It requires intuition, timing and understanding.

Some volleyball coaches have a great feel for it, and others don’t. Some matches it works out and other times it is only a temporary solution to the inevitable.

Volleyball’s momentum swings can be prodigious. When a team falls into that pocket where everything is flowing and connecting it’s magical, and before the opponent knows it, eight straight points are ripped off, and the score has completely changed.

It can start with an ace, or a devastating block. Or maybe it’s an impossible dig, or a third hit from unfathomable place on the court that was destined to be a sure point for the other team. And everyone has felt that one spike that reverberates throughout the entire gym.

WHAM!

The one thing that can stop it, or at least slow it, is a perfectly timed pause with a time out. Each coach has access to two timeouts per set. The rub comes as when to use it as coaches weigh all the variables like picking up on the team’s body language, how early in the set is it, the psychology of letting a team play through it and stopping it on their own and so much more.

In addition, the coach’s demeanor during the rough patch, and during the timeout, goes a long way as well.

“When you are dealing with 14- to 18-year-old girls, I can’t create chaos; I have to create calm,” Xavier coach Lamar-Renee Bryant said earlier this season. “We have a gameplan and we have to stick with it. We are disciplined. We work really, really hard in practice so no matter what it is going on we have to trust our training and keep our composure.

“You’re only as good as your composure. These girls are used to high-pressure situations, so we just have to reset and go after it.”

It’s why Bryant often lets her team play through it instead of calling a timeout early. The patience by the coach shows she has confidence in her players to work it out on their own with the hope that a captain, one of the leaders, or anyone for that matter can help put an end to the opposition’s momentum.

A lot of decisions on whether to call a timeout or let it ride will be on full display in the 6A state girls volleyball tournament over the next 10 days.  

The 16-team first round starts on Thursday, Nov. 5 and runs through the championship match on Nov. 14 at Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum at 7 p.m.

The top seed is Perry at 17-0 in regular season matches, while Sanda Day O’Connor (16-1), Liberty (14-3) and Highland (16-1) round out the top four.

The rest of the top eight are No. 5 Pinnacle (12-3), No. 6 Xavier (12-5), No. 7 Hamilton (12-5) and No. 8 Casteel (11-6).

Xavier plays with a confidence that is passed down each year after hoisting the state championship trophy the last two seasons.

It’s how they are able to play through some of the rough patches when Bryant watches it play out.  

“It starts with our preparation in practice because we all have belief in our abilities,” junior captain and middle blocker Annabelle Ross said. “We all know what we are capable of and holding each other accountable.”

With that said Perry enters on a 12-match win streak and the favorite after going 36-5 in the regular season as coach Andrew Yamashiro has the Pumas primed for a deep run.

It’s a big jump for Perry after entering the tournament as the 10th seed a year ago, but the Pumas have made the title match three times in the last seven seasons, finishing as the runner-up in 2019, 2020 and 2023.

Perry has one of the most productive hitters in the state in Kalista Fuller, who is committed to Cal State San Marcos, while five other players have at least 100 kills on the season.

As good as the Pumas have been this season, there was a set again Hamilton the Pumas trailed 18-0. It’s the perfect example of calling a time out had no bearing on the outcome.

“It was one of those sets where Hamilton could do no wrong,” Perry coach Andrew Yamashiro said. “I called the first (timeout) one at seven, and maybe the second one at 12. It didn’t matter. You just play through it and get ready for the next one.”

Sandra Day O’Connor, which has won nine straight regular season matches, is also entering the postseason playing well and won the state title in 2023 and finished as runners-up in 2021.

The Eagles, who are 29-3 overall, brings an offense with three players, led by Berkley France at 303, with at least 200 kills, meaning coach Amanda Burbridge can ran the hot hand of several players.

It makes an offense dangerous, one that can go on run of points, creating that momentum that overtakes the opposition; forcing the coach to decide.

Take a timeout or ride it out?

“A lot of times it is intuition based on the body language or they need a quick break to reset,” Yamashiro said. “Then at times you want to see them get out of it on their own. It gives them confidence that they can figure it out.

“It’s a balance you play with all of the time.”

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