In volleyball, a pancake is when the
ball is about to hit the floor, and a player desperately dives and slides his/her hand across the floor, in an attempt to cause the
ball to bounce off of the back of the player's hand rather than the floor. If executed properly, the
ball will bounce back up into the air, allowing another player to pass the ball over the net.
They would have lost the game because of John's bad pass, but Mike desperately performed a pancake, allowing
Joe to hit the
ball over the net, saving the point.
Mary's pancake was ineffective, because her hand was not directly under the
ball when it fell.