Since 2015 we have used a radar gun at the varsity level to measure how fast each server can serve while still keeping the ball in play.
We have seen that the combination of physical maturity and experience improve our speed over time but the x factor that has definitely had an impact was the summer athletic training. It was clear that the serving speed of those athletes who participated in that training was drastically improved from one year to the next. No other factor changed, no other sport involvement, no growth spurt, etc. accounted for the significant change.
The 2019 saw the Hilltoppers serve at an average speed of 32.69 MPH (all players, regardless of who served in matches). That was 1.5 MPH better than the prior year and 1.9 better than 2017.
Meghan Tarashuk averaged 37.6 MPH on all her serves and hit a 40 MPH serve that was out and a Team Leading 41 MPH that was good.
Sarah Brennan averaged 37.4 MPH on all her serves and hit a 43 MPH serve that was out but hit a Team #2 40 MPH that was good.
Our GOAL is to have as many kids on the serving line as possible that can hit 35 MPH with a high serving %. We also like to mix in kids with slower serves (29-32 MPH) who are highly consistent and focus more on late ball movement rather than speed. For you baseball fans, we like to throw 90 MPH fast balls mixed in with an 80 MPH curve.
Brennan had an average of 7/10 serves which hit 35 MPH or better.
Cassandra Hrehorovich and Tarashuk had an average of 5/10 serves which hit 35 MPH or better.
Although there is more to serving in a match than hitting a number on the radar gun, it is very exciting to see the following numbers from returning athletes this year who will probably be on the starting serving squad:
Tarashuk - 37.6
Brennan - 37.4
Guidetti - 35.2
Walsh - 34.9
Excited for the start! Look at post below if you haven't read it yet.
