Looking for a mid-level regional VB club for 15s/16s

[Anonymous]

I am the PP who keeps saying that regional clubs should not sign up for CHC. This was related to the topic that the OP was interested in (mid-level regional VB clubs). This latest PP hijacked the conversation and took it in a weird direction, complaining about the coaching quality at Metro and poor performance of Metro players. I noticed these bursts on many other threads - it feels like this poster cannot read the word Metro without coming out of nowhere with rants unrelated to the thread topic. PP, I am not sure what your problem is, but you are embarrassing yourself with these posts. Let's help the OP find their club without turning each thread into a "Metro sucks" thread. The OP is clearly not interested in Metro, their coaching, or the national stats.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am the PP who keeps saying that regional clubs should not sign up for CHC. This was related to the topic that the OP was interested in (mid-level regional VB clubs). This latest PP hijacked the conversation and took it in a weird direction, complaining about the coaching quality at Metro and poor performance of Metro players. I noticed these bursts on many other threads - it feels like this poster cannot read the word Metro without coming out of nowhere with rants unrelated to the thread topic. PP, I am not sure what your problem is, but you are embarrassing yourself with these posts. Let's help the OP find their club without turning each thread into a "Metro sucks" thread. The OP is clearly not interested in Metro, their coaching, or the national stats.

This thread definitely took a left turn. I was the PP who suggested a regional club team should go to CHC. My DD played for a club level team (not Metro) that never did particularly well at CHC but always had fun and looked forward to it every year. Seems like others don’t share that opinion, and that’s ok. That was our experience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am the PP who keeps saying that regional clubs should not sign up for CHC. This was related to the topic that the OP was interested in (mid-level regional VB clubs). This latest PP hijacked the conversation and took it in a weird direction, complaining about the coaching quality at Metro and poor performance of Metro players. I noticed these bursts on many other threads - it feels like this poster cannot read the word Metro without coming out of nowhere with rants unrelated to the thread topic. PP, I am not sure what your problem is, but you are embarrassing yourself with these posts. Let's help the OP find their club without turning each thread into a "Metro sucks" thread. The OP is clearly not interested in Metro, their coaching, or the national stats.

This thread definitely took a left turn. I was the PP who suggested a regional club team should go to CHC. My DD played for a club level team (not Metro) that never did particularly well at CHC but always had fun and looked forward to it every year. Seems like others don’t share that opinion, and that’s ok. That was our experience.

+2
My Dd's team also played at CHC and did so more for the experience and exposure than winning title
It's 2 days of straight volleyball games (dream come true for my kid) against girls just like them from all over the country (and a few international) in a room with 135+ courts simultaneously games.

[Anonymous]

Let's focus on chc for middle level regional teams. If not chc, what's other options?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am the PP who keeps saying that regional clubs should not sign up for CHC. This was related to the topic that the OP was interested in (mid-level regional VB clubs). This latest PP hijacked the conversation and took it in a weird direction, complaining about the coaching quality at Metro and poor performance of Metro players. I noticed these bursts on many other threads - it feels like this poster cannot read the word Metro without coming out of nowhere with rants unrelated to the thread topic. PP, I am not sure what your problem is, but you are embarrassing yourself with these posts. Let's help the OP find their club without turning each thread into a "Metro sucks" thread. The OP is clearly not interested in Metro, their coaching, or the national stats.

This thread definitely took a left turn. I was the PP who suggested a regional club team should go to CHC. My DD played for a club level team (not Metro) that never did particularly well at CHC but always had fun and looked forward to it every year. Seems like others don’t share that opinion, and that’s ok. That was our experience.

+2
My Dd's team also played at CHC and did so more for the experience and exposure than winning title
It's 2 days of straight volleyball games (dream come true for my kid) against girls just like them from all over the country (and a few international) in a room with 135+ courts simultaneously games.

Again the PP who suggested that regional clubs should not go to CHC (quite obviously not a Metro fan). CHC goes for 3 days - you have at least one game on day 3, more if you don't get eliminated. I agree that different people can do the same thing and come out with a different opinion. I respect your opinions and thank you for sharing them with civility (you still didn't change mine). I feel like bringing up Metro was a mistake that finally led to rants about CHC being rigged and coaching at Metro being poor. Let's help OP find their club.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Last fall, somebody suggested the following for a good mid-level regional girls vb club:

Monument
X factor
NVVA (many levels and leagues)
St James (white team)
Alexandria titans
BRYC (American team, as opposed to National)

With another season down, any different thoughts? Looking for a club for my HS JV sophomore.

I could contribute to that list if you are looking for a club in MD, but - based on the list you provided - I assume that you are looking for a club in Northern Virginia.

I would love your suggestions for Maryland, PP! I have a 14 yo who started playing rec about a year ago and just made her HS team and wants to keep playing and learning this winter. Do kids mostly try out for club teams? Or should we just have her do a bunch of clinics? TIA

The top club in MD is MVSA, but it is very unlikely that a player with rec experience only would make any of their 14 teams. The next would be MOCO, where you may get on their lower tier teams with the JV experience. You have a better chance to make a higher level team in MEVC and Platform. The lower level clubs would be RVA and Experience. I recently learned about ECE, but I am not sure how competitive they are.

Thank you. This is helpful- I’ll look at these clubs. The director of the rec program also recommended MD Juniors. Do you know much about them? Do you think there’s value to playing for a team? It would one-off club clinics/teaching serve a newish player just as well? My DD LOVES it so much- just trying to help her keep learning.

I think a lot will depend on what's logistically possible depending on where you are in Maryland. In many age groups, Maryland Juniors is arguably the top club in MD over MVSA and is certainly stronger than MOCO. Liberty Elite has good reputation if Hagerstown is workable. Metro North and Metro East also practice in Maryland and are club level teams. DMV Elite, Platform, CEVA, and Columbia are other MD clubs that might be worth considering.

Thank you! There are so many clubs!! The drive from close-in Silver Spring to Jessup for summer workouts was pretty terrible. But a good carpool can make a long drive less terrible. Hagerstown, no.

Thanks for all the club suggestions- so, so many! I am going to see where they all practice to help figure out where to have her tryout.

Is playing on a club team (regional- it sounds like the high levels aren’t going to be an option- and that’s okay for us!) better than just doing clinics here and there? I think more time = more improvement , but I read some other stuff on here where people say that the lower level teams are just money grabs with just so-so coaching.

It’s all new to me- thanks for sharing, PPs!

Playing on a regional club team can be a great experience and will result in a lot more improvement than than just clinics or rec leagues. The number of touches a players gets practicing several times per week plus playing in many more tournaments on a club team is tough to compare to what you can get from clinics. I think narrowing by what is logistically practical is a good starting point, especially if your goals are fun and improvement and not trying to be recruited to play Division I. For close in Silver Spring, I'd probably prioritize MVSA, MOCO, Metro Central, possibly Metro North (although they practice in Frederick county which might be pretty far for you), and MEVC. MVSA is one of the better values in all of local club volleyball. Even their 2nd and 3rd teams are usually pretty solid, club fees are low, and they only take 10 players per team so everyone gets to play in tournaments. With that being the case, making even an MVSA 3rd team can be challenging, but it's worth trying out for sure. MOCO and Metro Central are probably the closest for you in terms of practice locations and they are usually pretty solid with experienced coaches. I've heard pretty good things about MEVC as well. DMV Elite is probably convenient for you, but I've heard they are on the expensive side and I don't know much about their program. They are the MD expansion of Vienna Elite, which is a club in NoVa that's been around for a long time.

On the issue of whether a particular club or team is a "money grab", perhaps I am overly optimistic, but I'd like to think that most clubs are formed with the intention of providing a good experience for its players and their families. My perception that there are some clubs probably charging too much for what they can offer, but with the demand for club volleyball increasing every year, they are still able to attract many players to their tryouts and fill up all their teams. So while it might not always be a great value, your DD can hopefully get a decent level of instruction and have some fun at most clubs. As has been discussed in numerous DCUM threads about volleyball, go to clinics in September and October at clubs you are considering and get a sense of what the club and people are like.

You have some pretty solid advice above. For your first year of volleyball your motto should be "a lower tier club is better than no club." You can try out for very good clubs (like MVSA), but have a safe option in the likely case that your kid won't make any of their teams. In terms of location (Silver Spring), RVA may also be close to you. The club is overly ambitious in terms of travel though. I heard that the quality of instruction is good, but they are not able to attract top players, so they don't win a lot. Coaches and many players are very comfortable speaking Spanish. Platform may also be a good option, but they are a bit further than MOCO and MEVC.

If you are looking for a regional team (less travel to tournaments), you should not aim for the top team in a club (they typically travel more and further away). The disadvantage may be the coaching quality. The best coaches in a club typically try to coach the top team in a specific age group. In some clubs (for example MVSA) you will get great coaching in most teams. However, other clubs struggle to attract and retain coaches for their bottom teams. Try to stay away from teams that don't have coaches listed on the club websites: that's a sign that they have not secured a coach - you may be surprised (either pleasantly or not quite pleasantly) when you eventually meet the coach.

One additional thought is that if you're looking for a regional team that doesn't travel too much that's great, but in my opinion a DMV based club team should at least attend the Capitol Hill Classic. If the team doesn't travel much, there won't be a lot of exposure to the big 3-day convention center tournaments which is perfectly fine, but going to Capitol Hill is a fun experience for the players and a highlight of many teams' seasons.

I feel differently about the Capitol Hill Classic. With a few exceptions (the elite teams in the area), all you learn is that your team needs a lot of work to compete against other teams that travel here for this tournament (this will be especially true if you find that mid-level regional team you are looking for). This lesson will come with a lot of disappointment and money wasted by the club to get the team in the tournament (on top of DC traffic, parking, and the price of admission). Most clubs could save the money and offer lower club fees (which most parents will likely appreciate).

Not quite worth it for regional level teams considering spectators ticket of $54, which is even higher than NIT. That tournament has turned into a Metro rigged games from every aspect. Agree with you to save the entrance fee and attend other tournaments.

Rigged? That seems like a pretty serious allegation- what’s your evidence? Are they paying the other teams to throw the matches? Paying the refs extra to make calls in Metro’s favor? Isn’t the more likely explanation that almost all the other high level teams in the country go to Triple Crown and therefore the level of competition at Cap Hill isn’t high? I mean if them games were actually rigged wouldn’t the Metro regional teams do better?

Seems new pp here, there is a dedicated discussion in this forum talked about capitol hill classic, go there reading and you will know

Oh I’m familiar with all the Metro hate on DCUM. They steal and poach players from other clubs, they hoard good players on Travel teams so they don’t go to other clubs, they don’t have good coaches, CHC is rigged, they should do better in the open divisions at nationals, their players get recruited to play in college but don’t succeed when they get there, and on and on and on. Always comes off as sour grapes to me. They’ve been top of the CHRVA heap for a while so there has to be something inappropriate going on. Couldn’t possibly be that it’s a good club that trains athletes well and therefore the best local players want to play for them and college coaches want to recruit their athletes.

I agree there is some Metro hate around here, but there are also unapologetic cheerleaders who find excuses for everything they do. I wrote that Metro focuses on their players and potential recruits at Metro clinics and pretty much ignores the others who show up. They happily take anyone's money and dumps the kids they are not interested in on the second court. Somebody immediately said that people should be aware of their kids' skills and place them in clinics at their level. As if everyone knows how Metro runs their clinics. Now I know and I stay away from Metro clinics, but I did waste a lot of money when I was not aware. Now the advice to join a club that goes to Capitol Hill Classic: why would you suggest that CHC is an experience that everyone should have? This is the CHC experience we had: fighting DC traffic, paying a ton of money for parking and to see our kids play, seeing them crushed by teams with a lot more experience. If someone is looking for a regional, mid-level club, I would not suggest that they select a club based on whether they participate at CHC. I feel like this advice is coming from the Metro family (either the club or a family affiliated with the club).

Do folks believe that the Capitol Hill Classic is run by Metro? There is some common history in that both the club that is now called Metro (was Metro American until 2014) and the Capitol Hill Classic were founded by the late American University volleyball coach, Barry Goldberg, but Metro as it exists today started in 2015. Barry's family (and others) continue to put on the CHC, but there hasn't been a direct tie to Metro in a long time. That said, the Metro club director played for and is very good friends with the Goldbergs and has said Metro will always go to the CHC out of respect for his legacy, but I don't think there is any direct financial benefit to Metro. Sure, all 30+ of their teams get into the tournament every year, while some other CHRVA clubs don't always get all their teams in, so there is some level of favoritism for Metro, but no one from Metro is directly involved in managing the tournament.

I love how disingenuous Metro is with all their social media posts, emphasizing "established in 2015" just because they made a slight name change to the club that had long already established itself as the dominant club in the Region (Metro had been around since 1999, when the legendary Barry Goldberg founded it). This is due to their Club Director's ego, not wanting others to know that she purchased and inherited what was already a top 45 club in the country. When she purchased the club in 2015, Metro was already getting the best players in the area and had already established itself as the top club in the area and a top 45 club in the country. She quickly silences anybody who refers to Metro by the old name ("Metro American"). When she purchased the club in 2015, Metro was already the 42nd ranked club in the country (Metro is "MAVBC")(https://drjvkwj92oep1.cloudfront.net/vb/2015/2015%20Final%20Club%20Rankings.pdf). Since taking over, they have only improved their ranking by 21 spots. This is akin to a person from a wealthy family inheriting their parent's company and then making it slightly more wealthy.

With all the hype surrounding Metro in the CHRVA Region, I wanted to provide a reality check. In contrast with Metro, Paramount was started from scratch in 2015, with only one team (a U16 team) that was comprised of players that other local clubs (VAJrs, VAE, etc.) had cut. Paramount was started in a market that was already dominated by Metro, and a market in which they were starting far behind other local clubs too (VAJRS, VAE, MDJRS, etc.). Paramount didn't even have teams in all age groups (U13-U18) until the 2021-22 season (you can't even be included in the national club rankings until you field at least three total teams from U14-U18). In six short years, Paramount climbed into the top 100 (85th) in 2022, and as of the 2024 rankings is now the 73rd ranked club in the country. In the last three years, they went from not being ranked to now being #73 (despite Metro still having the most raw talent).

Now, for those who think Cap. Classic is somehow rigged to make Metro win, that just isn't true/possible. While for all intents and purposes the Capitol Hill Classic is a Metro tournament (you'll see Metro jerseys and materials throughout the convention center), it is not technically theirs, and they don't have any say in the scheduling and don't receive any money from the tournament. Metro Travel teams by and large win Capitol Hill Classic because they are an open-level club with strong teams in a weak tournament, not because it is rigged. All of the top 100 clubs in the country (except Metro and Circle City) go to the Triple Crown NIT the same weekend as Capitol Hill Classic, so of course Metro is going to win Capitol Hill. As someone else mentioned, Metro doesn't go to NIT because of a contractual agreement that was made when the club was sold to the current owner, that Metro's teams would always play at Capitol Hill. Despite this, it is a clear advantage to Paramount to have their teams attending Triple Crown while Metro's teams play in a weak tournament.

At the risk of hijacking this thread further, I will add a couple of thoughts. While it’s true Paramount has developed into the 2nd best club in CHRVA in a relatively short time, it’s not all rainbows and unicorns either. 5 of 15 players on their 17s quit in the middle of last season and it seems like a pretty regular thing for players to quit like that. They were also accused of trying to recruit players from other clubs in the middle of the season a couple years back. While the full story is a little fuzzy, the rumors are they only got out of being sanctioned on some kind of procedural technicality.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Last fall, somebody suggested the following for a good mid-level regional girls vb club:

Monument
X factor
NVVA (many levels and leagues)
St James (white team)
Alexandria titans
BRYC (American team, as opposed to National)

With another season down, any different thoughts? Looking for a club for my HS JV sophomore.

I could contribute to that list if you are looking for a club in MD, but - based on the list you provided - I assume that you are looking for a club in Northern Virginia.

I would love your suggestions for Maryland, PP! I have a 14 yo who started playing rec about a year ago and just made her HS team and wants to keep playing and learning this winter. Do kids mostly try out for club teams? Or should we just have her do a bunch of clinics? TIA

The top club in MD is MVSA, but it is very unlikely that a player with rec experience only would make any of their 14 teams. The next would be MOCO, where you may get on their lower tier teams with the JV experience. You have a better chance to make a higher level team in MEVC and Platform. The lower level clubs would be RVA and Experience. I recently learned about ECE, but I am not sure how competitive they are.

Thank you. This is helpful- I’ll look at these clubs. The director of the rec program also recommended MD Juniors. Do you know much about them? Do you think there’s value to playing for a team? It would one-off club clinics/teaching serve a newish player just as well? My DD LOVES it so much- just trying to help her keep learning.

I think a lot will depend on what's logistically possible depending on where you are in Maryland. In many age groups, Maryland Juniors is arguably the top club in MD over MVSA and is certainly stronger than MOCO. Liberty Elite has good reputation if Hagerstown is workable. Metro North and Metro East also practice in Maryland and are club level teams. DMV Elite, Platform, CEVA, and Columbia are other MD clubs that might be worth considering.

Thank you! There are so many clubs!! The drive from close-in Silver Spring to Jessup for summer workouts was pretty terrible. But a good carpool can make a long drive less terrible. Hagerstown, no.

Thanks for all the club suggestions- so, so many! I am going to see where they all practice to help figure out where to have her tryout.

Is playing on a club team (regional- it sounds like the high levels aren’t going to be an option- and that’s okay for us!) better than just doing clinics here and there? I think more time = more improvement , but I read some other stuff on here where people say that the lower level teams are just money grabs with just so-so coaching.

It’s all new to me- thanks for sharing, PPs!

Playing on a regional club team can be a great experience and will result in a lot more improvement than than just clinics or rec leagues. The number of touches a players gets practicing several times per week plus playing in many more tournaments on a club team is tough to compare to what you can get from clinics. I think narrowing by what is logistically practical is a good starting point, especially if your goals are fun and improvement and not trying to be recruited to play Division I. For close in Silver Spring, I'd probably prioritize MVSA, MOCO, Metro Central, possibly Metro North (although they practice in Frederick county which might be pretty far for you), and MEVC. MVSA is one of the better values in all of local club volleyball. Even their 2nd and 3rd teams are usually pretty solid, club fees are low, and they only take 10 players per team so everyone gets to play in tournaments. With that being the case, making even an MVSA 3rd team can be challenging, but it's worth trying out for sure. MOCO and Metro Central are probably the closest for you in terms of practice locations and they are usually pretty solid with experienced coaches. I've heard pretty good things about MEVC as well. DMV Elite is probably convenient for you, but I've heard they are on the expensive side and I don't know much about their program. They are the MD expansion of Vienna Elite, which is a club in NoVa that's been around for a long time.

On the issue of whether a particular club or team is a "money grab", perhaps I am overly optimistic, but I'd like to think that most clubs are formed with the intention of providing a good experience for its players and their families. My perception that there are some clubs probably charging too much for what they can offer, but with the demand for club volleyball increasing every year, they are still able to attract many players to their tryouts and fill up all their teams. So while it might not always be a great value, your DD can hopefully get a decent level of instruction and have some fun at most clubs. As has been discussed in numerous DCUM threads about volleyball, go to clinics in September and October at clubs you are considering and get a sense of what the club and people are like.

You have some pretty solid advice above. For your first year of volleyball your motto should be "a lower tier club is better than no club." You can try out for very good clubs (like MVSA), but have a safe option in the likely case that your kid won't make any of their teams. In terms of location (Silver Spring), RVA may also be close to you. The club is overly ambitious in terms of travel though. I heard that the quality of instruction is good, but they are not able to attract top players, so they don't win a lot. Coaches and many players are very comfortable speaking Spanish. Platform may also be a good option, but they are a bit further than MOCO and MEVC.

If you are looking for a regional team (less travel to tournaments), you should not aim for the top team in a club (they typically travel more and further away). The disadvantage may be the coaching quality. The best coaches in a club typically try to coach the top team in a specific age group. In some clubs (for example MVSA) you will get great coaching in most teams. However, other clubs struggle to attract and retain coaches for their bottom teams. Try to stay away from teams that don't have coaches listed on the club websites: that's a sign that they have not secured a coach - you may be surprised (either pleasantly or not quite pleasantly) when you eventually meet the coach.

One additional thought is that if you're looking for a regional team that doesn't travel too much that's great, but in my opinion a DMV based club team should at least attend the Capitol Hill Classic. If the team doesn't travel much, there won't be a lot of exposure to the big 3-day convention center tournaments which is perfectly fine, but going to Capitol Hill is a fun experience for the players and a highlight of many teams' seasons.

I feel differently about the Capitol Hill Classic. With a few exceptions (the elite teams in the area), all you learn is that your team needs a lot of work to compete against other teams that travel here for this tournament (this will be especially true if you find that mid-level regional team you are looking for). This lesson will come with a lot of disappointment and money wasted by the club to get the team in the tournament (on top of DC traffic, parking, and the price of admission). Most clubs could save the money and offer lower club fees (which most parents will likely appreciate).

Not quite worth it for regional level teams considering spectators ticket of $54, which is even higher than NIT. That tournament has turned into a Metro rigged games from every aspect. Agree with you to save the entrance fee and attend other tournaments.

Rigged? That seems like a pretty serious allegation- what’s your evidence? Are they paying the other teams to throw the matches? Paying the refs extra to make calls in Metro’s favor? Isn’t the more likely explanation that almost all the other high level teams in the country go to Triple Crown and therefore the level of competition at Cap Hill isn’t high? I mean if them games were actually rigged wouldn’t the Metro regional teams do better?

Seems new pp here, there is a dedicated discussion in this forum talked about capitol hill classic, go there reading and you will know

Oh I’m familiar with all the Metro hate on DCUM. They steal and poach players from other clubs, they hoard good players on Travel teams so they don’t go to other clubs, they don’t have good coaches, CHC is rigged, they should do better in the open divisions at nationals, their players get recruited to play in college but don’t succeed when they get there, and on and on and on. Always comes off as sour grapes to me. They’ve been top of the CHRVA heap for a while so there has to be something inappropriate going on. Couldn’t possibly be that it’s a good club that trains athletes well and therefore the best local players want to play for them and college coaches want to recruit their athletes.

I agree there is some Metro hate around here, but there are also unapologetic cheerleaders who find excuses for everything they do. I wrote that Metro focuses on their players and potential recruits at Metro clinics and pretty much ignores the others who show up. They happily take anyone's money and dumps the kids they are not interested in on the second court. Somebody immediately said that people should be aware of their kids' skills and place them in clinics at their level. As if everyone knows how Metro runs their clinics. Now I know and I stay away from Metro clinics, but I did waste a lot of money when I was not aware. Now the advice to join a club that goes to Capitol Hill Classic: why would you suggest that CHC is an experience that everyone should have? This is the CHC experience we had: fighting DC traffic, paying a ton of money for parking and to see our kids play, seeing them crushed by teams with a lot more experience. If someone is looking for a regional, mid-level club, I would not suggest that they select a club based on whether they participate at CHC. I feel like this advice is coming from the Metro family (either the club or a family affiliated with the club).

Do folks believe that the Capitol Hill Classic is run by Metro? There is some common history in that both the club that is now called Metro (was Metro American until 2014) and the Capitol Hill Classic were founded by the late American University volleyball coach, Barry Goldberg, but Metro as it exists today started in 2015. Barry's family (and others) continue to put on the CHC, but there hasn't been a direct tie to Metro in a long time. That said, the Metro club director played for and is very good friends with the Goldbergs and has said Metro will always go to the CHC out of respect for his legacy, but I don't think there is any direct financial benefit to Metro. Sure, all 30+ of their teams get into the tournament every year, while some other CHRVA clubs don't always get all their teams in, so there is some level of favoritism for Metro, but no one from Metro is directly involved in managing the tournament.

I love how disingenuous Metro is with all their social media posts, emphasizing "established in 2015" just because they made a slight name change to the club that had long already established itself as the dominant club in the Region (Metro had been around since 1999, when the legendary Barry Goldberg founded it). This is due to their Club Director's ego, not wanting others to know that she purchased and inherited what was already a top 45 club in the country. When she purchased the club in 2015, Metro was already getting the best players in the area and had already established itself as the top club in the area and a top 45 club in the country. She quickly silences anybody who refers to Metro by the old name ("Metro American"). When she purchased the club in 2015, Metro was already the 42nd ranked club in the country (Metro is "MAVBC")(https://drjvkwj92oep1.cloudfront.net/vb/2015/2015%20Final%20Club%20Rankings.pdf). Since taking over, they have only improved their ranking by 21 spots. This is akin to a person from a wealthy family inheriting their parent's company and then making it slightly more wealthy.

With all the hype surrounding Metro in the CHRVA Region, I wanted to provide a reality check. In contrast with Metro, Paramount was started from scratch in 2015, with only one team (a U16 team) that was comprised of players that other local clubs (VAJrs, VAE, etc.) had cut. Paramount was started in a market that was already dominated by Metro, and a market in which they were starting far behind other local clubs too (VAJRS, VAE, MDJRS, etc.). Paramount didn't even have teams in all age groups (U13-U18) until the 2021-22 season (you can't even be included in the national club rankings until you field at least three total teams from U14-U18). In six short years, Paramount climbed into the top 100 (85th) in 2022, and as of the 2024 rankings is now the 73rd ranked club in the country. In the last three years, they went from not being ranked to now being #73 (despite Metro still having the most raw talent).

Now, for those who think Cap. Classic is somehow rigged to make Metro win, that just isn't true/possible. While for all intents and purposes the Capitol Hill Classic is a Metro tournament (you'll see Metro jerseys and materials throughout the convention center), it is not technically theirs, and they don't have any say in the scheduling and don't receive any money from the tournament. Metro Travel teams by and large win Capitol Hill Classic because they are an open-level club with strong teams in a weak tournament, not because it is rigged. All of the top 100 clubs in the country (except Metro and Circle City) go to the Triple Crown NIT the same weekend as Capitol Hill Classic, so of course Metro is going to win Capitol Hill. As someone else mentioned, Metro doesn't go to NIT because of a contractual agreement that was made when the club was sold to the current owner, that Metro's teams would always play at Capitol Hill. Despite this, it is a clear advantage to Paramount to have their teams attending Triple Crown while Metro's teams play in a weak tournament.

At the risk of hijacking this thread further, I will add a couple of thoughts. While it’s true Paramount has developed into the 2nd best club in CHRVA in a relatively short time, it’s not all rainbows and unicorns either. 5 of 15 players on their 17s quit in the middle of last season and it seems like a pretty regular thing for players to quit like that. They were also accused of trying to recruit players from other clubs in the middle of the season a couple years back. While the full story is a little fuzzy, the rumors are they only got out of being sanctioned on some kind of procedural technicality.

Can't you just stop, people? These stories get repeated over and over and it gets really frustrating for the regulars. Plus, these stories don't help the posters with their questions AT ALL. Just forget that you know all these very important extremely useless facts. Feel free to share them if the OP asks about Metro or Paramount, but is this really the thread to demonstrate your knowledge of useless information?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Let's focus on chc for middle level regional teams. If not chc, what's other options?

I would pick a club that is not very ambitious in terms of travel. There are so many local tournaments that it doesn't make sense to drive too far (or - even worse - fly somewhere). You can get a good idea where your local clubs go for tournaments by looking at their website. Most clubs post a list of tournaments they want to participate in each season. They might have the previous season posted if they didn't update for the new season. Entering the tournaments at an appropriate level could be a guessing game. The clubs book their tournaments early (long before the tryouts), otherwise they might not be accepted. The tournament organizers can be really slow and the clubs don't really know if they made it into specific tournaments. The top clubs have a pretty good idea how good their top teams are going to be, so they can enter the tournaments at an appropriate level. Less so for the regional teams. Lower tier clubs can have a good team this year and a weaker team next year (they never know how lucky they are with the players that show up at tryouts). Thus, they have a harder time entering the tournaments at an appropriate level.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's focus on chc for middle level regional teams. If not chc, what's other options?

I would pick a club that is not very ambitious in terms of travel. There are so many local tournaments that it doesn't make sense to drive too far (or - even worse - fly somewhere). You can get a good idea where your local clubs go for tournaments by looking at their website. Most clubs post a list of tournaments they want to participate in each season. They might have the previous season posted if they didn't update for the new season. Entering the tournaments at an appropriate level could be a guessing game. The clubs book their tournaments early (long before the tryouts), otherwise they might not be accepted. The tournament organizers can be really slow and the clubs don't really know if they made it into specific tournaments. The top clubs have a pretty good idea how good their top teams are going to be, so they can enter the tournaments at an appropriate level. Less so for the regional teams. Lower tier clubs can have a good team this year and a weaker team next year (they never know how lucky they are with the players that show up at tryouts). Thus, they have a harder time entering the tournaments at an appropriate level.

Local one day tournaments at MDJRs, Rockville Sportsplex, school gym, or other facility are fine, but not the same experience as a big convention center tournament. Maybe the National Harbor tournament is a good option instead of CHC? It’s a lot smaller, but local and multiple days. The JVA Charm City tournament in Baltimore is ok too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Let's focus on chc for middle level regional teams. If not chc, what's other options?

I would pick a club that is not very ambitious in terms of travel. There are so many local tournaments that it doesn't make sense to drive too far (or - even worse - fly somewhere). You can get a good idea where your local clubs go for tournaments by looking at their website. Most clubs post a list of tournaments they want to participate in each season. They might have the previous season posted if they didn't update for the new season. Entering the tournaments at an appropriate level could be a guessing game. The clubs book their tournaments early (long before the tryouts), otherwise they might not be accepted. The tournament organizers can be really slow and the clubs don't really know if they made it into specific tournaments. The top clubs have a pretty good idea how good their top teams are going to be, so they can enter the tournaments at an appropriate level. Less so for the regional teams. Lower tier clubs can have a good team this year and a weaker team next year (they never know how lucky they are with the players that show up at tryouts). Thus, they have a harder time entering the tournaments at an appropriate level.

Local one day tournaments at MDJRs, Rockville Sportsplex, school gym, or other facility are fine, but not the same experience as a big convention center tournament. Maybe the National Harbor tournament is a good option instead of CHC? It’s a lot smaller, but local and multiple days. The JVA Charm City tournament in Baltimore is ok too.

Any tournament at the St. James facility should be good enough for a regional team. Last season we went there for the CHRVA Non-Bid Regional Championship. It was much smaller than CHC, but large enough to give them the feeling of being part of something bigger (and way more appropriate for the level of our team). Once the players make it into a competitive team, CHC may become more feasible.

[Anonymous]

Not sure how we got from the original question to CHC to Metro to whatever... But what has two thumbs and is glad something like CHC is within easy driving distance (as opposed to Philly or Pitt or Fl or whatever)... THIS GUY.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Local one day tournaments at MDJRs, Rockville Sportsplex, school gym, or other facility are fine, but not the same experience as a big convention center tournament. Maybe the National Harbor tournament is a good option instead of CHC? It’s a lot smaller, but local and multiple days. The JVA Charm City tournament in Baltimore is ok too.

Here's a general guide:

CHRVA Regional 1 Day tournaments:
* 1 full day, 2-3 courts, 8-12 teams per age group
* Open level is usually good teams, and early season is often top teams in the region as they qualify for bid tournament.
* Club level is usually 1s teams from smaller clubs and 2s/3s teams from bigger clubs
* Mixed level usually has 2-3 open level teams and 3-5 club level. Good if you want a club level team to see what the next level of competition looks like.
* Notable Tournaments: Dozens of options all over the CHRVA region.

Regional 2/3 Day tournaments:
* 2-3 full days, 8-30 courts, up to 24-32 teams per age group
* Open level is usually best teams in region, and may have some from out of region that travel in as well
* National/USA level is usually next tier 1s teams
* Club is usually 2s teams from big clubs and 1s teams from smaller
* If there is only one division, then the competition is mixed.
* Notable Tournaments: National Harbor (Gaylord), Shamrock Showdown (St. James), Chesapeake Showdown (Adventist), AAU St. James Grand Prix, AAU Grand Prix Maryland

Regional Travel 2/3 Day tournaments:
* Travel tournaments that draw multiple regions, but are local to DMV
* 2-3 full days, 8-150 courts, up to 64 teams per age group
* Open level is usually best teams across multiple regions, including CHRVA
* National/Premier is usually very good 1s teams from CHRVA + other regions
* Club is usually very good 2s teams from other regions + smaller club 1s teams from CHRVA + larger clubs 2-3s teams from CHRVA.
* Notable Tournaments: Northeast Qualifier for 13s & 14s at National Harbor (Liberty & American Divisions), Capitol Hill, Charm City, Boys St. James AAU (national travel boys tournament) that also has a mixed division for girls.

Sure I missed some, so feel free to add if anyone has others.

If you want a mid-level regional team to experience a bigger tournament, the St. James and National Harbor tournaments are both good for this. Lots of local teams, no travel, large number of courts.

I'm biased, but I think every volleyball player should have the chance to experience at least one large "convention center" tournament. CHC is perfect for that, and even though its generally competitive across all divisions, mid-level regional club teams will usually still have fun playing in the club division. Just avoid Patriot and Open divisions, where the competition is much higher.

There are also a lot of good lower cost travel options to bigger tournaments, and having a travel tournament for this age group is usually a good bonding experience. York PA, Spooky Nook, PA, Richmond, VA all have more reasonable travel costs and are easily driveable.

As you tryout for clubs, you can use the tournament schedule to figure out the competitive level of the team:
* Mostly travel tournaments and open-level multi-day regional tournaments: Top team in region, likely very competitive to make.
* A few travel tournaments, club-level regional multi day tournaments and regional one day tournaments: Likely competitive, but easier to make than a top team.
* Mostly regional one day tournaments: Mid to low level regional team, likely easiest team to make.

[Anonymous]

I feel like I’m one of the only / few humans in the volleyball universe who don’t see the appeal of CHC. Especially if you are local DC. So expensive, loud, bizarre seeding every year we’ve been, unhealthy food, expensive spectator tickets, overpriced hard to find parking, and insane traffic. Last year our team literally worked to find quiet hiding places it was such an auditory overload. We always make it a good time but I just don’t see the appeal

I guess if you really think a massive convention center tournament experience is important at least you don’t have to pay for hotel costs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I feel like I’m one of the only / few humans in the volleyball universe who don’t see the appeal of CHC. Especially if you are local DC. So expensive, loud, bizarre seeding every year we’ve been, unhealthy food, expensive spectator tickets, overpriced hard to find parking, and insane traffic. Last year our team literally worked to find quiet hiding places it was such an auditory overload. We always make it a good time but I just don’t see the appeal

I guess if you really think a massive convention center tournament experience is important at least you don’t have to pay for hotel costs.

Adding most importantly I wouldn’t pick a regional team because they do or don’t go to CHC.

[Anonymous]

Our mid-level club in NoVA sent its 1-2s teams to Orlando instead of CHC. Why? All that resulted were a bunch of annoyed parents who had to spend $$$ on air and hotel for Presidents Day weekend in Florida to watch their girls lose instead of driving 30 min to CHC to watch their girls lose. Again, why? At one point I think the 1s and 2s teams even played each other in Florida during bracket play.