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2008 Tryouts

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Exciting news from Viper Volleyball Volleyball.Life #8

Director's Notes

The Viper 2007-2008 season resulted in one of the most exciting seasons in our 10-year history. We had the privilege to work with more players (see the photo of our big support team live in Reno) than ever before and had three teams qualify for the Junior Olympics. We made substantial progress with our system play this year and feel as though our players really understand the fundamentals of the sport. We also had a great coaching addition with Dana Burkholder and look forward to having her on board full time.

This summer was busy with hosting summer camps in July and the beginning of fall training in August. We are continually excited by the amount of talent in our gym and the ability of our young players to learn such sophisticated skills at a young age.

As you might have seen in the Olympics, volleyball is a precision sport and we are thankful to have the level of training and the coaches that we do to help our young players learn the very same things our National Team is taught. With a Gold medal for the men and a Silver medal for the women, we feel even more committed to the system of training that we use and it's effectiveness at all levels of competition.

As a staff, we'd like to wish all of our high school coaches and kids good luck this fall. In particular, we'd like to wish long time Viper coach Rochelle Short good luck in her first college season as head coach of Point Loma Nazarene University. We'd also like to wish our other college coaches, Rob Machan and Chris Keife, good luck.

As the director, I am looking forward to our best club season yet! I feel confident that our coaches and our training are on track and that we are helping each of our young players to develop the skills necessary to succeed on and off the court. I look forward to seeing everyone soon.

Ed Morel

BE PART OF THE EXCITEMENT!!

The 2008 Olympics in Beijing were full of surprises. For volleyball fans, the biggest surprise was getting the opportunity to watch every match the USA volleyball played this Olympics - that includes both the men and women's indoor teams, as well as our 4 beach volleyball teams. The level of competition for the indoor teams was at such a high level that most matches went 5 games and really showed what an incredible sport volleyball is at the highest level.

The indoor women's team demonstrated incredible mental toughness and teamwork throughout the tournament by winning most of their matches with an ever changing line up on the floor. This type of team success only comes from coming together and playing for each other. To win the Olympic SILVER MEDAL, these girls executed high level technical skills and disciplined system play against talented opponents like Cuba, China and gold medal winner Brazil! Perhaps most impressive was the overall balance of their team. There wasn't any big stand out. Everyone played their role and stood out at different times throughout the tournament. (Photo credit: fivb.org)

The undefeated GOLD MEDAL winning indoor men's team was a force that couldn't be challenged by even the best teams of Brazil and Russia. Led by 4 time Olympian setter Lloy Ball and 1st time Olympian libero Rich Lambourne, team USA could not be stopped on offense out of serve receive. With powerful and dynamic attackers like Stanley, Priddy, and Salmon it was difficult to get the U.S. out of rhythm. On the defensive side, middle blockers Millar and Lee were simply HUGE! They blocked ball after ball after ball and gave the U.S. the lead at critical moments throughout the tournament. As coach McCutcheon tried to explain though, this team won because they played with their heart and they played as a team. And perhaps most surprising was that this team wasn't even considered very strong just one year ago. I guess that goes to show that anything can happen when you put your mind to it!

The famous team of Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh was in GOLD MEDAL form as usual. Though what they do is not easy to achieve, they certainly make it look easy. And this comes from a real love for the game and wanting to perfect it to the highest level, which of course, takes hours of skill training and many long hot days of volleyball. More than anything, Misty and Kerri have a winning combination of talent and mental toughness. Not only are they great players, but they are mentally stronger than any other opponent. They demonstrated this when they faced 5 set points against the Belgian team. Kerri said after the match in an interview that they just "kept it simple with their side out game - get back and pass, get a good set and swing smart. The simpler the better." (Photo credit: fivb.org)

After losing their opening match to a pumped-up and confident Lithuanian team, GOLD MEDAL champions Rogers and Dalhausser woke up and brought their "A" game to the rest of the tournament. As usual, they presented a huge block and scrappy tenacious defense that scored big points at big moments. Like the women, they showed both incredible volleyball skill and mental toughness, often coming back from being down in a game like in the first set against Brazil.

So, it's congrats to the USA Volleyball teams who won 3 Gold medals and 1 Silver. And congrats also to our other two beach teams who had a great tournament but lost in the quarterfinals. This kind of dominance may never been seen again at one Olympics, but we sure hope so!

***You too can begin to learn the game of Volleyball. We offer classes for many different levels of the game. From beginning young athletes to advanced Collegiate bound players. Get involved now!!! Call Rochelle Short at 265-4695 to become part of Viper Volleyball.

Fall Training Starts

We are currently training 12, 13 and 14 year old players in preparation for the upcoming club season. This is a great opportunity for our young players to get individual technical training and improve their understanding of the games fundamentals. The training is going great and the girls are seeing dramatic improvement from week to week. Beyond the volleyball training, we have been focusing on mental toughness and teamwork so these girls are ready for team play and competition. As we saw with the Olympic teams, it takes much more than volleyball skills to enjoy the game and succeed, and learning how to focus, stay positive and communicate at a young age makes all the difference in the world.

If you want more information on this training, please contact Dana Burkholder at dana@danaburkholder.com

Summer Highlights

Haleigh Hampton

Haleigh Hampton played for the USA Youth High Performance team

this summer in Tucson, Arizona with 50 other players and 10 Division 1 coaches. She was placed on the top team after the first three days of training, but was later asked to play on the 3rd team because of her dynamic leadership qualities and ability to influence the people around her. This is a real honor for Haleigh because it shows her maturity and teammanship among top players and coaches. Haleigh's team won all of their first and second round matches against teams from far and wide - Peru, Chili, Canada, Iowa, Florida and more. Unfortunately, the team lost two players to injuries in the third round and just missed the medal round.

Overall, Haleigh felt that, "this was a great chance for me to experience division 1 coaches both training us and watching us play for scholarship consideration. I have met girls from around the world and had the great privilege to see what other programs have been able to do to get their players ready for college or even to be on an Olympic team one day. Having this experience with USA Volleyball made the Olympics mean even more to me this year while I watched them on TV. This makes me work even harder to be the best volleyball player I can be."

Kaila Thomas

Kaila Thomas played for the SCVA Youth Team this summer and was able to travel all the way to Croatia to play against tough foreign competition like Pula and Slovenia (see friendly photo of team USA and team Slovenia to the right, Kaila is #10); who had players with professional experience and ranged from 18-21 years old. Against the toughest team in the tournament, Pula, Kaila's team lost all three matches but finally took a game from them in the 3rd match. This may sound like a small victory, but international teams play at such a high level that for a team of 15 and 16 year olds this is a tremendous accomplishment.

Kaila led the team as an outside hitter on both offense and defense. The team finished 8th overall and this was the SCVA's best finish ever at this tournament.

Kaila said, "This experience helped me catch a glimpse of what college will be like because of the faster and intense pace of the game! This is something I would definitely do in the future if I had the opportunity again."

Beach Volleyball

Many of Viper's players took it to the beach this summer! Some of them competed in over 10 tournaments and achieved success they weren't quite expecting. Many other clubs were represented on the beach as well - including Wave and Long Beach Mizuno - but our girls stood the test of good training and hard work and set the tone with their play and intensity. Our congratulations goes out to:

Player Accomplishments

Dana Backlund "A" Rating in her first tournament, 3rd at Cal Cup

Taylor Suchy Top 5 finish

Taylor Johnson 2nd at the Cal Cup State Championships, 10 top 5 finishes!

Mckenzie Gomes Top 3 finish

Brittany Esposito Top 3 finish

Ashli Esposito First Place finish, two 2^nd place finishes

Brooke Short 2 First Place finishes, two 2^nd place finishes

Quotes from the players:

Taylor Johnson: "The biggest thing I have learned playing beach is that you have to be an all-around player. You have to be able to be a good passer, setter and hitter. Viper training has helped get me ready for beach each year in terms of endurance and basic skills used on the beach like passing, ball control, setting and hitting. I am also glad that the Viper coaches have emphasized "call the ball" and the importance of communication on the court, because that is so important in beach."

Dana Backlund: "I have learned a lot on the beach. I think the most important thing is to play as a team. Talking is really important and observing our opponents strengths and weaknesses helps our play. Working in the sand helps you move better and jump higher indoors. Viper helped me with beach this year especially in the area of ball control. We work on that so much in club and it is really important on the sand too. Getting to the ball is harder in the sand so if the ball is placed better that definitely helps!" (see photo of Dana & Taylor Suchy)

High School- Freshman

School Season Play

Viper is proud to recognize a very talented high school freshman class who is going to make a big impact this high school season. These girls have worked tremendously hard to improve their skills and gamesmanship these past few years and it has really made a difference. Our congratulations goes out to:

Player School Position
Brittany Esposito TVHS Varsity Setter

Dana Backlund MVHS Varsity Setter/Opp

Taylor Suchy MVHS Varsity Outside

Aleka Estrada Calvary Varsity Libero

Courtney Doyle Calvary Varsity Middle Blocker

Rebecca Quam Hemet Varsity All

Quotes from the players:

Aleka: "I think this past year's viper really helped me improve in all areas of the game. I think what helped a lot was the new techniques I learned and getting a lot of reps in for everything."

Brittany: "The training I got at Viper helped develop my all around skills. The Viper training gave me the technique and confidence I needed to tryout and make a high level & competitive team at TVHS. The Viper coaches not only helped me be prepared physically but mentally as well. Thank you Viper coaching staff for all you do!"

Collegiate- Freshman

Former Viper players, now playing their freshman season in college are succeeding beyond expectations! In fact, all 6 players who went on to play college volleyball are starting. Our congratulations goes out to:

Ashlyn Trimble - starting OH for Sacred Heart

Rene' Simon - starting MB for Calvary Baptist

Michelle Thornhill - starting OH for Stonehill College

Amy Alkazin- starting MB for Azusa Pacific

Raechel Jones - starting Setter for Azusa Pacific
Emily Gray - starting Setter/Opposite for Masters College

(pictured: Amy Alkazin at APU)

Tryouts 2008

Viper is looking forward to having TOP finishing 12-14 age group teams again this year. Last year, our 12-1 team finished 3rd at J.O.'s, and at the Reno Festival, our 14-1 team finished 5th and our 14-2 team finished 11th. Our tryouts this year will be in early October, so we look forward to having you there!

Sunday, October 5th

Sunday, October 12th

Sunday, October 19th (make up by appointment only)

Please check the website for times, they will be posted soon. www.vipervolleyball.org

Training Tip of the Month

Kim Glass played in her first Olympics in Beijing. She was a starting outside hitter and made a big impact on the court. Not only did she pass incredibly well throughout the tournament but her out-of-system passing and setting where impressive.

In this Xinhua Photo, you can see what a big threat Kim Glass is as an attacker. She is 6'2", has long arms, a big jump and a wicked arm swing! I had the chance to coach Kim Glass as a volunteer assistant coach for the University of Arizona in 2002 and can testify to the speed of her wrist snap. Kim is a speed attacker who beats the block and defense with her quickness. She is also powerful, but her quickness is the most difficult thing to stop. Cuba makes a valiant effort to stop her with a big block, but Kim appears to be in charge!

Technique in the photo: her eyes are on the ball and her fully-extended arm and hand is making perfect contact with the ball. This attention to technique (eye focus, contact point) allows her to attack the ball with incredible force and accuracy. Many players generate power from their shoulder, which is good, but a more effective power tool is a fast wrist snap.

For more training tips go to: http://www.dbvolleyball.com/TrainingPhotos.html

Inspirational Quote

"We win and lose together. This alone ensures our Victory." Dana Burkholder

In striving to achieve our personal best we find a beginning, but our eventual victory comes from joining together with our peers, coaches, family, and neighbors to bring out the best in each other, and as a result creating something in form that reflects our collective journey.

One of the great things about sports is that it gives us the opportunity to play and interact with our peers and neighbors in a unique context. In fact, we are encouraged to work together, communicate and support each other to achieve something beyond what is expected. And though it is easy to get caught up in the score, the time, or the stats, the real victories are in our hearts and stay with us as we go to school or work and meet new friends and new challenges where we are asked to look within for strength and contribute our best to the team.

Dana Burkholder (photo credit fivb.org)

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