It was like Déjà vu all over again.   On Saturday, November 8^th at BerknerHigh School gym, Coach Summer Foley’s Lady Warriors from Westwood Junior High were crowned champions of the combined Carrollton Farmers Branch ISD and Richardson ISD 8^th grade volleyball playoff tournament.   The Lady Warriors had won this title a year ago as 7^th graders in the same gym on the same weekend.   It was a great accomplishment, as no one could remember a team winning back to back championships.

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Freshman setters Li’i Etimani and Amanda Brown are close teammates at Richardson High School, but fierce rivals on the court in club volleyball.   At Richardson, Li’i and Amanda have been a big boost to Adam Cornell’s up and coming program, with both girls contributing significantly to help Richardson finish 2^nd in district 9-5A this year and a bi-district win over GarlandHigh School in 3 sets.  Coach Cornell is excited about the furture of RHS volleyball and went on to say, "This was the youngest varsity team that I have coached in my six season as a head coach, but one of the most athletic."  Having two freshman setters has really helped plug a skill gap which occurred when last year’s all-district senior setter Julia Pass graduated.  When asked about how the two girls performed this year, Coach Cornell explained, "The girls stepped in and preformed their roles well.  They were able to bring an energy to the court that comes along with the success of their club teams that is not easy to coach when you are dealing with most freshman who play on a varsity team.  They come in with it and used it to their advantage. I feel that both girls made a huge impact to the team this year running the offense and stepping up and making some big plays on defense." The leadership and national playoff experience the girls have had in club volleyball has helped them have the confidence to step up and fit in at the varsity level with the older girls.   Coach Cornell added, "When it comes to it, both girls want to win and that’s what you seen every time they step in the gym.   You get a sense of “we got this” when you see them on the court."   The fight to win was something the girls learned early in their sports careers...

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In my previous post about preparing for Club tryouts, I promised to give my view on the best DFW clubs for the coming 14U and 15U tryouts.   It is a complicated answer to a simple question.  Here are my thoughts…

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@ CarrolltonNewmanSmithHigh School.  On Saturday, Richardson ISD and Carrollton Farmers Branch ISD held their combined 8th grade midseason volleyball tournament at NewmanSmithHigh School.  North (JJ Pearce feeder), Park Hill (JJ Pearce feeder), and Westwood (Richardson feeder) all began the tournament with undefeated regular season records.  At the end of the day, when the smoke cleared, Coach Summer Foley’s Westwood Lady Warriors stood alone on the court to receive their first place trophy.  Here is a recap of the tournament… (more)

Today, guest Blogger John Bohannon provides us some insight on the major impact freshman volleyball players are having at Coppell High School.  I would say watch out for this program down the road, but they are already one of the top teams in the DFW area!  Take a look... (more)

The high school volleyball season is in full swing now with all teams having started district play.   I am soliciting some guest bloggers to provide us updates at a few of the Junior High, Freshman, JV and Varsity programs which feature some of the best 15U club players.   Hope to have these new posts soon. 

 

In order to give your daughter the best chance to make the high school varsity team, it is really best to play club volleyball.  Non club players should not be surprised at lack of playing time in high school or not making the high school team if they did get the skill development in club volleyball.  It really is getting to be the rare athlete who can perform well enough on the high school volleyball court without receiving the training you get with playing competitive club volleyball.  Club volleyball is not free, although many clubs offer scholarships, but it does not have to be overly expensive (although it certainly can be with travel).  There are lots of options and I will explain these in a future post.   In the meantime, let’s talk about the upcoming club tryouts and how to best prepare for them… (more)

Hey volleyball fans!

Yes, 2009 Junior Olympic Nationals are over, but the 14 Ro girls are still playing volleyball.  Now it is the UIL running the show.

 Let's take a look at how the girls are doing in some of the top volleyball programs in the state of Texas...

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When we talk about the results of the 30^th annual USA Volleyball Junior Olympic National Tournament and 14 Ro, there is good news and there is bad news.   The good news is that 14 Ro finished 5^th in the USA!   This ties Skyline 15 Ro for the highest finishing Skyline team for the 2008-2009 season.  There really isn’t bad news, but disappointment in “only” finishing 5^th.   Here is my tournament recap…

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