Is There Any Hope for a Rising Freshman Interested in Volleyball?

[Anonymous]

My DD has loved learning to play but every clinic or camp we consider seems to be for girls who have already been playing. Are there any TRUE beginner volleyball clinics for her age group? I've looked at most of the stuff suggested on this board and the beginner options are for younger kids. Anything in her age range is considered 'intermediate' which she is not. I've sent her to a few drop in clinic sessions for specific skill development but even then, most of the girls are school or club players with experience which is intimidating. She would like to try out for her school's team and it is not that competitive but she should know some basics. Any suggestions??

[Anonymous]

I don’t know where you’re located, so this suggestion may be way out of your range, but Lake Braddock HS is having a volleyball camp this coming week! I know nothing specific about the camp (or about volleyball), but it might be an option if it’s not far from you.

https://www.lakebraddockbruins.com/page/5610

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t know where you’re located, so this suggestion may be way out of your range, but Lake Braddock HS is having a volleyball camp this coming week! I know nothing specific about the camp (or about volleyball), but it might be an option if it’s not far from you.

https://www.lakebraddockbruins.com/page/5610

Thank you!

[Anonymous]

Where do you live? We can give other suggestions.

[Anonymous]

Lots of hope if she is tall. Likely a lost cause if she is not. From what I have seen.

My DD’s friend is 5’11”, very little experience and made the freshman VB team. Shorter friends with years of club experience did not. But this is at a large classification public HS- super competitive.

[Anonymous]

Post on your neighborhood Listservs looking for a HS player to coach her. She’ll make more progress more quickly and it will be tailored to her and probably cheaper than the camp. We found a great teen girl who has been playing varsity three years and my daughter loves her!

[Anonymous]

GMU has a 3-day volleyball camp in two weeks that goes through rising 9th. Fine for total beginners. My rising 8th grader went last week and amongst the 7-9th graders, she made the intermediate group even though she has only ever played in PE. Within that age range though, there was a beginner, intermediate, and advanced group though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Where do you live? We can give other suggestions.

We are in Rockville, MD

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Post on your neighborhood Listservs looking for a HS player to coach her. She’ll make more progress more quickly and it will be tailored to her and probably cheaper than the camp. We found a great teen girl who has been playing varsity three years and my daughter loves her!

Great idea!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:GMU has a 3-day volleyball camp in two weeks that goes through rising 9th. Fine for total beginners. My rising 8th grader went last week and amongst the 7-9th graders, she made the intermediate group even though she has only ever played in PE. Within that age range though, there was a beginner, intermediate, and advanced group though.

Thank you!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Where do you live? We can give other suggestions.

We are in Rockville, MD

Have you seen these all-skills sessions for beginners at UMD?

https://www.terpsvbtraining.com/all-skills-day-camps.cfm

[Anonymous]

The good clinics go really fast in the Rockville area - there are lots of players who want to practice. Montgomery County is starting a league that is on the beginner side, but I think the registration is closed. You can email [e-mail] - maybe they can place you on the wait list. Look up activities at the local clubs that still have spots - they may accept beginner players rather than run the clinics below capacity. It is likely that MVSA and MOCO clinics are full, but you may find spots in MEVC, Platform, and Xperience. I haven't heard of this club (www.bethesdavolleyball.com), but I keep seeing advertisements for their camps on Facebook. You can also search for Zanni Lewis Volleyball camp (also seen on Facebook, no personal experience).

[Anonymous]

https://mdmontgomeryctyweb.myvscloud.com/webtrac/web/iteminfo.html?Module=AR&FMID=191203261

If you can’t get into the Montgomery County Rec League, you can do one of the weekly camps. She will learn so much in a short time. This was great for our daughter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:https://mdmontgomeryctyweb.myvscloud.com/webtrac/web/iteminfo.html?Module=AR&FMID=191203261

If you can’t get into the Montgomery County Rec League, you can do one of the weekly camps. She will learn so much in a short time. This was great for our daughter.

I would like to manage expectations with county rec leagues / camps: "learning a lot" is a bit of an overstatement. If money is tight, rec may be a good option to figure out whether the kids like the sport or not. With the caveat that they learn very little: they are lucky if they make a little progress with the help of a decent coach. In many cases, the kids will have to correct questionable mechanics that the coach either didn't notice or didn't teach correctly. Ideally the kids would start club at early age and would avoid rec all together, but that's a lot of money. Older kids may have a hard time to make a good club team with rec-level skills. With all the clubs in this area, most players can make a club team, but not necessarily a good team or a good club.

[Anonymous]

Here is another option: https://marylandsportsacademy.sportngin.com/register/form/076434174. They appear to still have spots in the camp that starts on Monday. My daughter spent two summers in their camps (last year and the year before) and she enjoyed them (she was a beginner at the time).