Service Error
Any miss that does not get the ball in play: long, wide, into the net, foot fault, wrong server, illegal serve motion. The box pairs service errors with aces, because both tell you if a jump server is worth the risk. A staff target in college is often to keep the error line under 10% of your attempts on aggressive servers, but a pure floater can live lower.
Example
Aggressive jump, bad toss, deep corner missed wide. Point, other color, and the stat line adds another E.
Frequently Asked Questions
What counts as a service error in volleyball?
If the ball does not start the rally correctly from your serve, you get a service error. That includes a ball that never clears the net, lands out, comes from a bad rotation, or a foot on the end line at contact.
How many service errors is too many?
If your aces and short serves do not outscore your misses, the coach will pull you. Two or three aces to one error is a green light night for a power server. Six errors and a couple free balls, not so much.