with the ball, sending it soaring away from the line block at a sharp angle. The ball ricochets off the middle blocker’s hand, sealing the deal with a decisive kill. On the block, Hayden completely seals the net with a solid press on the block.

As a middle blocker it is very important to improve my performance and protect myself from injury throughout my season. To fulfill this, I train two days a week with a personal trainer outside of volleyball practice. I start each training session with my trainer working from the ground up. I start my warmup with gradual plyometrics: stabilizing my ankles and knees, strengthening my hips and core and then proper stabilization exercises for my shoulders. All these components are applied directly to my play to improve my performance. Most of my training is strength training using various weights and band resistant plyometrics. Every session I test my vertical and box jump to see my growth from the strength training. My vertical jump has increased from 9′ 10” to 10′ 1” as well as my box jump increasing to 43 inches; both in short periods of time.

 After my tournaments I do cryotherapy, red light therapy and compression massages. This helps my body recover much faster. Rest is another essential way I like to recover. I try to get a lot of sleep after tournaments, so I feel energized for the days ahead. For my nutrition, I like to keep it clean and simple. I always include fruits and greens; my favorites are apples and avocados. I make a lot of different protein shakes at home; my favorite is protein powder, peanut butter, chocolate, almond milk, yogurt, chia seeds, flax seeds, honey, and ice. My favorite healthy snack is avocado toast and protein balls. Of course I drink tons of water, but I love Amino Fuel! To prepare for games, I like to watch the opposing teams’ latest game footage a day or two ahead of time to find their strengths and weaknesses. Another important follow up I do is watch my game footage after tournaments so I can see what I need to improve or change.

Fun fact: I really wanted to be a setter when I first started playing at 10 years old. I was instead encouraged to be a middle since I was so tall.

Provided to Michelle Bamford @ PrepDig