Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Tryouts for club volleyball are approaching and this year is first time trying out for my girls. Does anyone have advice or recommendations about the Triangle area clubs?
Thanks~
Triangle will be the hardest to make a team. NC Elite and NC Volleyball Academy are the other big ones. Would probably rank NC Volleyball Academy ahead of Elite, just based on the people I know who play - many of whom went with NC Volleyball over Triangle last year.
Not sure how many girls you have but I hope you've been pinching your pennies for this
Triangle will be the hardest to make for sure. It has top level talent and is pricey. But you get good coaches, etc. You have to weigh your budget and kids skill level.:-)
Triangle will be the hardest to make for sure. It has top level talent and is pricey. But you get good coaches, etc. You have to weigh your budget and kids skill level.:-)
Yeah, and most people try out for more than one club, so ultimately the decision may lie with the clubs. I know a couple girls who tried out for Triangle last year and did not get an offer so they went with one of the others.
My take on it is, if you are technically perfect you're going to get an offer from Triangle. If you can make all the same plays as the Triangle girls but your form is bad, or you're clearly not really athletic you're not going to get an offer from Triangle. This is how I saw it play out last year with the girls I knew who tried out.
I would agree with that as well. My wife, who I spoke with last night about some local clubs, is a college coach and has coached DI-D3 and she said Triangle is one of the best clubs from DC to Florida. They are pretty picky who they choose. Many of their players go on to get scholarships or play at DI level if I recall.
OP, Definitely check out all the clubs you can and go with the one you feel your kids will get most playing time. The key is getting the practice and playing time. This will get you exposure to college coaches.
Thanks everyone for the feedback - the world of competitive middle school club volleyball has been interesting and fast-paced. I don't see many threads on this so thought I would update and have info on here for anyone else considering club vs. recreational volleyball.
Triangle Volleyball tryouts just ended, and it was different that I expected for the age group. Key to know is that there are hundreds of girls trying out for very few spots. 332 tried out this year. There were maybe from what I could count in the 11-14s 6 11/12 teams, 4 13s and 4 14s, each with 10 players. The skill level of the girls was impressive; this is not for someone with no experience though technically the tryouts are open to all levels of experience. In the 13 or 14, they ask you to state your position from the start, and that is where you try out. If you like more than one position, pick the one you like the most because there is no turning back. At this level of play, some girls may still be figuring it out but that is not how this one runs. When offers are made, it is for the position you identified in the first 5 mins of day one. there are 3 days of tryouts, starting with 2.5 hours, then 2, then 90 mins.
There seemed to be a bit of playing the clubs off each other. Mainly NC, elite, and Triangle. It was interesting that despite being told that this would be a thoughtful process and to be patient, girls at Triangle were also told if you are considering another offer, hey call us first - midway through the tryouts when 'no or few offers' had been extended. I found that odd but then again, there are clearly very skilled girls present and they know it. And, hey, it is a top tier club so of course they would be proud of their bid and placement. It seemed a few of them were a little less humble but we're talking teen girls so a bit of that isn't a surprise.
NC elite seemed less, well, elite in attitude and were welcoming. again, if you just have rec experience, you will want to send your player to some clinics and camps in advance of tryouts to get up to speed. The nonprofit missions for clubs is volleyball for all, but really there has to be some focused training on skills well in advance of tryouts to truly be competitive.
Cost isn't cheap as folks pointed out - looking around the 3-4K range for a season that starts in Nov and ends in Spring. There are maybe 4-5 tournaments depending on the team level and club (don't quote me, just recall seeing that many listed on the tourney sheet). National level runs north of 6K minimum.
A couple regional tournaments fall on weekends that we had preplanned (i.e. paid already, no refund) travel (school class trips, etc) so we are considering just playing jr. league and sitting this season out. Elite made an offer, Triangle wait listed. Be sure to check the schedules for practice and games before investing time into tryouts -- if your daughter has other activities it can be challenging, and while each of the clubs say they can work with you for scheduling conflicts, it is a hard sell being so expensive and then missing out on anything.
Overall I think the experience is educational - emphasizes hard work and fact that nothing is guaranteed even when you try your best. Harsh reality: there is tough competition in the world, welcome to it! Sometimes best lessons are when you get wait listed, or don't make a team. I wish I had known just how competitive it was in advance, or that positions had to be declared; that threw mine off their game temporarily because they had at this point not been labeled a this or that position but played a little of each and were trying to figure out where they fit best. I guess I was hoping that at this level (11-14) the clubs would be working with them to improve play and figure out fit, but my impression was for at least these clubs, this is already set.
My DD plays rec league volleyball - started 4 years ago. This year there was an explosion in girls who clearly want to go the club route. Three years ago in our rec league, there was one girl who served overhand out of 72 in the league. This year, there were a few on every team who were at least attempting it. And there were a few on every team who were trying out for club. It is crazy. My take? People seem to think volleyball is the sport for un-athletic girls. A lot of the girls I knew trying out - the talent isn't there. And all those 11,12,13 year old teams are just money makers for the clubs, because when it comes to brass tacks and college recruiting, each club only has two, maybe three 17-18 year old teams. SO eventually unless you are tops of the top you get forced out.
I am really curious to see who I know ended up on which team, if any at all. Some of these girls I knew trying out weren't even good rec league players, it is amazing to me their parents will shell out that kind of money for a career that isn't going anywhere.
I think your assessment is correct about the clubs - not sure if Elite is going to make a push to get to be like Triangle but I think they are the best alternative for someone who wants to play without making themselves crazy over it.
PS - High School playoffs start tonight if your daughter is interested in watching - Green Hope and Panther Creek are both playing at home, not sure where you live but the schedule is on wral.com.
My daughter just finished up the JV season and is going to try out for U15. It is true, there are a lot of girls who are very, very good and with so many kids with that kind of talent, eventually most will get weeded out. My oldest experienced that with CASL Challenge soccer.
We're going to try out at two places and see how it goes.
My daughter just finished up the JV season and is going to try out for U15. It is true, there are a lot of girls who are very, very good and with so many kids with that kind of talent, eventually most will get weeded out. My oldest experienced that with CASL Challenge soccer.
We're going to try out at two places and see how it goes.
Twingles, where does your daughter play rec?
Morrisville Parks and Rec but the oldest age group ends at 12 so she is done now.
Apex has a few leagues, I think their fall league has older age groups. I think their spring league ends at age 13 or 15, can't remember. Very hard to get into if you're a non-resident.
Cary has a summer league, again think it goes to age 15.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
