Coaching Management 11.4

Coaching Management VOL. XI, NO. 4

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Circle No. 1

Coaching Management Volleyball Edition Preseason 2003

CONTENTS

Vol. XI, No. 4

p. 2

p. 29

LOCKER ROOM

Bulletin Board . . . . . . . . . . . 2 High schools to adopt rally scoring …

Title IX update … New cable network to air college volleyball … Tips on coaching a record-breaker … A look at HIPAA’s effect on athletics …

NCAA rules changes for 2003.

Editor-in-Chief Eleanor Frankel Associate Editors Jim Catalano Guillermo Metz Assistant Editors Kenny Berkowitz David Hill Dennis Read Laura Smith

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The Eloquent Edge

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Whether to inspire, inform, or both, the pregame speech is your last line of preparation. Don’t leave it to chance.

Sports Medicine

One Out of Four . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33 40

On the cover: Southern Tier (Elmira, N.Y.) Volleyball Club Coach Patti Perone (right) talks with Corning West (N.Y.) High School Head Coach Irene Furness at a Southern Tier practice earlier this spring. Photo by Dede Hatch.

Publisher Mark Goldberg Circulation Director Mark Shea Art Director Pamela Crawford Art Assistant Dina Stander Business Manager Pennie Small

On the Same Court

In the Huddle

On the verge of collecting her 700th win, Sacramento State’s Debby Colberg talks about recruiting, having passion for your ideas, and her stint as an athletic director. ......................

Cover Story They are often at odds, but club and school coaches can learn to be on the same page with each other—provided they work at the relationship. It all begins with opening the doors to each others’ gyms.

Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Advertising Directory

p. 33

Production Manager Kristin Ayers Asst. Production Manager Kristi Kempf Production Assistants Jonni Campbell Hildi Gerhart IT Manager Mark Nye

The latest study shows that one out of four female athletes today suffer from amenorrhea. And the ramifications for their health are truly frightening.

The Volleyball Court. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Catalog Showcase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Uniforms & Apparel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Prepress Manager Adam Berenstain Ad Materials Coordinator Mike Townsend Special Projects Dave Wohlhueter Administrative Assistants Sharon Barbell Daniela Reis Amy Walton

Team Equipment Gallery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 More New Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Web Connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Advertising Sales Associates Diedra Harkenrider, (607) 257-6970, ext. 24 Sheryl Shaffer, (607) 257-6970, ext. 21 Business and Editorial Offices 2488 N. Triphammer Rd., Ithaca, NY 14850 (607) 257-6970, Fax (607) 257-7328 info@MomentumMedia.com Mailing lists for Coaching Management Volleyball are provided by the Clell Wade Coaches Directory.

The Coaching Management volleyball edition is published in April and December by MAG, Inc. and is distributed free to college and high school coaches in the United States and Canada. Copyright © 2003 by MAG, Inc. All rights reserved. Text may not be reproduced in any manner, in whole or in part, without the permission of the publisher. Unsolicited materials will not be returned unless accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope.

Coaching Management is printed by Banta Publications Group, Kansas City, MO. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: Coaching Management, P.O. Box 4806, Ithaca, N.Y. 14852.

Printed in the U.S.A.

COACHING MANAGEMENT

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After more than five years of discussion, the NFHS Volleyball Rules Committee has approved rally scoring for the 2004-05 season. Responsibility for implementing the new scoring system rests in the hands of individual state associations, but after a year-long experiment, at least 21 states plan to adopt rally scoring this coming fall.

the rules committee voted unanimously to adopt rally scoring at its January meeting.

Under the new rules, which become mandatory for the 2004-05 season: ■

All matches will follow a best three-of-five game format.

the new rules last year, the committee found that the average length of a rally scored game is about 18 minutes, short enough for almost all matches to be completed in under two hours. According to Solberg, the data also suggests that matches between

“People who watch rally scoring are going to find the game more exciting than the traditional side-out scoring,” says Cynthia Doyle, NFHS Assistant Director and liaison to the Volleyball Rules Committee. “It’s going to encourage people to be more engaged in the game.

There are a lot of good things about rally scoring, and it’s exciting for high schools to make the change.”

“Rally scoring may be new in the eyes of the National Federation, but it’s not a new thing,” adds Sheryl Solberg, Chair of the NFHS Volleyball Rules Committee and Assistant Executive Secretary of the North Dakota High School Activities Association. “In fact, we had the only rules code that didn’t use rally scoring, and as it’s gradually become more popular, our committee has discussed it in great detail.”

After contacting state associations for their views about rally scoring, the rules committee received 25 positive responses and nine negative responses, with 16 associations making no response. Solberg then contacted the National Federation Coaches Association and the National Federation Officials Association, both of which responded positively before

COACHING MANAGEMENT

The committee expects the change will have some effect on fiscal considerations, scheduling, and team travel. States that currently use a best twoof-three format may need to raise officials’ pay for the longer matches, and administrators concerned about their budgets may choose to schedule more matches in triangulars and quadrangulars. The more consistent match length should make it possible to schedule matches against more than one opponent in a night, and will make travel times more predictable.

The committee also approved an interesting rule focusing on unsportsmanlike conduct between coaches and their players. Under new Rule 12-27f, coaches can now be penalized for baiting or taunting anyone involved in the contest, not just their opponents.

Over the next two seasons, high school teams will join their college counterparts in using rally scoring. Above, Lewis-Palmer (Monument, Colo.) High School player Angela Wiggins returns a serve during a 2002 state tournament match.

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Games will be played to 25 points, except for the fifth and deciding game, which will be played to 15 points.

A team must win by two points, and there is no scoring cap.

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Let serves will be allowed.

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Each team will be allowed two time-outs per game.

After collecting data from states that experimented with

uneven teams will take more time, compared to side-out scored matches, with fewer blowouts and a higher number of points for the weaker team.

Some people were concerned that rally scoring might result in fewer substitutions, but according to last year’s data, the average number of participants remained nearly the same. Other statistics showed less than one let serve per

Other rules changes for 2003 affect the pregame coin toss, wearing of jewelry, and administration of time-outs. These can be found at: nfhs.org/press/volleyball_rules_changes03.html.

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game, so the committee decided to allow the serves in order to keep the momentum of the match.

“The Federation has taken a very progressive position when it comes to sportsmanship,” says Doyle. “We have to protect the family atmosphere of high school sports and emphasize that the games should be treated as family events by the coaches, officials, and fans.”

Title IX Commission Issues Report Although the Secretary of Education’s Commission on Opportunity in Athletics has completed its efforts and issued its report on Title IX, the full effect of its work has yet to be determined. United States Education Department Secretary Rod Paige has not announced any changes in Title IX enforcement guidelines in the wake of the report, but did indicate that he would consider only recommenda-

AP/WIDE WORLD PHOTOS

Rally Scoring Moves to High Schools

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This move took some of the more contentious recommendations off the table, but left several other suggestions,

Foudy and former Olympic swimmer Donna de Varona issued their own minority report claiming some of the Commission’s recommendations would increase discrimination against women. They

the same period, but some critics point to Title IX as a reason behind the reduction in Division I men’s teams from 33 in 1981-82 to 22 in 2000-01.

No timetable has been made public for Paige to announce any changes to the guidelines used to determine Title IX compliance. The only certainties are that the Education Department will not change the law itself (only Congress can do that) and that the debate over Title IX implementation will continue.

CSTV To Air Volleyball

Cynthia Cooper, co-chair of the Commission on Opportunity in Athletics, speaks during a meeting in late January. She calls the group’s final report a “first step in a lengthy public dialogue.” such as developing clearer guidelines for complying with Title IX, giving equal weight to the three prongs currently used as compliance standards, making clear that the cutting of men’s sports is a “disfavored” way of complying with Title IX, and establishing uniform enforcement of Title IX in all regions of the country.

Some commission members felt the report opened the door for the weakening of Title IX enforcement. Soccer star Julie

are especially concerned about the Commission’s recommendation that the Department of Education explore different ways of demonstrating equity beyond the current threeprong test.

There’s little doubt that volleyball has reaped great benefits from Title IX legislation as the number of NCAA women’s volleyball teams has grown by more than 57 percent in the last 20 years. The men’s game saw a 15 percent increase over

A copy of the Commission on Opportunity in Athletics’ final report, titled “Open To All: Title IX at 30” can be found on the Department of Education’s Web site at www.ed.gov/pubs/titleixat30/index.html.

A copy of the minority report issued through the National Women’s Law Center can be found on the “Athletics” section of the NWLC Web site www.nwlc.org.

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COACHING MANAGEMENT

Too often, college volleyball finds itself ignored by television. Starting with the upcoming fall season, a new 24-hour digital cable network plans to change that. College Sports Television (CSTV) officially launched operations on April 7 with a promise to cover the broadest variety of college sports—especially women’s sports, including volleyball.

“We see volleyball as part of a core group of sports that fit perfectly with our mission,” says Chris Bevilacqua, Executive Vice President of CSTV. “It’s a great sport to watch, not only because it’s got great action, but because it has great stories, and it fits very nicely into a two-hour time slot.”

“We’re very excited to be a part of this,” says Katherine McConnell, Executive Director of the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA).

“These matches will help volleyball by broadening its appeal, increasing awareness of the sport, and reaching additional fans and supporters. In the past, it seems as though volleyball has sometimes missed out on some key windows of opportunity, but now we’re moving in the right direction.”

Marketing its programming to the country’s 17 million college students and 75 million college alumni, CSTV hopes to create a niche with Olympic-style storytelling, and will feature documentaries, coaches’ shows, profiles, and news broadcasts from its studios in New York City. So far, CSTV has signed agreements with 27 major college athletic conferences, including the Big East, Big South, Big Ten, Big 12, Ivy League, Southland, Mid-Continent, and West Coast.

CSTV intends to begin its volleyball coverage with broadcasts of seven to 12 regular season Division I women’s games. The program will be called “The AVCA Game of the Week” and will feature match-ups suggested by coaches and chosen by the AVCA with help from Bevilacqua and Shelly Harper, the AVCA’s media consultant.

Athletic departments will likely be required to subsidize any broadcasts from their school.

Along with looking for highquality, competitive match-ups, CSTV will be choosing arenas that have great fans. “We want hometown heroes, traditional rivalries, and games that go down to the wire,” says Harper, founder of Sharper Media, located near Houston.

“We want schools that can guarantee their stands will be filled with lots of kids yelling and cheering.

“If there are coaches out there who are interested, they should call me, because I can tell them what their options are, let them know about the realistic costs of doing business, and help them work through that process,” continues Harper. “It’s a great opportunity for schools willing to make some adjustments to gain additional exposure for their programs.”

“We’ve been stressing to our coaches that if they are lucky

AP/WIDE WORLD PHOTOS

tions that were unanimously approved by the Commission.

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bulletin board April 14 of this year, primarily to make it easier for workers to keep their health insurance coverage when they change jobs. But the law also forbids most health care providers from disclosing medical information about patients without their consent, and it’s this provision that may prove frustrating to volleyball coaches.

why most athletic departments are simply asking studentathletes to sign forms allowing their medical providers the freedom to disclose information as they see fit. These releases can be modeled after those already used by many institutions to comply with the Federal Educational Records Privacy Act (FERPA).

Healthcare workers affected (called “covered entities” in HIPAA jargon) are any who conduct electronic transmissions of private medical information. This includes a school athletic trainer who bills athletes’ insurance companies or authorizes payments to outside providers. Thus, most collegiate athletic trainers are covered entities; the status of high school athletic trainers varies.

HHS says it’s okay to require athletes to sign releases to be allowed to play, and offers these guidelines: The releases must have an expiration date, such as the end of the sport’s season or the academic year; must specify who may disclose medical information; must state who can receive the information—the coach, the athletic director, and perhaps the media; and must note that if the information is disclosed to a non-covered entity, such as a coach, HIPAA may no longer apply to that information.

HIPAA makes it illegal for covered entities to speak freely about a student-athlete’s medical information. For example, if an athlete becomes injured, the team physician cannot discuss the injury with the media without the athlete’s consent.

The newly formed College Sports Television network will be looking to broadcast games next season in arenas with lots of fans. Wisconsin, shown above, ranked third in attendance last season among NCAA Division I women’s teams. enough to be chosen for one of the broadcasts, they need to be flexible,” adds McConnell. “They need to be accommodating and to recognize the greater good of being able to showcase the game.”

CSTV will also get involved with the men’s collegiate game, broadcasting three conference championships on April 26.

For more information, see www.cstv.com on the Web, or contact Shelly Harper, AVCA Media Consultant, at (936) 582-2256, or www.sharpermedia.net.

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COACHING MANAGEMENT

Privacy Law May Limit Injury Talk If your players never suffer an injury, you don’t need to worry about the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Otherwise, you may learn about it firsthand when you find healthcare providers less willing than they once were to talk about the medical details of athletes in their care. Fortunately, you can head off any communications troubles by taking a few administrative steps before the season starts.

Congress adopted HIPAA in 1996, with a start date of

Fortunately, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has recently clarified the law so coaches are not kept out of the loop. If a healthcare worker needs to communicate medical information to a coach for treatment purposes and follow-up care, HIPAA will not stand in the way.

Since a coach is rarely a “covered entity,” he or she is then allowed to disclose the information to anyone he or she wants to. However, it may be prudent for coaches to disclose to anyone else only what’s absolutely necessary. This helps protect the original treating health care workers from being seen as careless with information.

For sure, HIPAA’s effect on athletics is complicated. That’s

Elizabeth Squeglia, a partner in the Columbus, Ohio, law firm of Bricker & Eckler, who has been focusing her practice on preparing for HIPAA, says release forms can be fairly straightforward. “I could see an authorization that reads something like, ‘My treating physician, Dr. Mike Jones, is authorized to disclose information regarding any injuries I might receive during the course of the season, as well as my general fitness to play, to my coach or any designated member of the coaching staff,’” she says.

“In the past, there has been a relatively free flow of information between the physicians and the coaching staff and the other people who have to decide if an athlete can be cleared to play,” continues Squeglia. “The way they have conducted those discussions and transferred information may have to change, because there may need to be an authorization as a bridge to allow that to occur.”

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bulletin board Coaching a Record-Setter When fifth-grader Cassie Wolpern walked into a varsity practice at Belle Plaine (Minn.)

High School seven years ago and had no trouble hanging with the state-ranked team, Head Coach Donna Brinton Hawkins knew she was witnessing the start of something special.

“You showed her something once, and that was all it took,” Brinton Hawkins recalls. “I knew at that point we had something great coming.”

Last fall, Wolpern shattered the national four-year kill record in convincing fashion to end a high school career that more than lived up to its early promise. She slammed home

2,638 spikes in grades nine through 12 to break the previous record of 2,463 set by Carry Miller of Jackson, Mich., in 1999.

Brinton Hawkins learned that Wolpern was within striking distance of the national record from her club coach last summer. “When we realized she was approaching it, we started keeping track to make sure we wouldn’t miss the moment,” she says.

It came on September 21, during the Apple Valley Invitational Tournament. The Belle Plaine Tigers were playing the Hibbing Blue Jackets, and Wolpern went into the game one kill short of the record.

When she made the recordbreaking play, officials stopped the match and presented her with the game ball. Wolpern

added the honor to several she’d already stacked up: three years on the Minnesota All-State Team, five years on the All-Conference Team, three years as Conference MVP, and four Junior Olympics All-National Player honors.

When the team returned from the tournament, the school held a ceremony to honor Wolpern’s achievement. “It’s exciting for a small school like Belle Plaine to have an athlete like this, and to have an accomplishment like this for our record books,” Brinton Hawkins says. “It’s something for the entire school and the community to be proud of.”

While aware that her star player was breathing down the neck of a national record, Brinton Hawkins says she avoided making it the focus of

the season. “The team always has to come first,” she says.

“You keep the record in the back of your mind, but your real focus has to be on the match in front of you.”

Coaching an exceptional player isn’t without challenges.

“You have to communicate to the other players that one player cannot do anything without the support of the team,” Brinton Hawkins says, “and that this isn’t about one person.”

Another challenge? “She knows more than I do!” Brinton Hawkins says. “She’s had exceptional, college-level coaches in club, and for me, that presented a challenge.

“I told her that my job was not really to teach her anything, because her knowledge

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is already so broad. I defined her role as helping improve team unity and helping other players develop their skills.”

Occasionally, Wolpern would get frustrated when she was capable of a higher level of play than the team as a whole could sustain, but they talked through this issue as well.

“We talked about the fact that she was coming back to a different level from the elite club she plays in, and that her job was to pick our team’s level up a notch or two,” Brinton Hawkins says. “Setting that goal kept it challenging for her.”

Along with playing club volleyball, Wolpern was a threesport athlete at Belle Plaine.

“I encourage my players to play multiple sports,” Brinton Hawkins says. “With all the

club teams that go on now, it’s tough. But a small school like ours needs athletes to play more than one sport. If they can keep their grades up and handle it physically and mentally, I think it’s great.”

Wolpern will continue her career at the University of San Diego, where she’ll study business management on a full volleyball scholarship. And at Belle Plaine, she’ll be sorely missed.

“I’ve watched her and asked myself 100 times, what makes her so good?” says Brinton Hawkins. “In the end, I think it’s her overall athleticism, her jump and hang time, her quick arm swing, and her court sense. She seems to know what’s going to happen before it happens.”

Belle Plaine (Minn.) High School Head Coach Donna Brinton Hawkins poses with senior Cassie Wolpern, who broke the national high school record for kills this year.

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COACHING MANAGEMENT

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2003 NCAA Rules Changes Address Flow, Safety At its January meeting in Indianapolis, the NCAA Women’s Volleyball Rules Committee approved several rules changes for the 2003 season. Centerline play and the pursuit rule were among the areas targeted by the committee.

With hopes of improving the flow of matches, the committee clarified the centerline rule regarding play away from the ball. Rule 14-2-3-c now reads: “Any body part will be allowed to cross the centerline as long as the encroachment does not present a safety hazard, there is no interference with opponents, and some part of the encroaching player is on

or over her own court or the centerline. As a point of emphasis, an opponent jumping or moving laterally in the area of encroachment constitutes a safety hazard.”

nent’s free zone by crossing under the net or net cables.”

The committee wanted to keep the intent of the pursuit rule, but minimize possible collisions or tripping.

According to Debbie Hendricks, Head Coach at Metropolitan State and a member of the Rules Committee, the idea behind the rule change is to decrease stoppages in play without compromising safety. “It is a common occurrence for an athlete to fall with her hand over the line while she’s away from the play, and it’s really not a significant infraction,” she says.

“That absolutely was a safety issue,” Hendricks says. “The [pursuit] rule hasn’t been in place that long, and lot of people are still unfamiliar with how to handle those situations. The committee felt the rule needed some clarification from a safety standpoint.”

The pursuit rule was revised to minimize the potential for injury. Rule 14-1-1-a now reads: “A player will not be allowed to pursue a ball in the oppo-

Adds Joan Sitterly, Head Coach at SUNY Cortland and another member of the Rules Committee, “We felt pursuit in this area could be dangerous, not only with the pole being there, but also because of opposing players who are in close proximity. It’s still

okay to go around the pole.”

The committee also added examples of expected crowd behavior to the rules book. It now cites vulgarities, racial or gender-related statements, and physical intimidation as grounds for potential penalties or default if the event administration does not act to correct the problem after being asked to do so.

Other changes include: ■

The first referee has been added to the list of potential causes of non-player interference.

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Stationary exercise equipment is now prohibited in the warm-up area.

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A disqualification sanction will now result in the indivi-

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dual being disqualified for the remainder of the current match and the next match as well.

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No timeout will be charged if a protest lodged by a coach is not upheld.

The second referee’s responsibilities will be expanded to include assisting with antenna faults on both sides of the court.

During the 2003 spring season, the rules committee is asking teams to experiment with having the libero player serve in one designated rotation. This change will not be implemented for the fall season, but the committee is

eager for coaches to test the idea so it can assess how such a rule might impact the game.

“If it works, and I foresee that it will, it addresses the one thing I don’t like about the libero—usually it’s a kid who’s one of your best servers and you don’t want to take her out of that serving role,” Sitterly says. “So that’s a rule change that could potentially have a nice impact on that particular position, and on the game.”

Most coaches, even those who were initially skeptical about the libero, were pleased with its implementation last season.

“I had some reservations, but

now I believe it was the correct decision in the evolution of the game,” says Rich Luenemann, Head Coach at Washington University (St. Louis).

“Not only has it opened up opportunities for a great defensive player, but it’s placed a premium on those players,” he continues. “Our libero here, Nicole Hodgman, is a five-foot spark plug who’s a fan favorite, and she elevates the level of our play simply by playing great defense. The rallies are longer and the defensive play is more exciting.”

Hendricks concurs. “I think it’s been a great change,” she

For the complete list of 2003 rules changes, go to: http://www1.ncaa.org/membership/ governance/sports_and_rules_ctees/playing_rules/volleyball/index.html.

says. “It allows the defensive specialist to have a greater impact in the match and have a more significant role. I felt it also improved ball control for our team.”

Sitterly notes the libero’s impact will only increase in coming seasons. “Like a majority of the other schools, we really haven’t recruited for the position yet,” she says.

“This year, we used a young player who was a bit better at passing than the middle we had in, and I think the majority of schools did the same thing. But I think now you’ll see more coaches recruiting for that position and not just using someone they already have. So, as far as its actual effect on play, it hasn’t had the impact I think it will in the future.”

Circle No. 8 COACHING MANAGEMENT

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Circle No. 9

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Debby Colberg Sacramento State

For a coach who has stayed at one school for 27 years, Debby Colberg has won a wide range of coach of the year awards. She has been named the Big Sky Conference Coach of the Year five of the past six seasons after winning the American Volleyball Coaches Association Division II Coach of the Year award in 1989, four Northwest Region Division II Coach of the Year awards, two Golden State Conference Coach of the Year awards, and one Northern California Athletic Conference honor. She also led the Hornets to the AIAW National Championship in 1980 and the NCAA Division II title in 1981.

Since moving to Division I in 1991, her teams have made five appearances in the NCAA Division I tournament and three trips to the National Invitational Volleyball Championships, including a runner-up finish in 1995. Colberg’s career record of 695-248 places her seventh in career wins among active Division I coaches.

A 1970 graduate of Sacramento State, where she played on the school’s inaugural volleyball, women’s basketball, and softball teams, Colberg worked as a teacher and coach in intermediate and high schools around Sacramento before taking over as the Hornets’ head coach in 1976. In February 1999, she took on the added responsibility of serving as the school’s athletic director for three years.

out what will work with the athletes you have. What might work with the national team won’t always work with the athletes that I have. So I have to figure out a way that I think will work best with our athletes.

How has volleyball changed over the years you’ve been coaching?

It seems to keep cycling. There are fads that come along and if you keep teaching the way you truly believe in, you’re almost viewed as being out of date. But if you stick with it long enough, the old methods come back around.

How do you go about finding the right players for your program?

I don’t know that I have a formula for it, just a gut feeling about what will work here. A lot of times, we go to places few

In this interview, Colberg talks about recruiting, giving up the athletic director’s job, and being married to a volleyball official.

CM: How have you been able to maintain the level of success you’ve enjoyed over such a long period of time?

Colberg: I feel like we’re good teachers of the game. That’s what I do and where my background is. I’m willing to spend as much effort and time as an individual needs to improve her fundamentals. So if an athlete has a certain level of athletic ability, I’m pretty confident that I can teach her the skills to get her from Point A to Point B. How much of your teaching is done on a one-on-one basis as opposed to a team basis?

In the spring, we work with groups of four, but there are four of us coaches working with four players so we can really concentrate on working with individuals. In the fall, we’ll often keep a player or two after practice to work on any fundamentals we feel they’re behind in. Or if we have a freshman who needs a little bit of extra work, we’ll certainly see that she gets it.

How do you feel about placing further restrictions on off-season work?

I understand why the NCAA wants to put restrictions on it, but speaking for my own program, I don’t overdo it. So I real-

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ly think it’s going to hurt programs like ours if they start reducing how much players can work with coaches. With a lot of the rules, the rich get richer, and in this case, the rich have athletes who are already very accomplished. They might not have to spend the time refining their skills, but we do.

How have you changed as a coach during your career?

I don’t feel like I’ve changed, although I probably have. I’m a little bit more relaxed than I was. I don’t emphasize winning or losing in this program, I emphasize just trying to be the best volleyball players we can be every time we walk out on the court—and that seems to work well. My older players would tell you that I’m easier now on my present players, but I really don’t believe that because we practice just as hard now.

One thing I have learned over the years is no matter what you teach, you had better believe in it. Your passion and your belief in what you’re doing is what sells the players.

The best thing you can do as a coach is to listen to and talk with other coaches as much as possible and then try to figure

Sophomore outside hitter Sandra Bandimere helped Sacramento State claim its fourth Big Sky Conference tournament crown last year.

Circle No. 10

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others go. For instance, one of our players is from Alaska, and I don’t know that too many coaches would go so far to do a home visit with a potential player. She was playing in a recreational type of league, and some coaches wouldn’t respond to that, but after she sent me a video, I felt it would be worth my time to go up there. And we got a very good athlete out of that. So we turn over more leaves than other people do.

What qualities besides athletic ability do you look for?

The maturity level is instrumental in coaching kids. It makes it a whole lot easier if I can just talk with them and make an impact. If I have to scream at them to get my point across it’s not going to be

doing here that leads us to start slow and finish pretty strong, but we still don’t know. In the beginning of the season, I experiment with lineups trying to find the best combinations, and I give all the kids playing time—I’m sure both hurt our consistency. This year, I decided I would emphasize starting off a little bit faster, so we hit the team drills, and worked more on team offense and team defense much earlier. But it didn’t seem to have much of an impact. We still did the same thing!

How do you help your players feel confident without feeling overconfident?

They say teams take on the personality of the coach and I think we’re pretty businesslike. I don’t like to fire them up, and I don’t like to berate them a lot. I just tell

“Everybody thinks I gave up [the athletic director position] for some big reason, but essentially I wanted more time with my family. Plus, I’m a coach at heart and I didn’t care for the administrative part of the job.”

much fun for me or for them, so I’d rather not work with that kind of player.

I look for a certain maturity level in any player coming into our program. How do they interact with me on an official visit or when I go to their house? When I call them on the phone, can they carry on a conversation? Do they have the ability to sit down and talk with me as an adult?

How do they interact with their parents?

Do they have a good relationship with them? Because if they do, then they’re probably going to be respectful and mature around me. That’s something I look at pretty closely.

How much did the switch to rally scoring change the way you coached?

I wasn’t in favor of rally scoring and I thought I would hate it. So I decided that first year that I would just ignore the scoring system and get on with coaching.

To me, it’s made the better games shorter and the poorer games longer. But I don’t know that it’s changed much of what I do, except I may call timeouts or sub more quickly—I probably react a little bit sooner than I did with side-out scoring.

You were near .500 at midseason before finishing strong. What changed toward the end of the season?

My teams have always started off slow.

We’ve tried to figure out what we’re

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them the things we need to do to improve.

At practices, we ask them to be better players when they leave than they were when they showed up.

How do you make academics a priority in your program?

I talk to my players about it all the time.

We set individual and team goals, but I also make it clear to our team that even during the season, if there’s a big test and there’s a study group they need to attend to pass that test, then they should be there—they can miss practice for those types of things.

You spent three years as both athletic director and volleyball coach at Sacramento State. How difficult was it to combine those two roles?

It didn’t have much impact on my coaching, and I think that was because of my years of experience. But it was hard from a personal aspect. Everybody thinks I gave it up for some big reason, but essentially I wanted more time with my family, especially my son, who is finishing high school.

Being the athletic director took away from my personal life and certainly made life more stressful because the hours were so long. Plus, I’m a coach at heart and I didn’t care for the administrative part of the job: pushing papers, writing reports, reading all the rules changes—those types of things were difficult for me to do.

After your experience, what do you think coaches should consider if they’d like to move into an administrative position?

Most people should probably do it a step at a time, so you don’t suddenly have the whole responsibility of the department on your shoulders. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with making the move from coaching to administration, but after my experience I don’t understand why anyone would want to. I just love coaching too much. I sort of resent anything that takes away from coaching and, of course, there were a lot of times when that happened.

Have you ever thought of moving to a school in a more competitive conference?

I have thought about it many times. I applied for the job at the University of the Pacific at the same time I was adopting my son. They called me and said they had set an interview for a certain day. And I said ‘That’s the day I’m flying to El Salvador to pick up my son,’ and that was the end of my interview. I didn’t have the option of rescheduling it to another day.

The other difficult part is that I have a husband who works at UC-Davis who really likes his job. To move to another part of the country would be a big sacrifice for my husband, and also for my son.

I consider myself a blue collar type of coach, and I like the level where I’m coaching—not that there haven’t been times when I would have liked to work with the best athletes in the country. But that brings a whole new set of problems I don’t have to deal with now. Here, I can really just concentrate on coaching kids who want to play volleyball and that’s really rewarding.

Your husband has been involved in officiating for many years. What’s the most common misconception coaches have about officials?

Having lived with an official, I know that they really do care about their performance. My husband takes it to heart when he feels he hasn’t had a good night.

They take a lot of pride in their officiating, and when coaches are unreasonably critical I think it hurts them.

Plus, I really can’t whine to him about officiating. One thing I’ve learned is that officials stick together. If I complain, he usually takes the official’s side, so I’ve just given up.

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They are often at odds, but club and school coaches can learn to be on the same page with each other—provided they work at the relationship. It all begins with opening the doors to each others’ gyms.

P

ON THE

BY LAURA SMITH

op quiz: What are your high school volleyball players doing once your season ends? The increasingly common answer is: playing volleyball for someone else. That someone is their club coach, and teaming up with him or her can be a powerful way to ensure that your program is improving, even while your sport is out of season.

The roles that club and high school volleyball play in student-athletes’ lives vary tremendously by region, but the fact remains that many players compete in both. “Our kids are going to be involved in both high school and club—it’s a simple fact,” says Louise Crocco, Head Coach at Cardinal Gibbons High School in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. “As high school coaches, it’s vital for us to get involved with area club coaches in any way we can to make sure that our players are getting the most out of both programs.”

Marybeth Lebo, Head Coach at LaPorte (Ind.) High School, agrees. “The way I look at it, the club coaches in my area are in charge of my kids when I’m not around and they’re teaching them during the time that I’m not able to coach them, so it’s crucial that I have a good rapport with them,” she says.

Building a Relationship Working effectively with club coaches starts by building a relationship with them. Club coach Patti Perone, who founded the Southern Tier Volleyball Club in Elmira, N.Y., believes the communication process should start even before any players try out for a club team.

“Some coaches suggest that their players try out for club teams without knowing what they’re all about,” Perone says.

“We like to communicate with the coaches beforehand and let them know that our club requires a decent commitment, that we travel a lot, and that it’s going to be very hard for a student-athlete to play a spring high school sport if she’s playing for us. Coaches can help kids shop around and find a club that suits their goals.”

Beyond an initial phone call, high school coaches should consider having regular communication with club coaches. “I believe in having an open-door policy,” says Perone, “and some of my players’ high school coaches make a habit of stop-

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Corning West (N.Y.) High School Head Coach Irene Furness (left) and Southern Tier Volleyball Club Coach Patti Perone watch a club team practice earlier this spring.

PHOTO BY DEDE HATCH.

COVER STORY

SAME COURT ping by practice to chat and see what we’re doing. Coaches shouldn’t be afraid to pick up the phone and talk to their players’ club coach, either. We’re all in this together.”

High school coaches can foster better relations with club coaches by having open-door policies of their own. And don’t overlook more practical ways you can help the clubs in your area. “If a high school coach offered to help us with getting access to a facility, that would be a great way to build a relationship,” Perone says. “In-house coaches usually have more pull when it comes to gaining access to a facility, and we are always appreciative of their help.”

Attending coaching clinics together is another way to set the stage for a successful collaboration, according to Robin Humlan, Head Coach at Martinsville (Va.) High School. “That can get everybody on the same wavelength,” she says. “The key is that everybody feels like they’re focused on the same goals.”

On The Court Once the channels of communication are established, a common topic of conversation is court skills. This almost always includes telling the club coach about an individual player’s role on the high school team and finding ways to work together to build the skills she needs to fill that role.

“As high school coaches, we want the club season to help the player succeed when she gets back to school,” says Crocco.

“So we communicate to the club coach, ‘This is where this student is most likely to be playing, and it would be advantageous if she could play there during club.’ Most club coaches are willing to take our requests into consideration, because they want to build continuity and cooperation in their relationship with our school.”

Bob McFarland, Coach at Nova (Ohio) Volleyball Club and Head Coach at Stow (Ohio) High School, says his club wants to accommodate high school coaches’ wishes whenever possible, but that can happen only when the high school coach communicates those wishes at the right time. “When a high school coach says, ‘I’d like Susie to work as an outside hitter,’ my response is, ‘We’re going to keep that in mind and do what we can to make that happen.’

Laura Smith is an Assistant Editor at Coaching Management.

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Conflicts in Technique Beyond questions about what positions student-athletes will be playing, teaching specific techniques can be a tricky area to discuss. When Crocco encounters a club coach teaching a technique differently than she would, she tends to tread very lightly.

“I tell my athletes, ‘I don’t ever want you to tell your club coach, ‘That’s not the way my high school coach teaches it,’” Crocco says. “That’s the worst thing they can say to another coach. That

immediately puts club coaches on the defensive and raises the hair on the back of their necks.

“Instead, I explain to my players that the reason they’re going to other places to play is to encounter different ways of doing things; one way is not right and the other wrong,” Crocco continues. “It’s good for them to learn that early on because at every level they play, they’re going to encounter different ways of doing things.”

Lebo agrees. “Most of the time, if

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“But sometimes, we get coaches coming in after the fact and saying, ‘I wish you’d let Susie hit outside more,’” he continues. “By then, it’s too late. I think the communication has to take place in the initial stage. Coaches need to communicate their plans to the club coach, or the club coach won’t be able to follow through on what the high school coach wants.”

However, high school coaches agree that you won’t get far by trying to dictate the club coach’s agenda. “You really can’t tell somebody what to do when they’re coaching a team,” says Dave Cross, Head Coach at Keystone (Ohio) High School and National Director of the “Yes I Can!” camp series. “But you can develop a relationship with them and say, ‘This is what I need, and if you can help me out, that’s great.’ The time you’ve invested building a good rapport will usually pay off and they’ll help you out. But sometimes, it comes down to the fact that they’re the coach, they have the final say, and you just have to bite your tongue.”

In cases like that, it’s best to accept the different situations presented by club and high school ball, and to coach your players to be flexible, Crocco says. “We understand that because of the number and types of kids that club coaches may have on their teams, sometimes our players are going to be playing a different role than we would ideally like,” she says.

“I always tell my players, ‘I may train you in one spot, and you may end up playing something else in club and something else again in college,’” agrees Jodi Manore, Head Coach at Beford (Mich.) High School. I tell them that they need to be good enough athletes to make the switch if necessary.”

But being assigned to a different position doesn’t mean a player can’t keep working on the skills she’ll need for her high school team. High school coaches can ask their players’ club coaches if there are specialized training sessions their players can attend, or encourage the players themselves to initiate the training sessions.

“Sometimes, we need a player to do something she doesn’t do in high school, but we still try to work in opportunities for her to improve other skills,” Perone says. “For example, if a player sets in high school and does something else for us, when we have our setter trainings, we make sure to have her participate.”

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COVER STORY

the club coach is teaching something differently from how I would teach it, I’m going to be quiet about it unless it’s really offensive or out of context.”

As a club coach, Perone says she does not get offended when high school coaches communicate with her about differences in techniques, as long as they approach her in a collaborative way. “I think it would be ideal to approach club coaches casually and ask why they are teaching a certain technique the way they are,” she says. “You may hear something you hadn’t thought about.

Chances are, the coach isn’t trying to confuse the player or undermine the high school coach—they think what they’re doing is going to make her a better player. By approaching it with an open perspective, both coaches should be able to work out their differences and even learn from each other.”

However, when you really feel something needs to be changed, one approach

egos are involved,” Crocco says. “The most important challenge is for the two coaches to demonstrate respect for each other, and that will lead to better communication.”

College Recruiting If a player hopes to continue playing in college, high school and club coaches definitely need to work together on recruiting issues. “After I send a college coach a tape and make sure they have the player’s club schedule,” says Cross, “then I’ll communicate with the club coach to make sure he knows that player X is looking at college Y, and the coach will be at next weekend’s tournament to see her.”

“I’m in constant contact with college coaches,” says Lebo, “and I’m in a position to tell the club coach who might be there on a given weekend to watch. I campaign for my players who are looking for scholarships, because club coaches

with, I’ll push him in one direction or the other.”

When a player is looking to earn a college scholarship, her high school and club coaches should also talk about whether the club she is in will help her achieve that goal. “High school coaches know clubs by reputation and success,” McFarland says, “and a lot of times when a player is looking to work toward a scholarship, they’ll call us and say, ‘I have a player who is looking to set in the 16s. What are your 16s setters looking like?’ That ensures she’s going to be in a club that will work to her advantage.”

Off The Court Issues Another area where high school and club coaches can combine forces is in helping young athletes deal with non-volleyball issues. “A lot of times, players don’t know their club coach very well, so they’re more likely to let their high school coach in on what’s going on in

“It would be ideal for the two coaches to work together on conditioning programs … That’s something I’d like to see us sharing ideas on more than we do.” that Cross suggests is talking with the player first and encouraging her to take the initiative. “A perfect example of that just happened on my team,” Cross says. “I have a freshman setter, and her club coach had been teaching her to take a step with each foot when she serves. We had just spent the entire high school season working on getting her to take that step out. However, the club coach felt she wasn’t serving deep enough, so he put the steps back in.

“I asked the player to go back to her club coach and explain to him what we’d worked on during the high school season to get her over that habit, and to tell him that when she comes back to high school, she’s going to have to relearn it all over again,” he continues.

“She discussed it with him, he agreed, and it worked out fine.

“In that case, I felt it worked well to go through the athlete, because I didn’t know the coach very well, and I wanted the player to understand why we were doing what we were doing and be part of the communication process.”

When there is a conflict, “The main problems often come when everybody’s 22

COACHING MANAGEMENT

have too many players to focus the energy on each player that I can. I call 10 to 15 college coaches weekly to build a rapport with them and stay in the loop about what is available, and then I pass that information on to the club coach.

“As high school coaches, we’re in a great position to provide college coaches with a lot of information about a student,” Lebo continues. “A player may play for a club coach for one year, but we coach them over several years, so we really know them. We also know their parents, their academics, their family situations, and what their needs are.”

As a club coach, Perone agrees. “We love to get calls from high school coaches to talk about a player’s recruitment situation,” she says. “They often know the player better than we do, because they see them in every-day situations.”

Because he knows his players well, Cross also says he helps guide interactions between college coaches and players. “With some players, you want them to know the college coach is there, and with others, you don’t,” he says. “So I’ll chat with the club coach and depending on which type of player I’m dealing

their lives,” Cross says. “A kid might tell me, ‘Coach, my grades are down, and my mom might make me quit,’ or ‘I’m going through a problem at home.’ I’ll communicate with the club coach about those sorts of issues, with the understanding that it’s confidential information.”

“I’ve picked up the phone and talked to a player’s high school coach when I think there might be a problem, and we work together to help the player,” Perone says. “High school coaches know what the player went through during her high school season, and they see the kid on a day to day basis.”

Another important area for collaboration involves any injuries or other medical issues. “If a player is hurt, you definitely need to work together,” Cross says. “You need to make sure the club coach knows the situation, because if you have a very motivated athlete who is injured but can still get out there and play, she may not even tell the club coach that she’s hurt.”

Strength and conditioning also represent possibilities for partnering. “It would be ideal for the two coaches to work together on conditioning pro-

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COVER STORY

grams, so that when players step into their high school season from club, they’re in shape, and vice versa,” says Manore. “That’s something I’d like to see us working together and sharing ideas on more than we do.”

Battling Burnout The trend for high school volleyball players to bounce from high school coach to club coach and back without much of a breather in between is growing, and the possibility that young athletes will suffer burnout is growing along with it. “In the last 10 years, I’ve seen volleyball become a year-round sport for high school students,” Lebo says. “They go from high school to club and from club to summer conditioning and then into the high school season.

The focus is on having kids touching balls all the time.”

Coaches suggest being on the lookout for warning signs of burnout. “You can often see it just by looking at a player,” Perone says. “Her physical appearance gives it away. She looks exhausted and

she’s lost her passion for the game.”

Burnout is evident on the court, too.

“When a player is reaching the overload point, she gets mentally tired and can’t keep her focus,” Cross says. “Since so much of volleyball is mental, that shows in her game.”

What can high school and club coaches do together to ensure that players—even the ones who love the game and don’t want to miss a single practice—aren’t being pushed too hard?

The solution starts with establishing shared priorities, according to Manore.

“I think we need to talk about the fact that these are very young athletes and they’re being pulled in a lot of different directions,” she says. “Both coaches have to agree that the welfare of the athletes comes first, and then they can begin to work together.”

To stop burnout before it starts, coaches need a comprehensive picture of what their players’ athletic commitments are, according to Cross. This often involves taking a look at a player’s complete schedule, including communicat-

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ing with her club coach about her club responsibilities.

“You have to approach the situation by figuring out what time is available in her schedule where she can take a break,” he says. “Most girls who are playing club are also working out four or five days a week, playing in a league somewhere, and going to open gyms.

They may be playing and conditioning a lot more than either coach is aware of, so it helps to communicate about their entire list of volleyball activities.”

Once that analysis is done, coaches can work together to find places where an at-risk athlete can step back without sacrificing performance. “At that point, you can tell the athlete, ‘You don’t need to be at this open gym, and you can take this week off from working your legs—they’re getting completely dead,’” Cross says.

“It’s difficult for a player to miss any club or high school practices, but by working together, you can usually find spots in her schedule where she can ease off.”

It’s important that club and high school coaches send a consistent mes-

COVER STORY

sage when it comes to helping athletes take it easier on themselves, Cross adds, because young athletes need to feel that they’re not letting their coaches down by taking downtime. “The message needs to be, ‘It’s okay to rest,’” he says.

“They need to be thinking, ‘Coach isn’t mad that I’m not there. This is cool with him, so I can really relax.’”

Calendar Control Some coaches also believe that high school and club coaches should work together on the bigger issue behind

weeks off rested and stronger, and I was always amazed at the mental gains they’d made. It was like they’d had a chance while they were away to absorb what we’d been teaching.

“There’s so much pressure on kids now that they can’t afford to take that kind of time off, and the schedule doesn’t allow it,” he continues. “I think we’re putting too much demand on our kids.”

Peg Scofield, former Head Coach and current administrator at Yale University, believes there is room for negotiation in both high school and club

been training hard in club through the first week in July? When you look at the way the current system is set up, the summer is the key time to consider making changes.”

Scofield believes that if high school and club coaches talked, USA Volleyball would listen. “If they were well-networked and well-represented, coaches could take their concerns about the system to the Junior Olympics,” she says.

“They are open to suggestions like that, because they want issues about studentathlete welfare to be heard. But right

NO VOLLEYBALLS ALLOWED

W

ith players working hard yearround in both club and high school ball, keeping them motivated often means keeping the season fun, and that means doing something different once in a while. Here, we’ve collected a handful of innovative ideas designed to re-motivate players.

strategize to get it past the goalie. We use it as a warm-up instead of jogging, and it gets them mentally warmed up too.

They’re running around, yelling, hitting each other with the noodles, getting into competitive mode, and usually laughing like crazy. And the best part is, it has nothing to do with volleyball.”

Boffer Ball: “When my players are getting a little bored with the routine, there’s nothing like Boffer Ball to get them jazzed to play again,” says Dave Cross, Head Coach at Keystone (Ohio) High School.

What you’ll need: one water noodle (yes, the pool toy) for every two players, half of one color and half of another; four cones; and a beach ball. Cut the water noodles in half (easily done with a box cutter) and hand them out; the two colors make up the two teams.

Hanging ’Round: There’s nothing like a ropes course to build teamwork and break up the monotony, according to several coaches. “It’s a change in the action, but we’re still doing something together,” says Marybeth Lebo, Head Coach at La Porte (Ind.) High School. A ropes course has the added benefit of helping you sort out who will be the natural leaders on your team and who’s more likely to follow. Check a nearby nature center to see if they offer a ropes course.

“Set up goals at each end of the gym using the cones, and allow one girl for each team to play goalie,” Cross says. “The rest of the players use the water noodles to knock the beach ball through the cones, and they aren’t allowed to kick, catch, or throw the ball.

A Day in the Life: “Each summer, every player on my team has to spend an entire day with another player,” says Lebo. “They may go to the dentist with her, or to the grocery store, or her grandparents’ house.

Usually they sit down to dinner with the entire family. It builds great rapport on the team, because they are able to see each other in a little different light and understand each other in a deeper way. That

Dance Break: “Last year, we were getting ready for a tournament, and we had a long break without a game,” says Tania Price, Head Coach at Merrillville (Ind.) High School.

“Everybody was getting pretty tired of the practice routine. Then my assistant coach came up with the idea of holding a dance competition. Each group had to choreograph a dance to a certain song and perform it for the entire team. It was a great exercise in communication; it really brought some leaders to the fore, because somebody had to take charge. It was fun and it completely took the edge off, because it was so completely different.”

seasons to buy volleyball players a piece of their summers back. “In my opinion, if there was enough of a push to do it, you could easily shorten both seasons without losing anything,” she says.

“Club season goes on longer than it needs to—there is no reason for it. And why does conditioning for the high school season have to start so early when 90 percent of the players have

now, there are no complaints, so there is no call to change anything. It has to come from the volleyball family itself.”

And that “volleyball family” will only get stronger with better communication.

Whether it’s large issues or small— changing the system or helping a freshman perfect her serve—when high school and club coaches talk, the players benefit. ■

“Because it’s difficult to get any speed on the ball at all with the water noodles, it’s great for teaching teamwork—they have to

player burnout: the length of the seasons. “One thing I really dislike is how early club starts now,” says McFarland.

“In the mid-1980’s, our high school season would end in November or December, and the Junior Olympic season didn’t start until the end of January, or even February, so the players would have up to two and a half months of no volleyball. They came back from those

kind of solidarity keeps us together when things get tough.”

Night In: “Especially for girls, I believe keeping their interest and motivation depends on making sure they feel connected and valued on the team,” says Martinsville (Va.) High School Head Coach Robin Humlan. “So we do team lock-ins where on a Friday or Saturday night, everybody has to be in the gym by 9 p.m. and then we lock the doors. We play games or just talk. One night, we took our sleeping bags outside and watched a meteor shower together.

It’s like a giant slumber party, and it gives them a great feeling about the team.”

COACHIING MANAGEMENT

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Training Tips Coaching Management and Power Systems have teamed up to provide you with the following volleyball training tips from the nationally recognized strength & conditioning specialist Vern Gambetta, president of Gambetta Sports Training Systems.

Footwork/Quickness for Volleyball

by Vern Gambetta Gambetta Sports Training Systems There is no question that the feet are extremely important in volleyball because it is the feet that are in contact with the ground in movement. All movement is initiated off the ground.

Ultimately it is the feet that must absorb shock on ground contact and then use those forces to propel the body in the desired direction. The purpose of footwork is to get the player in position to hit, block or pass.

The following are some simple basic exercises that can make a big difference in your player’s performance:

control. The emphasis should be on getting the feet back down to the ground quickly. Time in the air is time wasted! There is no limit to the drills that can be done on the speed foot ladder.

Let your imagination be your guide. Once basic drills are mastered incorporate the ball.

Ball Drop Reaction - The partner drops the ball from head height. The person executing the drill must react and bump the ball before the ball hits the floor. This forces the player to get their feet in position to make the play. Make the drill more difficult by lowering the distance of the drop or moving farther away. A variation of the drill is to have the player stand facing the wall, about six feet away. The partner will then throw the ball up against the wall and the player must move quickly in order to get under the ball to perform a back set (hitting the ball to a player behind you) to the partner who threw the ball.

Low Hurdles - Use six or twelve inch hurdles. Set four to eight hurdles in a line and have the players move laterally through the hurdles. The emphasis should be on getting the feet down quickly, not floating in the air. Use five hurdles placed in parallel rows so the players have to execute the drill in one direction and immediately repeat in the opposite direction. The goal is to get two steps between each hurdle.

Low Box Quick Step - Use a four-inch high box of sturdy construction approximately thirty inches square. Step on and off the box as quickly as possible. Continue the drill until the rhythm falls off. The drills can be done straight ahead, side to side or with a combination of boxes. For lateral movement, stand at the side of the box and quickly step with both feet on top of the box and quickly step down on the other side; continue moving laterally until the rhythm is lost.

Speed Ladder - The key to using the speed ladder effectively is to understand that the goal is optimum speed, which is defined as speed that can be controlled. There is a tendency to go too fast which results in the athlete being out of

Choose two to three daily in season. The total time devoted to footwork drills should be about ten minutes in season and fifteen to twenty minutes total per day in the off season. The drills can also be distributed throughout practice to complement volleyball skills. Be sure to allow enough rest between drills so that quality is maintained. Learn to execute the action correctly then add speed. Design volleyball specific drills that are derivatives of the generic footwork drills to insure the improved footwork will transfer to the game.

Jump Rope - Jump rope works hand/foot and hand/eye coordination. A basic routine that the athlete can use daily as a warm-up is: double leg jumps, stride jumps, crossover jumps, single leg jumps and finish with combinations. You can do these in a series with a prescribed number of jumps for each exercise or for a set time period for each exercise.

Circle No. 15

Circle No. 16

IN THE HUDDLE

University of Miami Head Coach Nicole Lantagne Welch uses her pregame speech to help her players “be really fired up about playing their best.”

The Eloquent Edge

M

Whether to inspire, inform, or both, the pregame speech is your last line of preparation.

Don’t leave it to chance.

BY KENNY BERKOWITZ

oments before a match, volleyball coaches have one last chance to gain an advantage over their opponents. Some will talk about strategy, and some will talk about nerves. Some will try to calm their players down, and some will try to pump them up.

“The pregame speech is very important,” says Julie Jenkins, Head Coach at Trinity University (Texas). “It’s a review of what you’ve been doing all week to prepare for that match. But it’s important to do your homework, to know what to expect, and to know that you’re prepared for making that speech.”

“The right pregame speech can help you, but the wrong one can hurt you just

as much,” says Duncan McFarland, Head Coach at the University of California-San Diego. “It’s a double-edged sword, so it’s best to think it over instead of just going out there and winging it.”

Solidifying the Strategy All coaches use at least part of the pregame talk to discuss game strategy.

The amount of strategy talk can vary greatly based on the coach’s personality, the team’s attitude, and the opponent’s quality.

Jenkins begins the process of preparing her pregame talk at the start of the Kenny Berkowitz is an Assistant Editor at Coaching Management.

COACHING MANAGEMENT

29

IN THE HUDDLE

week, when she shares scouting reports with her student-athletes. Then, on game day, after her players have finished stretching, she takes 10 minutes to go over the scouting reports one more time. She talks about manipulating the opponents’ weaknesses, capitalizing on the match-ups, and reading the defenses. Her goal is simple: to keep her players thinking about strategy and working through their weekly routine.

“There isn’t a lot of rah-rah in my pregame speeches,” says Jenkins. “They’re basically a quick review: ‘Here’s what we’re going to do offensively. Here’s what we’re going to do defensively.’ That’s it.

My whole focus is on keeping it simple, and being really clear on our game plan.”

At UCSD, McFarland tries to focus his players on a few key pieces of strategy, and works hard to provide the right amount of info. Presented with too much scouting information, his players think more about the opponent’s play

because our biggest danger is for me to overcoach the team before the match.”

Whatever amount of info is right for your team, Jenkins suggests you keep it consistent throughout the season. “If you suddenly give your team a 10-page scouting report, when they normally get a two-page scouting report, how do you expect your players to absorb all of that information?” she says.

For many coaches, another part of the strategy is to give the team new challenges. At the University of New Haven, Head Coach Robin Salters keeps her pregame message lively by creating new goals for each contest, especially ones where she expects her team to dominate the action. In some contests, the Chargers will aim for a specific number of kills, or a particular ace-to-error ratio, or will use the match to master a difficult shot.

“Whatever goals we set this past season, we achieved them nine times out of 10,” says Salters. “The players really responded. It frees them from thinking too much about technique, and gives them a focus on that particular day.”

At Trinity, where the volleyball team went 300 in the 2002 regular season, goals were also a constant presence in pregame talks. “We’ll set goals for ourselves, especially against weaker opponents,” says Jenkins. “We have a team statistician, and we’re very aware of trying to break team records. It gets our players pretty fired up, and keeps them playing at the best of their abilities.”

“Our pregame time is more of a discussion than a speech. I want them to have input into the meeting, to have ownership in what we’re doing. We learn from each other.” than their own. With too little scouting information, he’s seen his team hesitate before taking advantage of its opponent’s weaknesses.

“I haven’t had many speeches that backfired, but I’ve had several where I erred by focusing too much on our opponent,” says McFarland. “They didn’t have the desired effect because the players were focusing too much on the other team. We weren’t serving and passing and doing the things we had control over, because we were too worried about our opponents.”

To find the right balance, McFarland depends upon input from his assistant coach, who looks over McFarland’s outline before he delivers the actual speech.

That way, she can signal him if he’s wandered off-point or if his speech goes on too long. “I’ll go over the key points with my assistant coach,” he says. “I want to know what she thinks I should omit, 30

COACHING MANAGEMENT

Add in Inspiration Along with the specifics of game strategy, most coaches provide some type of emotional support during their pregame address. This runs the spectrum from charging your players up to getting them calmed down. Which end of the spectrum you choose depends upon your own personality and the needs of the team.

“Some coaches are statistical and logical,” says Diane Flick, Head Coach at Western Washington State. “I’m much more of a feeling coach. I want to explain to them that every day is an opportunity.

“I’ll package it in a lot of different ways, but the general message is the same,” she

continues. “‘You’re one of only 16 people on this campus who can say you’re part of this team. So I want you to take this opportunity to keep pushing forward—to enjoy this time for what it is.’”

To add to the enthusiasm, Flick likes to use current events to make her talks sound fresh, connecting with the ideas that are already on her players’ minds.

“Sometimes I center a pregame speech on events that are happening around the world, or on campus,” she says. “Like after September 11, I said, ‘There are some people out there who don’t have an opportunity to ever play again. And we need to honor them with this game today, because we have that opportunity.’”

At the University of Miami, Head Coach Nicole Lantagne Welch also likes to be inspirational. “Typically, I’ll remind the team about a couple of key things we’re going to do against our opponent,” she says. “Then I talk about how there’s always more on the line than just the match itself. I want to push their buttons, because I want to get their adrenaline going. I want them to be really fired up about playing their best.”

Coaches who use inspirational speeches also work hard to present their words the right way. “Sometimes, it’s not what I say, it’s how I say it,” says Flick. “I could have some really great information, a real gem of a speech, but if I say it in a monotone, it’s not going to work. If I don’t bring my enthusiasm to the table, I can’t expect my players to, either.”

Welch uses only a handful of notes, and tries to keep her speeches feeling unrehearsed. She also tries to make her speeches sound different for every match.

Flick also says she carefully watches her players while they talk to see if her words are having the right effect. “I can see it in their body language,” says Flick.

“If they’re sitting a little taller, looking eager to get on the floor, and their eyes are really focused, they’re ready.”

Relax ’em Other coaches eschew inspirational speeches and prefer to put their players on an even keel before a game. “I’m not going to walk into our locker room, bite the head off a frog, and challenge our players to kill the other team,” says Stanford University Head Coach John Dunning, who describes his approach to the pregame speech as factual. “I’m not looking to excite them, and I’m not

IN THE HUDDLE

Player Involvement Whether you focus on pumping them up or calming them down, it helps to make your players active participants in the pregame talk and not passive listeners. “We’ll talk about the feelings that are coming on before the match, and if it’s a big game, I might even ask, ‘Who’s nervous?’” says Flick. “Because, many times, people are trying to mask their emotions rather than deal with them. If they see somebody put up her hand, everybody realizes they’re not the only one who’s scared. It legitimizes their feelings, and they realize they can channel those feelings out on the court.”

Dunning involves his players by inviting them to post mock strategies on the chalkboard to lighten the mood. And instead of talking about the game’s strategy himself, he expects his players to answer questions and present the gameplan in their own words.

“Our pregame is very interactive,” says Dunning. “I’m not usually the one who gives the reminders about strategy—the players do that. If they can tell me the strategy themselves, it’s going to

be much more effective than if I have to tell them again.”

Although Jenkins does 95 percent of the talking before the game, she still makes sure her players are actively involved. “Our pregame time is more of a discussion than a speech,” say Jenkins. “I want them to have input into the meeting, to have ownership in what we’re doing.

We learn from each other.”

However, Jenkins warns against allowing an athlete to give her own pregame speech, remembering the time she let

one of her players do so before a big match. “It was so emotional, we were all crying before we went onto the court,” says Jenkins. “That will never happen again.”

Salters also listens to her players’ feedback. “Some of my players have told me that they prefer a simpler speech, so I don’t give them long lectures,” she says. “But at the end, I always bring the speech back to the team and what we’re about to do. We do our cheer, and I lead them onto the court.” ■

If Playing the Game were only

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looking to motivate them. I’m looking to relax them, and to let them take their inspiration from being part of the bigger process that we do every day.

“What you do during the pregame speech has to fit with the way you approach the game on a daily basis,” continues Dunning. “It has to do with process, with doing things the same way, until you get your team in the right frame of mind. Our approach is based on reminders, and it’s based on reinforcing a sense of team. We use facts to help frame the match and to underline how important it is to meet our goals.”

At UCSD, McFarland also uses humor to relax players before the game.

“I’ll tell a joke, relax them a little bit, try to get them to smile,” he says. “I don’t want them to lose sight of the joy of playing the game.”

Like the more inspirational minded coaches, Dunning watches his players’ reactions as he speaks. “As you’re giving your speech, keep looking in your players’ eyes,” advises Dunning. “You want to see if they’re reacting to what you say, and if they’re truly engaged. If they’re interacting as teammates, instead of being stressed and solitary, then your speech is working.”

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SPORTS MEDICINE

One Out of Four

The latest study shows that one out of four female athletes today suffer from amenorrhea.

And the ramifications for their health are truly frightening.

AP/WIDE WORLD PHOTOS IMAGE FOR ILLUSTRATION PURPOSES ONLY.

M

ost of us envision studentathletes as the picture of health —lithe, muscular, and hardy.

But imagine intercollegiate volleyball competitions where 80-year-old women jump high for a block and dive for a dig.

It sounds inconceivable, but some of the players on your team who appear young and strong on the outside may actually be as frail on the inside as these imagined elderly athletes. And the reason is secondary amenorrhea, a condition whereby women do not get their menstrual periods.

A recent study by Dr. Michelle Cameron, orthopedic surgeon and spokesperson for the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, found the prevalence of amenorrhea in collegiate female varsity athletes to be 28 percent, compared to two to five percent in the general population. Older studies estimate that at least 10 to 20 percent of all female athletes have the condition.

While these figures have not been broken down by sport, volleyball players are among the sufferers.

BY SHELLY WILSON But why does the incidence appear to be growing? What are the long-term ramifications of skipping one’s period?

And how do you implement prevention strategies?

Defining Dysfunction When a woman’s reproductive system is functioning normally, her brain’s hypothalamus releases a hormone called gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) at regular intervals. GnRH acts on the pituitary gland, causing the cyclic rise and fall of lutenizing hormone (LH) and folliclestimulating hormone (FSH). These mes-

sengers tell her body to produce mature eggs, ovulate, and make estrogen. A disruption of normal menstruation occurs when the hypothalamus stops releasing the GnRH that sets the cycle in motion.

Technically, any missed periods constitute amenorrhea. Some medical studies define amenorrhea as missing a year’s worth of periods after menarche (first period) has taken place. Other physicians feel three months or more without a cycle is cause for concern. But more Shelly is Wilson is a former Assistant Editor at Coaching Management.

COACHING MANAGEMENT

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SPORTS MEDICINE

and more professionals are pointing to menstrual dysfunction of any kind as a substantial warning.

“If a female misses a period, there’s an indication that there’s something going on that should be cause for alarm,” says Dr. Bill Evans, Director of the Nutrition, Metabolism, and Exercise Laboratory at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences. “Evidence shows that if a woman is irregular, she potentially has other health problems.”

Until recently, scientists believed that amenorrhea was a result of low body fat. But research over the last 15 years indicates that this is not the case.

Rather, amenorrhea appears to be multi-causal. Among the factors that bring on amenorrhea are congenital abnormalities of the reproductive tract, metabolic or endocrine disorders (including malnutrition), stress, tumors or cysts, or combinations of the above.

In athletes, however, the vast majority of cases of amenorrhea stem from an imbalance between activity level and nutritional intake. For example, a female student-athlete who menstruates during her off-season may lose her periods once preseason training begins because she increases her activity level without correspondingly increasing her nutritional intake. Her body can’t sustain all functions without adequate calories and nutrition, and reproductive mechanisms are among the first to shut down.

The Dangers Among the most widely known health risks associated with amenorrhea is the early onset of osteoporosis—the crippling disease of low bone mass and bone fragility. Because amenorrhea, like menopause, affects the body’s estrogen levels, bone development is compromised.

A 1997 article in The Physician and Sportsmedicine states that decreased estrogen levels in young women can leach away as much as two to six percent of total bone mass per year. And the results of a University of Arkansas study released in July 2002 show that two percent of collegeage women already have osteoporosis and a further 15 percent have sustained significant losses in bone density and may be on their way to developing the disease.

Why is estrogen so important to bone mass? Contrary to popular belief, estrogen doesn’t actually build bones.

Rather, it ensures that one’s bones 34

COACHING MANAGEMENT

absorb calcium, which they need to stay strong. Also, estrogen conserves the calcium in bones by encouraging other body systems to make more efficient use of the calcium available in one’s diet.

Estrogen also helps maintain a balance between the rate of bone destruction and bone reformation. Generally, children and teens grow new bone faster than they destroy old, which is why their bones grow in thickness and length. Amenorrheic athletes, however, lack the estrogen to stave off bonedestructing cells.

“You build bone and fill your bone bank until you’re about 25,” says Jill

T

oday, the most favored treatment of exercise-related secondary amenorrhea comes not in the form of estrogen supplementation, but through changes to an athlete’s diet under the guidance of a licensed nutritionist. And while coaches should never attempt to treat amenorrhea themselves, there are nutritional recommendations they can make that may help prevent the onset of amenorrhea in the first place.

“Amenorrhea frequently stems from overexercise and under-eating,” explains Heidi Skolnik, President of Nutrition Conditioning, Inc., in Fort Lee, N.J. “It’s an energy deficit thing. A female athlete may think she is eating healthfully but may be 500 calories shy of what she needs. She may not be anorexic or even losing weight, but she’s not giving her body what it needs to sustain itself at an optimum healthy level. So athletes need to make sure that when they step up their training that they also step up their food intake. Their calories in need to be equivalent to their calories out.”

One dietary way to prevent amenorrhea is to insist on the inclusion of fat in your players’ diets. “Athletes confuse eating fat with getting fat,” explains Nancy Clark, Director of Nutrition Services at Sports Medicine Associates, in Brookline, Mass.

“But that’s not true. Fat is a part of the body’s nervous system, it’s a component

Thein-Nissenbaum, Faculty Associate at the University of Wisconsin, who studies amenorrhea. “After that, you start to lose bone. But amenorrheic athletes fail to fill their bone bank optimally, so

they’re really setting themselves up for significant problems later in life.”

“Girls think they need bone for height, and once they reach their height, what does it matter?” adds Heidi Skolnik, President of Nutrition Conditioning, Inc., in Fort Lee, N.J., who works with athletes at Princeton University. “But it’s not just the length of bone that matters, it’s the density of your bone. And you lay down all the density you will ever have in your lifetime in your teenage years. If a female athlete misses that window, she can’t make it back.”

The toll amenorrhea can take on a young athlete’s bones can also be felt

of hormones, and it’s important in allowing certain vitamins to get absorbed. At least 20 percent of an athlete’s calories should come from fat.

NUTRITIONAL STRATEGIES

“Nuts, peanut butter, salmon, and olive oil are all healthy fat options,” continues Clark.

“Female student-athletes should try to include a little fat at each meal. That could mean using two-percent milk on cereal or substituting a light salad dressing for a fat-free one.”

Another important nutritional defense is adequate protein. “Insufficient protein has been linked with amenorrhea in conjunction with low calorie intake,” explains Clark. “Amenorrheic athletes tend to eat less protein than their regularly menstruating counterparts. And when calories are low, the body’s protein needs actually increase.”

Calcium and Vitamin D are also important because of the positive role they play in the prevention of osteoporosis and the minimization of bone-density damage should a female athlete suffer amenorrhea.

“I would look for some dairy with each meal, so they have at least three dairy items a day—like milk on cereal, yogurt at lunch, milk with dinner, or low-fat cheese on a sandwich,” Clark says.

immediately. For those still competing, low bone density often leads to stress fractures. “We did a survey years ago with women runners,” says Evans. “And it turned out that the women who were

SPORTS MEDICINE

amenorrheic had a much higher incidence of stress fractures than the women who were regularly menstruating. So it’s not just an issue of, ‘I’ll develop osteoporosis when I’m 70 years old.’”

Other effects of early bone loss can pop up only a few years after an athlete’s competing days end. “I know a patient who [was amenorrheic, and when she got older and] wanted to have a baby, she couldn’t because her bones were too weak to support a pregnancy,” says Nancy Clark, Director of Sports Nutrition Services at Sports Medicine Associates in Brookline, Mass.

And amenorrhea may have a more direct impact on a woman’s fertility.

Some healthcare professionals, like Thein-Nissenbaum and Skolnik, believe long-term amenorrhea may prevent regular, reliable, ovulation even after menstruation has returned.

“Women who continue to have bouts of amenorrhea are eventually going to discontinue ovulating periodically, and that’s going to make it much more difficult for them to get pregnant,” says Thein-Nissenbaum.

Others believe once an athlete is back on track and menstruation is reinstated, fertility resumes as normal. But no one really knows for sure, since doctors have only been examining the condition for a short time.

“Unfortunately, this condition has only been defined in the last 10 or 15 years, and the women who were the first diagnosed are just now starting to have children,” says Thein-Nissenbaum.

Another potentially serious health implication of amenorrhea that is only now being looked into is heart disease.

Although not widely researched yet, the increased risk in post-menopausal women for cardiovascular disease led the Medical College of Wisconsin’s Cardiovascular Research Center to undertake a study of amenorrheic female runners in 2000.

It was presented to the American College of Sports Medicine last year.

The Center studied two groups of women, all of whom ran at least 25 miles per week, were at least 18 years old, and were not on oral birth control. One group, of 11 women, had normal periods.

The other group consisted of 10 women, all of whom had missed their periods for more than six months. Because a loss of blood vessel dilation is believed to be the first precursor to the development of

heart disease, each participant’s blood vessels were examined using ultrasound to measure their ability to dilate under different conditions. The women with amenorrhea had the vasculature of 50-year-old post-menopausal women.

Battle Cry With so much more to be learned about the effects of the condition, many physicians would like to see amenor-

for, what you do if you find it, why it’s important, and that it’s something for them to pay attention to,” she says.

And because amenorrhea can result from exercise that outpaces nutritional intake, or from rapid weight loss, TheinNissenbaum reminds coaches to proceed cautiously when weight loss is required for optimum athletic performance. “One or two pounds per week is ideal,” she says. “You don’t want to lose

“A woman should understand that losing her period is not natural … nor should it be desired or emulated. It comes with a number of health consequences and should be dealt with as soon as possible if she wants to continue with her athletic career.” rhea taken more seriously by the athletic population. “There’s a lack of appreciation for the magnitude of the problem and a lack of understanding about what causes it,” says Evans. “Athletes aren’t as concerned as they should be.”

As with many things in sports medicine, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, and the key to preventing amenorrhea is communication and education. The first step is to educate your athletes about amenorrhea.

An annual workshop led by coaches or athletic trainers can dispel the myths athletes may have learned from former coaches and even uninformed family doctors. Particularly powerful are presentations from or stories of formerly amenorrheic athletes. Postings on bulletin boards or handouts can also work well.

Coaches must also work to counter menstruation’s image as a burden and promote it as an asset necessary for overall health. “On some teams, amenorrhea is looked upon as evidence that they’re doing an appropriate amount of training,” says Thein-Nissenbaum. “If you still have your period, the perception is that you’re not training hard enough. But using amenorrhea as a bar to measure effective training is completely inappropriate.”

According to Skolnik, at the high school level, parents are another group that should be addressed. “Send out a letter at the beginning of the year informing parents about amenorrhea and letting them know that it’s something you look

more than two pounds a week, or the athlete is probably going to get dehydrated and lose muscle mass. And athletes shouldn’t try to lose weight in the peak of the season, because it’s too much stress on the body.”

Early Detection Since amenorrhea is vastly under reported by sufferers, medical professionals would like to see educational efforts coupled with earlier detection of the condition in order to minimize health risks. Inquiries into athletes’ menstrual cycles can begin during preparticipation exams. In fact, the American College of Sports Medicine is in the process of rewriting the questions on its preparticipation form related to menstruation. Until the new form is issued, consider using these questions: ■ When did you first get your period?

■ Are you regular?

■ If you’re not very regular, how regular are you?

■ How long is your typical cycle?

■ Do you often skip your period?

■ How many times a year do you miss a period?

“Amenorrhea should be on the list just like everything else,” says Skolnik. “‘Do you sneeze, do you cough, do you have weak ankles, and do you get your period?’”

Also, don’t accept vague answers. A reply of “normal” to the question “What’s your menstrual cycle like?” can mean very different things to different athletes. It

COACHING MANAGEMENT

35

SPORTS MEDICINE

might be normal in some athletes’ minds to miss their periods for the six months of preseason and in-season training.

If during the preparticipation exam an athlete states she uses oral birth control, a contraceptive patch, or Lunelle (a monthly birth control shot), athletic trainers or coaches should ask follow-up questions. “I often ask patients, ‘If you weren’t on the pill, would you have regular menstrual periods?’” says Clark.

“And often they say, ‘No, that’s why I went on the pill.’”

Also note that a student-athlete using a form of chemical contraception isn’t immune to developing amenorrhea, despite the estrogen they contain. “The dose of estrogen a woman gets from the pill is very small compared to her loss of estrogen as a result of amenorrhea,” says Evans.

Coaches or athletic trainers should also question female athletes periodically throughout the year about any changes they’ve experienced in their cycles. “If an athlete is returning after

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Every product we offer is designed to give your team the equipment they need to get to the next level.

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Circle No. 19

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COACHING MANAGEMENT

summer and is answering preparticipation exam questions, she may be able to say she has her period,” says Skolnik.

“But by October, she may not.”

Questions on amenorrhea should also automatically arise whenever a female athlete suffers an injury. “When you do not get your period, you have an increased risk for stress fractures,” says Skolnik, “so I’d absolutely investigate menstrual history anytime an athlete has a stress fracture.”

“Prolonged delayed healing is another thing to look for if they suspect an athlete has amenorrhea,” adds Thein-Nissenbaum. “These are the athletes who get the stress fractures that take double the time to heal. They have chronic strains and sprains from their muscles not being provided adequate nutrition.”

Refer When Needed The causes of amenorrhea can vary widely, so athletic trainers and coaches who know of or suspect student-athletes with amenorrhea should always refer the patient to a physician or gynecologist who’s sensitive to the needs of student-athletes. Sometimes amenorrhea can’t be corrected by simply cutting back training or increasing nutritional consumption, and coaches who try to cure it on their own delay proper diagnosis and put the student-athlete at risk.

“There are lots of reasons why you don’t get your period,” explains Skolnik. “I had one athlete who looked like it was caused by the female athlete triad, but she really had polycystic ovarian syndrome. And it took a good work-up from a doctor to figure that out.”

The best thing you can do, say experts, is to make sure your student-athletes are aware of the condition, understand the health problems associated with losing one’s period, and learn to come to you whenever their cycles seem irregular. “A woman should understand that losing her period is not natural,” says Evans. “It’s not something that should be desired or emulated. It comes with a number of health consequences and should be dealt with as soon as possible if she wants to continue with her athletic career. Because by the time they stop menstruating, even intermittently, it means there’s a problem already.” ■ A version of this article was recently published in our sister magazine, Training & Conditioning.

The Volleyball Court AIRBORNE ATHLETICS (888) 88SPIKE, www.aircatvolleyball.com The AirCAT TEAM™, from Airborne Athletics, is like a pitching machine for volleyball without the spinning wheels that cause expensive wear to volleyballs. It can deliver up to 1,100 volleyballs per hour for all drills with its patented Consistent Air Technology (CAT).

Features include: 10ball automatic ball feeder, wireless remote control or timer operation, adjustable speed and trajectory, and a rechargeable battery. AirCAT is the official volleyball-training machine of the USAV. Circle No. 35 on Reader Inquiry Card

Manage your players and your space with NetworKs. NetworKs catches and collects volleyballs so you don’t waste valuable training time gathering volleyballs! The front net is 10’ wide and adjustable from a height of 6’ to 9’ for all age and skill levels from beginners to the USAV. Practice hitting, serving, setting or passing into NetworKs. Use during the season for an extra training station or for an off season training session. Check out www.networksvolleyball.com for more information.

Circle No. 36 on Reader Inquiry Card

AMERICAN ATHLETIC, INC. (800) 247-3978, www.americanathletic.com American Athletic, Inc.’s (AAI) complete line of world-class volleyball equipment, including the official indoor net system of USA Volleyball, is featured at the company’s Web site, www.americanathletic.com. In addition to aluminum and steel uprights that meet all Junior, NFHS, NCAA, and USAV specifications, AAI manufactures referee stands, padding, and training products.

The Web site also details AAI’s baseball, basketball, and gymnastics products.

Circle No. 37 on Reader Inquiry Card

American Athletic, Inc. (AAI) manufactures a complete line of volleyball equipment. The Elite® System (left) is designed for the highest levels of com-

petition and is available in either aluminum or steel. AAI is the official indoor net system of USA Volleyball and meets all Junior, NFHS, NCAA, and USAV specifications.

Circle No. 38 on Reader Inquiry Card

BISON, INC. (800) 247-7668, www.bisoninc.com Whether you prefer the rigidity of steel or the weight advantage of aluminum, Bison has complete court equipment for competition volleyball. Bison’s Centerline Elite equipment is available with your choice of aluminum or steel telescoping standards. A unique Auto Track springassisted height adjustment, combined with a machined 26:1 gear ratio winch, ensures the net is always bowstring tight. Standards and winch are covered by a lifetime limited warranty.

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When your floor does not allow for practical installation of floor sockets, there’s still a quality competition option: the Bison Centerline Portable Elite. These are telescoping rigid steel standards of heavy wall 1/4” steel tubing with spring assisted, height adjustment, lifetime machined worm gear winch, and fold-away winch handle. Net height is infinitely variable. System includes portable base standards on 4” non-marking wheels, floor anchors, competition net, antennas and post and base padding. Judge’s stand optional.

Circle No. 40 on Reader Inquiry Card

EVERSAN, INC. (800) 383-6060, www.eversan.com Eversan’s advanced technology portable scoreboard provides the convenience and reliability that is expected from the high demands of athletic programs. Eversan’s portables outscore the competition with LED or reflective digits, 0-99 Home/Guest score, horn, 99:59

Up/Down timing, and a remote control console that allows intuitive operations.

Circle No. 41 on Reader Inquiry Card Eversan’s advanced technology multipurpose scoreboards provide the convenience and reliability that are required to meet the high demands of athletic programs.

With model 9765, set-up time, from basketball to volleyball to wrestling, is fast and simple. With wireless data communications, as well as intuitive operations, customers have been pleased with Eversan since 1974.

Circle No. 42 on Reader Inquiry Card

FUTURE PRO, INC. (800) 328-4625, www.futureproinc.com Future Pro has easy-to-order packages of affordable, versatile Match Point steel and aluminum volleyball systems.

These packages install a system for power volleyball as well as multipurpose use at any height.

Height indicator labels are on both posts.

Systems meet all National High School Federation, NCAA, and USVBA rules.

Standards feature closeto-the-post, backlash-free rack and pinion top cable tensioner for tight net tensioning. Post padding, antennas, floor sockets, and hinged brass floor plates are all included, too.

Circle No. 43 on Reader Inquiry Card

The competition volleyball line at Future Pro has equipment for all levels of play and budgets. The super rigid Centerline Elite Aluminum System features telescoping aluminum standards with a spring assisted, infinitely variable height adjustment, lifetime machined worm gear winch; safety-minded foldaway winch handle; bronze hinged floor plates, Elite net and antennas; COACHING MANAGEMENT

37

The Volleyball Court padded cable covers; and post padding in your choice of 12 colors. System is also available with steel standards.

Circle No. 44 on Reader Inquiry Card

GARED SPORTS (800) 325-2628, www.garedsports.com The SSI Collegiate 7200 System from Gared remains the company’s most popular volleyball system. Net height is attained by means of slide rails held securely in place by Gared’s exclusive locking wedge system. A simple turn of the knob slides the rail for full height adjustment from tennis to badminton and heights up to 8 feet, making it ideal for multipurpose facilities.

Circle No. 45 on Reader Inquiry Card

The SSI Varsity 7100 System from Gared Sports offers top quality standards without all the extra features for programs on a budget. The posts come with three pre-set heights and a drum-style ratchet winch with a disc brake for added safety.

The exclusive wedge lock holds rails securely—more effective than locks used by other sliding rail systems. A four point net attachment lets you set up the system in minutes.

Circle No. 46 on Reader Inquiry Card

JAYPRO SPORTS (800) 243-0533, www.jaypro.com Jaypro’s new VRS-3000 Referee Stand features a sturdy, twoleg design and a blue powder-coated finish.

The clamp-on 1-5/16” steel tubing frame mounts to most standards. Platform padding adds extra comfort for referees.

Optional padding is available.

Circle No. 47 on Reader Inquiry Card

Jaypro’s new 3” steel volleyball system (PVB-3000) combines steel’s strength (bottom section) with aluminum’s light weight (top section) in classic style. With the FlexNet, tension is put directly on the net headband; no extra cables, straps, or

38

COACHING MANAGEMENT

tie-offs are needed. Pin stop height adjustments range from 6’ 6” to 8’ 2”.

Three-inch diameter uprights fit most existing floor sleeves.

Circle No. 48 on Reader Inquiry Card

JV PRO, INC. (800) 962-2440, www.jvpro.com JV Pro, Inc., offers Freestanding & Bleacher Model Scoring Tables. JV Pro tables have built-in LED possession arrow and bonus indicator, heavy-duty soft rubber casters for easy movement, illuminated shatterproof lexan panels, and they fold down to 16 inches wide for easy storage. JV Pro is a quality cabinet manufacturer with an in-house art department. Heavy-duty Clarin chairs, with your logo/mascot in school colors, are available to match your scoring table.

Circle No. 49 on Reader Inquiry Card

PORTER ATHLETIC EQUIPMENT (800) 94-PORTER, www.porter-ath.com The Powr-Line® Professional Volleyball System, from Porter Athletic Equipment, is designed to accommodate competitive volleyball at all levels. It meets the demands of championship play with maximum safety, quick set-up, and easy storage.

Porter’s Powr-Line high-strength lightweight aluminum volleyball system allows micro-adjustability on net settings. Porter’s Powr-Winch® self-adjusting, net-tensioning mechanism is sensibly designed to provide the utmost in a durable, yet safe and simple net-attachment system. Fits 3”-, 3-1/2”-, or 4”diameter floor sleeves to accommodate new or existing facilities.

Circle No. 50 on Reader Inquiry Card

A breakthrough design for volleyball equipment, Porter’s Powr-Net® System attaches overhead and is electronically powered. This system is ideal for facilities requiring instant and frequent court setup.

The entire system, including net, judge’s

C USTOMER T ESTIMONIAL

“We use the AirCAT for drills during practices for our setters and hitters. I can be anywhere in the gym and operate the system. It is the best for maximizing the coach’s time. We used it to train 650 players this season and still had time for other things! It’s the best machine in the USA!” Kosmo Mobareki Club Director-Metro South/Select Volleyball Club, Indianapolis, IN “We use our AirCAT during summer open gyms and our hitting has improved drastically!”

Leigh Ann Back Head Volleyball Coach Hot Springs, AR “I am very impressed with the AirCAT. We use it at every practice for all our teams. As a matter of fact, the coaches almost fight to see who gets it first—I had to make out a schedule for the coaches and limit how long each got to use it. We also use the machine during our lil spikers program on Sunday nights (players ages 7-12)—they love ‘her’ and affectionately call her ‘BIG BERTHA’.”

John Littleman Sports for Youth Foundation Bellevue, WA “My players use the AirCAT during offseason training. They can roll the machine out and work by themselves or I can incorporate it with my drills for them. It is a great tool!”

Terry Carlson, Head Volleyball Coach, Indian Hills Community College, Ottumwa, IA

Airborne Athletics, Inc. 116 W. Main St. Belle Plaine, MN 56011

888.88SPIKE www.aircatvolleyball.com

The Volleyball Court stand, and padding, quickly folds to the overhead storage position with the simple turn of a key. Call for installation locations across the country.

Circle No. 51 on Reader Inquiry Card

SCHELDE NORTH AMERICA (888) SCHELDE (724-3533), www.scheldesports.com If you own an older Schelde Collegiate Volleyball System, you can now get all the advantages of a new Collegiate 3000 System—with a simple, inexpensive upgrade kit you can easily install in a few minutes. Simply loosen a few screws, remove the old Unirail assembly from your existing posts, slide on the new state-of-theart Collegiate 3000 assembly, and your system is better than the first day you bought it.

Circle No. 52 on Reader Inquiry Card

Introducing the New Collegiate 3000 Series, a revolutionary new design in telescopic and fixed pole volleyball sys-

tems from Schelde North America. Made of high-tensilestrength Duraluminum, Collegiate 3000 Series systems set up quickly and easily—by one person in five minutes or less. A new, extended winch mechanism offers a greater range for easy net tensioning. Net heights adjust easily and securely thanks to Schelde’s exclusive lever lock. Simply release the lever, adjust the net height, and push the lever down to lock it in place.

Circle No. 53 on Reader Inquiry Card

SPIKE NASHBAR (800) SPIKE-IT, www.spikenashbar.com Spike Nashbar offers the Top Trainer Block N’ Cover, the most innovative block n’ cover training device available today. With a net system, this training tool is used to teach and enhance your players’ skills of covering their attackers and/or hitting around a block. The Block

N’ Cover is the most realistic simulation of blocking arms. It is available from Spike Nashbar for $199.90, plus freight and surcharge.

Circle No. 54 on Reader Inquiry Card The Spike Catcher™ Training System, also from Spike Nashbar, is a patented volleyball training system made of an unbreakable extruded frame. It quickly attaches to the volleyball net with two lightweight aluminum brackets and a 12’ telescoping pole.

The shape of the frame provides an ideal opening to spike the volleyball at any angle. Quality netting attached to three sides of the frame catches the ball and an opening at the bottom

TM

KNOW MORE, WIN MORE.

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statistical software for

Volleyball Instant stats at the match, printed reports right after. tTrack performance—a great tool tEasy to use, point and touch tInstant screen summaries tPrinted reports and attack charts tTeam and individual statistics tGame and cumulative statistics

Handheld computer sold separately.

NEW! Version 2.0 tChoose Lite, Full, Pro, No Chart tTrack rotations tRate passing (0-3) tRate serves and attacks (0-4 or +/-/0)

®

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Since 1995

Go to www.digitalscout.com to view demos and reports, and to register to win a FREE PalmTM handheld. For more information, call 1-800-249-1189.

Circle No. 20 COACHING MANAGEMENT

39

C

ho-Pat P F A RODUCTS

OR

CTIVE

CIRCLE NO.

COMPANY

PAGE NO.

LIFESTYLES 29 . . . . AirCAT

All Products Made in the U.S.A.

(Airborne Athletics).

. . . . . . . . BC

24 . . . . All Volleyball, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 12 . . . . American Athletic, Inc. . . . . . . . . . 21

I.T.B. Strap W NE

Sizes: XS - XL

Applies compression at the area of discomfort, usually above the knee joint or upper thigh, to prevent the snapping or friction of the iliotibial band.

21 . . . . Cho-Pat. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 20 . . . . Digital Scout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 28 . . . . Dynamic Team Sports . . . . . . . . . IBC

3 . . . . Eversan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 14 . . . . Future Pro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

2 . . . . Gatorade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Cho-Pat® Knee Strap

Sizes: XS - XXL

Cho-Pat’s Original Knee Strap is designed to alleviate certain knee discomforts due to overuse syndromes, arthritis, and other forms of degeneration. Nearly two million sold!

6 . . . . Jaypro. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 11 . . . . JAZ Athletic Wear . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

(Now Patented)

Sizes: Sm - XL

Strengthens and tightens kneecap mechanism by applying pressure upon the tendon above and below the kneecap and lessens the development of iliotibial band and overuse syndromes.

23 . . . . Moyer Sports U.S.A. . . . . . . . . . . . 41 4 . . . . Networks

(Airborne Athletics)

........7

19 . . . . Porter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

22 . . . . PowerLung . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 9 . . . . Pro Look Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 12-13 17 . . . . Schelde North America . . . . . . . . . 31 1 . . . . Spike Nashbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IFC 10 . . . . SportCampTshirts.com . . . . . . . . . 15

Sizes: S, M, L

This patented device will reduce stress upon the Achilles Tendon and provide effective relief from pain and discomfort associated with Achilles Tendonitis.

Call 800-221-1601 (toll free) or 609-261-1336 or visit www.cho-pat.com to learn more about Cho-Pat’s innovative sports/medicine devices.

Circle No. 21 COACHING MANAGEMENT

PAGE NO.

35 . . . . Airborne Athletics

(AirCAT TEAM ).

36 . . . . Airborne Athletics

(Networks) .

. . 37

. . . . . 37

59 . . . . All Volleyball, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 38 . . . . American Athletic, Inc.

(Elite System).

37 . . . . American Athletic, Inc.

(Web site) .

39 . . . . Bison

(Centerline Elite) .

40 . . . . Bison

(Centerline Portable Elite)

37

. . 37

. . . . . . . . . . . 37 . . . . . . 37

68 . . . . Cho-Pat. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 75 . . . . CompuSports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 76 . . . . Dimensional Software

(Volleyball Ace)

47

60 . . . . Dynamic Team Sports

(Cypress jersey)

42

61 . . . . Dynamic Team Sports

(Elite Series)

42 . . . . Eversan

(Model 9765)

41 . . . . Eversan

(portables) .

. . 42

. . . . . . . . . . . . 37

. . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

44 . . . . Future Pro

(Centerline Elite Aluminum System) 37

43 . . . . Future Pro

(Match Point)

. . . . . . . . . . 37

45 . . . . Gared Sports

(Collegiate 7200 System) .

46 . . . . Gared Sports

(Varsity 7100 System)

38

. . . 38

77 . . . . Gatorade. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

(Attack Volleyball) .

48 . . . . Jaypro

(PVB-3000)

47 . . . . Jaypro

(referee stand)

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

63 . . . . JAZ Athletic Wear . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 49 . . . . JV Pro, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 64 . . . . Moyer Sports U.S.A. . . . . . . . . . . . 43 65 . . . . Moyer Sports U.S.A. 50 . . . . Porter

(Powr-Line) .

51 . . . . Porter

(Powr-Net)

(custom team apparel) 43

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38

78 . . . . Power Systems

(catalog)

71 . . . . Power Systems

(Plyo Jumper)

. . . . . . . . . 49

72 . . . . Power Systems

(Reaction Ball) .

. . . . . . 45 . . . . . 45

70 . . . . PowerLung . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 67 . . . . Pro Look Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 66 . . . . Pro Look Sports

(volleyball uniform)

53 . . . . Schelde

(Collegiate 3000 Series) .

52 . . . . Schelde

(upgrade kit)

. . 43

. . . . . 39

. . . . . . . . . . . . 39

. . . 28

54 . . . . Spike Nashbar

(Block N’ Cover)

. . . . . 39

. . . . 23

55 . . . . Spike Nashbar

(Spike Catcher) .

. . . . . 39

57 . . . . Sports Imports

(Attack Volleyball Machine)

18 . . . . Volleyball ACE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

56 . . . . Sports Imports

(Senoh net systems) .

16 . . . . Sports Imports 13 . . . . Sports Imports

Achilles Tendon Strap

COMPANY

62 . . . . Greg Larson Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 25 . . . . JV Pro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

15 . . . . Power Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Dual Action Knee Strap

CIRCLE NO.

69 . . . . Digital Scout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 26 . . . . eFundraising.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

8 . . . . Gared Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

40

PRODUCTS DIRECTORY

ADVERTISERS DIRECTORY ®

(Senoh Volleyball)

7 . . . . Volleyball Tutor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 5 . . . . Xvest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

41

. . 41

58 . . . . Sports Tutor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 73 . . . . Talent Sport . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 74 . . . . Xvest. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Catalog Showcase Power Systems, Inc. (800) 321-6975, www.power-systems.com Since 1986 Power Systems has made it a number one priority to become a leading supplier of sport training, health and fitness products. Its new 2003 catalog is re-worked to provide the best possible resource for all your training needs. Included areas are core strength, medicine balls, speed, plyometrics, agility, strength equipment, strength accessories and flooring. You’ll find the catalog full of new products as well as some products that we've improved upon. Not only will you find these changes, but you will also find that the company has lowered some of its prices enabling the customer to get premium products at great pricing.

Circle No. 78 on Reader Inquiry Card

The Volleyball Court allows it to drop through and return it to you instantly. Take it to your favorite place to play, whether it be a sand court, grass, indoor, backyard, or the beach. It is easy to set up and includes The Spike Catcher block-coverage conversion kit and carry bag. It is available from Spike Nashbar for $299.90, plus freight and surcharge.

Circle No. 55 on Reader Inquiry Card

SPORTS IMPORTS, INC. (800) 556-3198, www.sportsimports.com Sports Imports is starting its 26th year of providing Senoh net systems to volleyball programs throughout the country. In that time, Sports Imports has installed more systems than anyone else.

Sports Imports has chosen to remain focused only on volleyball rather than be distracted by other sports. The company has also chosen to have Sports Imports people make personal visits to

your facility rather than being represented by a dealer or middleman.

Sports Imports believes that this is the best way to ensure tailored equipment for your specific program. Sports Imports and Senoh—the first, the best, the most widely used; yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

Circle No. 56 on Reader Inquiry Card The Attack Volleyball Machine, distributed by Sports Imports, challenges professional men’s and women’s volleyball programs. Ball speeds are up to 70 mph with accuracy and repeatability assured in every drill. The throwing-head release points adjust from 5’ to 9’6”, from setting to men’s over-the-net serving and spiking heights.

Horizontal and vertical throwing-head movement allows the coach to instantly target any point on the court, simulating real game situations.

Circle No. 57 on Reader Inquiry Card

SPORTS TUTOR (800) 448-8867, www.sportstutorinc.com The Gold and Silver Model Volleyball Tutors, from Sports Tutor, both can vary ball trajectory and speed to produce any desired set or pass, and can also deliver serves at speeds up to 60 mph.

The Gold Model can automatically throw six volleyballs at intervals ranging from 5 to 20 seconds. It is completely portable, and is available with either AC or battery power. The Silver Model has a release point 5-1/2 feet high, and features a separate dial to control the amount of topspin or underspin. Priced from $899.

Circle No. 58 on Reader Inquiry Card

*See us on the internet

www.moyersports.com •Breakaway Pants •Uniforms •Warm-ups •Bags •Jackets

1-800-255-5299

ext. 6

*Free Color Catalog

Moyer Sports U.S.A. 3290 Pine Orchard Ln. Ellicott City, Md. 21042 Circle No. 22

Circle No. 23 COACHING MANAGEMENT

41

Uniforms & Apparel ALL VOLLEYBALL, INC. (800) 416-4658, www.allvolleyball.com All Volleyball, Inc., serves the specific needs of volleyball coaches and players.

Whatever the need—uniforms, camp shirts, volleyballs, ball carts, bags, shoes, warm-ups, novelties, gifts, etc., All Volleyball’s one-stop volleyball shop concept is a hit with middle and high school, college, and club coaches across the country.

Offering all the top brands and many private labels, the company can work with any budget, any age group, or any level of competition. All Volleyball provides customized lettering, numbering, and embroidery services as well as custom design assistance and pre-designed artwork to choose from. Contact the company for all your volleyball needs.

Circle No. 59 on Reader Inquiry Card

DYNAMIC TEAM SPORTS (800) 437-6223, www.dynamicteamsports.com Dynamic Team Sports offers the best in team uniforms. The Cypress jersey is Dynamic’s most popular sleeveless shirt yet. Made of Dynamic’s 75-percent

polyester, and 25-percent cotton Aerofibre, the Cypress is designed with comfort and durability in mind.

Choose from home and away combinations in 10 stock colors, or ask about custom colors for even more possibilities.

Circle No. 60 on Reader Inquiry Card Dynamic’s Elite Series is a revolutionary line of custom uniforms sure to make your team stand above the competition. And get this—all the artwork, logos, and numbers are sublimated into the garments—lightweight, breathable fabric. This eliminates the heavy, sticky silkscreen that could peel, crack, or fade. You pick the colors for your own unique look.

Circle No. 61 on Reader Inquiry Card

GREG LARSON SPORTS (800) 950-3320, www.glssports.com Promote your team with this great looking Volleyball tackle twill. Place on hooded or crew-neck sweatshirt in your school colors. Great for staff attire, fund-raising, pre-game warm-ups, and that long road trip home after a successful match. Contact GLS for the newest graphics and don’t forget to ask for the 2003 Full Line Equipment. Set the standard; team up with Greg Larson Sports.

Circle No. 62 on Reader Inquiry Card

JAZ ATHLETIC WEAR (800) 477-9843 JAZ Athletic Wear, has the most extensive line of custom uniforms designed exclusively for female athletes by female athletes. The company’s line includes: jerseys,

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eFundraising.com is the #1 source for all your team’s fund-raising needs! eFundraising is a subsidiary of QSP and Reader’s Digest offering sports teams quality service and your choice of proven fund-raising programs where your team can earn up to 90% profit. Our products include scratch cards, three different magazine programs, World’s Finest Chocolate candy bars, and a large variety of gift brochures. Please call us now at 1-800-561-8388 for your free fund-raising information kit. One of our experienced fund-raising consultants will answer all your fundraising questions.

Visit our Web site at

www.efundraising.com Call us toll-free at 800.561.8388 Visit us at www.efundraising.com 42

COACHING MANAGEMENT

for more information on our products.

Uniforms & Apparel shorts, tights, and warm-ups—all made with the best athletic fabrics in the industry. All tops are available sleeveless or any kind of sleeves. JAZ Athletic Wear’s poly-cotton allows you to feel the comfort and absorbency of cotton and the durability of poly. This fabric is cool and looks great.

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MOYER SPORTS (800) 255-5299, ext. 3, www.moyersports.com Moyer Sports is a leading distributor and manufacturer of custom uniforms, warm-ups, jackets, bags, and more.

Since 1981, Moyer has sold directly to the school athletic market. The company’s state-of-the-art lettering facility offers custom tackle twill, swiss embroidery, and silkscreen services. Unique designs, top-quality merchandise, and personal service allow Moyer to be your number-one apparel supplier.

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Moyer Sports offers a full line of stock and custom team apparel, warm-ups, travel suits, jackets, jerseys, and bags.

Top names such as adidas, Mizuno, Bike, Dynamic Team Sports, and Moyer’s Custom Line are among the many brands available.

The company’s inhouse lettering facility enables Moyer to offer quicker service than the competition. A free color catalog is available.

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PRO LOOK SPORTS (888) 937-3156, www.prolooksports.com Pro Look Sports, renowned for its basketball uniforms, makes the absolute best high-end volleyball uniform at an extremely modest price. Like its basketball products, quality is never sacrificed.

All uniforms carry custom Tackle Twill and embroidery, as opposed to com-

YOUR ONE STOP VOLLEYBALL SHOP Team uniforms, camp shirts, shoes, equipment, training aids, protective gear, coaching needs, novelties, jewelery, fun wear and more

800/416-4658 ALL VOLLEYBALL, iNC. 9942 Kennerly Rd. St. Louis, MO 63128 e-mail: sales@allvolleyball.com

WWW.ALLVOLLEYBALL.COM Serving the volleyball community since 1995 Circle No. 24

petitors’ inferior products containing silk-screen. All uniforms come with a two-year guarantee and all upgrades are free. There are no minimum order restrictions.

Circle No. 66 on Reader Inquiry Card Pro Look Sports has become the fastest growing team sportswear company in six years for one reason: fully custom, quality uniforms. Pro Look’s uniforms are made of the finest materials available; cut and sewn to your exact specifications. There are no additional costs for embroidered logos or for soft tackle-twill names and numbers. All work is backed by a two-year guarantee.

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JV PRO Scoring Tables

NEW! LED Possession Arrows & Bonus Lights Brighter, Bigger, Safer • Two styles to choose from, Free-Standing or Bleacher.

• Heavy duty padding in your choice of school colors.

• High quality laminated table top with safe, rounded corners.

• Bleacher will also convert to Free-Standing style in seconds without tools.

• Folds to 16 inches for storage, extends only 14 inches on to the court.

• All models include locking casters for easy placement.

• Enclosed UL light fixtures.

Heavy duty chairs in your school colors with logo or mascot are available to match your scoring table.

2600 Harrison Ave. • Rockford IL 61108 Phone: 815-229-1600 • 800-962-2440 • Fax: 815-229-3308 Webpage: @http://www.jvpro.com E-mail: info@jvpro.com

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CUSTOMER TESTIMONIAL

As the “Official Volleyball Training Machine of the USAV,” the AirCAT Team is recognized as the industry’s top training machine for setting, passing, serve receive, hitting, digging, tipping, and blocking drills.

As the Most Valuable Player of USA Volleyball 75th Anniversary All-ERA Team, Karch Kiraly is known for his devotion to the game, his strong training ethic, and the incredible longevity of his very successful career. He approves of the USAV endorsement of the AirCAT saying, “I’ve been playing world class volleyball for almost 25 years. I’ve seen a lot of training devices but the AirCAT is the first one where I’ve thought, ‘I could really use that in my training.’ I could have used it at any time during my career. I think it is going revolutionize volleyball training.”

Thousands of colleges, high schools, clubs, and individuals throughout the United States currently own the AirCAT with the numbers growing every day. Doug Campbell, President of Airborne Athletics, Inc.—the company that produces the AirCAT—says, “Many of our earliest customers are still using and loving their original systems. I hear from our very first customer twice a year and Ralph always tells me how much he still loves his machine.”

The AirCAT Team launches up to 1,100 balls per hour on its automatic timer or can be run using a remote control. Because the machine uses Consistent Air Technology™ and not spinning wheels, balls are delivered with unequaled precision and without destroying costly volleyballs.

Airborne Athletics also offers the AirCAT Solo, for individual volleyball training, and NetworKs, the portable net training station that catches and collects volleyballs.

Airborne Athletics 116 W. Main Street Belle Plaine, MN 56011 Phone: (888) 887-7453 44

COACHING MANAGEMENT

www.aircatvolleyball.com

Team Equipment Cho-Pat’s Counter-Force Knee Wrap is a versatile and dynamic approach to the pain and discomfort associated with knee injuries, wear and tear, or overuse syndromes. Constructed of heavyduty, stretchable, fabric-covered neoprene, the wrap reinforces and warms the knee to help alleviate patellar pain. Adjustable straps can give an added level of kneecap support while still allowing the user full mobility. Contact Cho-Pat at (800) 221-1601 or visit www.cho-pat.com for more information.

Circle No. 68 on Reader Inquiry Card Know more, win more with Digital Scout. “Get ready to elevate your coaching to the next level”—Chris Powers, Head Coach, Christian Fellowship School, Lakewood, Colo. Digital Scout Statware statistical software for volleyball is getting great reviews from coaches nationwide. The Digital Scout system is easy to use. Choose from four different modes to track team and player performance your way. Get instant analysis at the match on your Palm OS handheld computer and print pressready statistics reports from your PC right after. Track rotations, rate passing (0-3), and rate serves and attacks (0-4 or +/-/0). Digital Scout is a great coaching tool. Go to www.digitalscout.com or call (800) 249-1189 for more information.

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PowerLung® is the original and only integrated exhale and inhale isolated, progressive resistance respiratory strength training machine for all athletes. It is based on 80 years of medical research; proven to increase respiratory muscle strength; inhale and exhale; Tidal Volume >25 percent and Peak Exhalation >20 percent; Inhale Muscle Power > 40 percent; Exhale Muscle Power > 150 percent. Studies show asthma sufferers may benefit from respiratory muscle training. A player’s body is only as strong as the weakest muscles—the respiratory muscles. Your team is only as strong as the weakest player—everyone needs PowerLung Training for increased oxygen. Use PowerLung for stamina and endurance; stronger core body muscles; and reduced heart and respiratory rates. Oxygen is the limiting factor in sports. Call (800) 903-3087 or visit www.powerlung.com for more information.

Circle No. 70 on Reader Inquiry Card The Plyo Jumper from Power Systems, Inc. is the perfect portable tool for vertical jump training and is great for practicing indoors or out. Adjust the resistance to 40, 80, or 120 lbs. It gives you the ability to increase body weight by 30 percent. Waist belt sizes: 27” to 38”. An exercise guide is included. Call (800) 3216975 or visit www.power-systems.com for more information about its products or to request a catalog.

Circle No. 71 on Reader Inquiry Card Improve your eye-hand coordination and reaction time with the Reaction Ball from Power Systems, Inc. Volley or roll it between two persons or against a wall. It is made of durable rubber and bounces randomly and unpredictably causing the athlete to “chase” it. An exercise guide is included. Call (800) 321-6975 or visit www.power-systems.com for more information about its products or to request a catalog.

Circle No. 72 on Reader Inquiry Card Talent Sports offers Worth Allsport All-Weather Xtra-Dri® Power Shirts.

Long sleeve, Mock Turtle Neck moisture management fabric transfers all moisture away from the body preserving energy for better performance.

Talent Sports also carries a Worth Cold Weather Power Shirt. Call (405) 3605733 or visit www.talentsportinc.com for more information.

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“I have found the X Vest to be an excellent tool for providing overloads in both plyometric and strength training, conditioning and rehabilitation programs. The fit and adaptability are excellent. The X Vest allows for freedom of movement and doesn’t interfere with any of the agility, bounding or running programs that I write for a wide variety of athletes, both collegiate and professional.

The X Vest has proven itself in my programs!

Thank you for all your efforts and help in improving my capability as a strength & conditioning specialist.”—Donald A. Chu Ph.D., PT, ATC, CSCS and author of Jumping into Plyometrics. Call (800) 697-5658 or visit www.THExVest.com for more information.

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CUSTOMER TESTIMONIAL

Sports Imports is the exclusive distributor of Senoh, the world's leading volleyball net system.

Since 1976, Sports Imports has installed more than 17,000 Senoh Systems in gyms and arena across the country, including nearly 90% of Division I college programs.

Sports Imports offers incredible direct customer support, customized solutions, construction design services and an unmatched equipment warranty.

“As the former Sweet Home High School volleyball coach for over twenty years, I’m proud of our win/loss record and our six New York state titles. One edge we’ve had over many competitors is our relationship with Sports Imports and the Senoh Volleyball System. Our Senoh net system is easy to set up, simple to adjust and incredibly durable.

With Senoh, our athletes spend less time messing with uprights and more time practicing competitive skills. And after 10 years of constant use, our net systems perform as they did on the first day. Now our Sports Imports representative tells me we can rejuvenate the uprights to like new condition. Who knows how long they will last?

“I also want to recommend the folks at Sports Imports. They know our sport, its trends and rule changes. They even helped us plan our court layout to maximize the facility. It is nice to work with a company that truly stands behind their product. Sports Imports is the best advantage a coach and team can have on its side.”

Sally Kus Head Volleyball Coach Sweet Home High School, NY 22 Conference Titles & 6 NY State Titles

Sports Imports P.O. Box 21040 Columbus, OH 43221 Phone: (800) 556-3198 46

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www.sportsimports.com

More New Products Easy-Recruiter, from CompuSports, helps college coaches and recruiters manage athletic recruiting data. EasyRecruiter can operate in both singleuser and multi-user (network) environments and adapts to virtually any sport.

A collection of reports is included and the user can easily modify (customize) these reports and then save them for future use. Easy-Recruiter saves time, ensures up-to-date information, and makes it quickly and easily accessible to coaches and athletic support staff. Call (800) 691-4555 or visit www.compusports.com for more information.

Circle No. 75 on Reader Inquiry Card Volleyball Ace Version 4 is the newest version of handheld stat software from Dimensional Software. Version 4 features “one tap” automatic volleyball stats and scoring. Stats include per

game and summary stats, serve and pass ratings, points per rotation and hit charts. Version 4 generates NCAA Box Scores and includes utilities to merge manual stats. Volleyball Ace accommodates different rules used at high school, club and collegiate level.

Stats automatically upload to a Windows PC or Macintosh for printing and further analysis. Volleyball Ace is available from distributors or directly from Dimensional Software. Call (877) 223-8225 or visit www.ace4vb.com for more information.

Circle No. 76 on Reader Inquiry Card Gatorade Thirst Quencher's optimal formula contains electrolytes and carbohydrates. It is based on more than 30 years of scientific research and testing.

Nothing rehydrates, replenishes and refuels better than Gatorade Thirst Quencher—not even water. * REHYDRATE—Gatorade has the flavor to

keep your athletes drinking—and a sixpercent carbohydrate solution that's optimal for speeding fluids back into their systems. No fluid is absorbed faster than Gatorade. * REPLENISH—If your athletes don't replace the electrolytes they lose when they sweat, they risk becoming dehydrated, which can take them out of the game. By putting electrolytes back, Gatorade helps athletes drink more, retain fluids and maintain fluid balance. * REFUEL—Unlike water, Gatorade has the right amount of carbohydrates (14 grams per eight ounces) to give your athlete's working muscles more energy, help athletes fight fatigue and keep their mental edge. For more info, visit www.gssiweb.com.

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news

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Spike Nashbar—Your one-stop shop for volleyball equipment.

The largest and most complete source of volleyball products is now in place at Spike Nashbar. Volleyball One, established in 1978 was sold a few weeks ago to the parent company of Spike Nashbar, Matrix Group Limited, Inc. Matrix Group Limited, Inc., of Safety Harbor, Florida is the publisher of VBALL Magazine, Spike Nashbar and Sweet & Powerful catalogs. WrestlingOne was part of the purchase. The sale price was not disclosed. Matrix immediately unveiled plans to combine the Spike Nashbar and Volleyball One catalog into a powerful one-stop resource under a new name, Volleyball Express with an updated mailing list of more than 300,000 players, teams, clubs, and coaches.

The headquarters will remain in Florida.

Volleyball One was founded in 1978 by Val Keller, a respected volleyball coach and technician on the American volleyball front for many decades. Keller, who was credited with developing a numbering system to identify sets used by thousands of coaches, passed away in June of 2000. Matrix Group president Louis Orloff said he began discussions with Keller three years ago about a possible merger. Interest was renewed when Val Keller’s wife, Lucy, contacted him last fall about a possible sale. “The entire Keller family has made tremendous contributions to the sport of volleyball,” said Orloff. “As competitors I always respected the professional operation they were known for and the stature they garnered in the volleyball world. I’m glad we were able to structure a deal the Keller family was very comfortable with.

Combining Volleyball One & Spike Nashbar will enable us to offer virtually every item available for volleyball players.”

Call us toll-free at 800.SPIKE.IT Fax us at 800.370.3424

Visit our Web site at

www.spikenashbar.com

www.spikenashbar.com COACHING MANAGEMENT

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Web Connections ADAMS USA WWW.ADAMSUSA.COM Visit our Web site for Trace pads, Neumann gloves, Bolco bases, Bucks belts, the latest athletic equipment for youth thru varsity, and information about Youth Clinics for football and baseball.

AIRBORNE ATHLETICS, INC. WWW.AIRCATVOLLEYBALL.COM Airborne Athletics, Inc.’s volleyball-training systems include the AirCAT TEAM for institutional or team training and NetworKs, which is a portable net training station that catches and collects volleyballs. The AirCAT SOLO is a volleyball-training machine for individuals.

ALL AMERICAN SCOREBOARDS WWW.ALLAMERICANSCOREBOARDS.COM For more than half a century, All American has set the standard for quality, value, and reliability in electronic scoring systems.

CHOICE HOTELS WWW.CHOICESPORTSTRAVEL.COM With over 4,600 hotels around the world, Choice Hotels’SM brands—Comfort Inn®, Comfort Suites®, Quality®, Sleep Inn®, Clarion®, MainStay Suites®, Econo Lodge® and Rodeway Inn®—have a great deal to offer.

CSSI RESILIENT SURFACING PRODUCTS WWW.CARLSURF.COM CSSI Resilient Surfacing Products offers a full line of quality, innovative, and durable rubber resilient flooring products for fitness, recreational, playground, commercial, and architectural uses.

How

EFUNDRAISING WWW.EFUNDRAISING.COM Earn up to 90-percent profit on scratchcards, magazines, chocolates, and gift brochures. Visit the Web site for a free fund-raising information kit.

GARED SPORTS-SSI VOLLEYBALL WWW.GAREDSPORTS.COM Gared Sports-SSI Volleyball is an 82 year old company manufacturing equipment and training aids for residential and institutional use for; basketball, volleyball, soccer, and recreation.

Gared Sports is the official supplier of basketball backboards and goals for all NBA arenas.

TARAFLEX SPORTS FLOORING BY GERFLOR WWW.GERFLORTARAFLEX.COM Gerflor produces Taraflex Sports Flooring for basketball, volleyball, tennis and multipurpose use. Visit the Web site for recent installations, flooring technical specifications and applications, company and distributor contact and press information.

LIFE FITNESS WWW.LIFEFITNESS.COM Life Fitness’ cutting-edge Web site integrates the Life Fitness and Hammer Strength brands, providing in-depth information about the company’s complete lines of cardiovascular and strength training products.

NEVCO SCOREBOARD COMPANY WWW.NEVCOSCOREBOARDS.COM Since 1934 when the company began, Nevco has been synonymous with superiorquality scoreboards for sports. We have a total commitment to building a product

to

order

that “works”_hour after hour, game after game, year after year.

PORTER ATHLETIC EQUIPMENT CO. WWW.PORTER-ATH.COM Porter’s new Web site introduces on-line purchasing and greatly enhanced features that make it easier than ever for coaches, athletic directors, school administrators, architects, contractors, etc. to purchase its product and obtain detailed information about Porter equipment and services.

PRO LOOK SPORTS WWW.PROLOOKSPORTS.COM Pro Look Sports makes fully custom, quality uniforms. Their uniforms are made of the finest materials; constructed to your exact specifications. There are no additional costs for embroidery or soft tackle-twill lettering.

SCHELDE NORTH AMERICA WWW.SCHELDESPORTS.COM At the Schelde North America Web site, see the finest competition sports equipment used in Olympic, professional, collegiate, high school and club sports throughout the world.

Products include Schelde portable basketball goals, volleyball net systems, tennis net systems, badminton net systems, and Haro hardwood sports floors.

SPORTS IMPORTS WWW.SPORTSIMPORTS.COM Sports Imports is the exclusive distributor of Senoh volleyball equipment. We provide direct service with regard to court layout, new construction design, and equipment recommendations. Check out our new Web site.

from...

Performance Sports Systems— ”Raising the Quality Standards of Gymnasium Equipment” PSS Offers Complete Design Services for Architects, Owners and Contractors: Develops accurate specifications and helps determine proper equipment Manufactures backstops with advanced features that few can match ● Let us be your project partner, the single source you need to meet your needs. ● ●

PSS has 80 years of experience as a leading manufacturer of institutional quality gymnasium equipment that includes ceiling suspended backstops and related accessories, portable basketball units, gymnasium divider curtains, wrestling mat storage and carrier systems, wall padding and volleyball, tennis and badminton equipment. We would like to hear from you, so call us with any questions you may have regarding our products, to request a PSS catalog or for information on the dealer nearest you.

Visit our Web site at

Call us toll-free at 800.848.8034 Fax us at 765.778.4056 E-mail us at info@perfsports.com 48

COACHING MANAGEMENT

www.perfsports.com .

YOUR TEAM 1866 Miles Ran 1425 Hours Practiced 3742 Miles Traveled 167 Games Played 15 Attitudes Uniting in One Confident Look

OUR TEAM 30,000 Square Feet of Dedicated Production Space 10 Years Experience 18 Hours a Day 6 Days a Week Reflecting your Confidence in One Personalized Look

800.437.6223 www.dynamicteamsports.com Circle No. 28

“AirCAT... it’s like a pitching machine for volleyball” ™

AirCAT ™ makes your players better by providing fast, precise “air fed” tosses for all volleyball drills, while leaving you free to coach

Patented Uses air, not Consistent spinning wheels!

Air Technology ™ Consistently projects up to 1100 balls per hour with air (not with spinning wheels which can be inconsistent and cause expensive ball wear)

Auto Ball Feeder 10 ball capacity (all brands); no dangerous exposed moving parts

Adjustable Angle Tilts to simulate sets, passes, hits or serves

Computer Controlled

Battery or A/C operation

You dial in launch speed and set timed launches

Built-in battery charger

Team or Individual

“AirCAT is going to revolutionize volleyball training!”

Perfect for team practice.

Also allows players to train by themselves

Karch Kiraly Professional Beach Volleyball Player; Former USA National Indoor Player; 3-Time Olympic Gold Medalist

For a FREE Video and Brochure call toll-free 1-888-88SPIKE or email spikeit@frontiernet.net

Approved and Endorsed by

Wireless Remote Control (200' range) Operates by timer or remote (which frees you to coach)

Airborne Athletics 116 West Main Street, Belle Plaine, MN 56011 www.aircatvolleyball.com

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