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New question ... is CHRVA the only region that has club team tryouts in November?
A random sampling of clubs leads me to believe that other regions can have their tryouts early. Am I misunderstanding something?
Pittsburgh, PA area Sky Elite: https://www.skyelitevolleyball.com/girlsvbtryouts
Plano, TX Mad Frogs: https://www.madfrogsports.com/tryouts
Columbus, OH Mintonette VBC: https://www.mintonettesports.com/tryouts/2023-24/index
A random sampling of clubs leads me to believe that other regions can have their tryouts early. Am I misunderstanding something?
Pittsburgh, PA area Sky Elite: https://www.skyelitevolleyball.com/girlsvbtryouts
Plano, TX Mad Frogs: https://www.madfrogsports.com/tryouts
Columbus, OH Mintonette VBC: https://www.mintonettesports.com/tryouts/2023-24/index
My kid had been getting training for years through FPYC. Coack Amir Kazim later separated his efforts under the Premier Keepers label (https://www.premierkeepers.com/). Amir himself is now on a foreign service detail ... and my kid has moved to another sport, but I'm confident that Amir did his due diligence in building his staff. I'd ask the local club if they have a relationship with Premier Keepers.
I just saw the Bender Blue Out flyer as well. American hadn't posted their schedule online until some time yesterday.
So. here's my attempt to map out the DC Challenge ...
25 Aug 6PM: George Washington @ American
25 Aug 6PM: Georgetown @ Howard
26 Aug 1PM: George Washington @ Howard
26 Aug 2PM: American @ George Mason
26 Aug 7PM: Georgetown @ George Mason
27 Aug 2PM: Howard @ George Mason
27 Aug 2PM or 4PM: Georgetown @ American (GU lists 2PM; AU lists 4PM)
Posted schedules:
AU: https://aueagles.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule
GU: https://guhoyas.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule
GMU: https://gomason.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule
GWU: https://gwsports.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule
HU: https://hubison.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule
...
MSU: https://morganstatebears.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule
TU: https://towsontigers.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule
UMd: https://umterps.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule (only conference matches listed as of 20230720)
So. here's my attempt to map out the DC Challenge ...
25 Aug 6PM: George Washington @ American
25 Aug 6PM: Georgetown @ Howard
26 Aug 1PM: George Washington @ Howard
26 Aug 2PM: American @ George Mason
26 Aug 7PM: Georgetown @ George Mason
27 Aug 2PM: Howard @ George Mason
27 Aug 2PM or 4PM: Georgetown @ American (GU lists 2PM; AU lists 4PM)
Posted schedules:
AU: https://aueagles.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule
GU: https://guhoyas.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule
GMU: https://gomason.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule
GWU: https://gwsports.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule
HU: https://hubison.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule
...
MSU: https://morganstatebears.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule
TU: https://towsontigers.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule
UMd: https://umterps.com/sports/womens-volleyball/schedule (only conference matches listed as of 20230720)
Thanks for the insights.
My kid has been attending college-hosted VB camps this month. She spent a week at the overnight JMU camps (brought home the camp-wide "MVP Award" for her position) and spent the weekend at GMU day camps supposedly holding her own against some incoming GMU signees. She's been at American thus far thus week, but will go back to GMU for two more days. We had signed her up for these camps much earlier in the year, before we really knew how the club season would progress ... and long before many clubs announced their summer offerings. If anything, she is getting some reps in front of some college coaches/staffers a year before anyone can really talk to her. HS tryouts start August 1, so she should be prepared for a solid showing (not like any of her school's teams fared well last year ... maybe 10 total wins across the varsity, JV, and freshman teams).
I do wish TSJ would build/leverage/enhance its relationship with GMU, given the proximity. As an alum, I'd love to see the school try to develop TSJ as a potential pipeline for talent (it's not like GMU is already a powerhouse in the sport). I get the sense that the connection with the men's VB program is in decent shape. Extending that relationship to the women's program should be a "win-win," if done properly.
As an example, five DC area women's programs (G'town, Howard, American, GW, and GMU) are again participating in the "DC Challenge" the weekend before Labor Day. I have yet to find a unified schedule, but it appears that there will be matches hosted at GMU and Howard. It seems like TSJ could be a great venue to host all matches in a single location. I don't know how well women's college VB matches are attended, but I'd think TSJ could easily handle it ... and many local club teams could make for a great audience.
My kid has been attending college-hosted VB camps this month. She spent a week at the overnight JMU camps (brought home the camp-wide "MVP Award" for her position) and spent the weekend at GMU day camps supposedly holding her own against some incoming GMU signees. She's been at American thus far thus week, but will go back to GMU for two more days. We had signed her up for these camps much earlier in the year, before we really knew how the club season would progress ... and long before many clubs announced their summer offerings. If anything, she is getting some reps in front of some college coaches/staffers a year before anyone can really talk to her. HS tryouts start August 1, so she should be prepared for a solid showing (not like any of her school's teams fared well last year ... maybe 10 total wins across the varsity, JV, and freshman teams).
I do wish TSJ would build/leverage/enhance its relationship with GMU, given the proximity. As an alum, I'd love to see the school try to develop TSJ as a potential pipeline for talent (it's not like GMU is already a powerhouse in the sport). I get the sense that the connection with the men's VB program is in decent shape. Extending that relationship to the women's program should be a "win-win," if done properly.
As an example, five DC area women's programs (G'town, Howard, American, GW, and GMU) are again participating in the "DC Challenge" the weekend before Labor Day. I have yet to find a unified schedule, but it appears that there will be matches hosted at GMU and Howard. It seems like TSJ could be a great venue to host all matches in a single location. I don't know how well women's college VB matches are attended, but I'd think TSJ could easily handle it ... and many local club teams could make for a great audience.
The St. James (TSJ) 15 Navy parent here ...
Without going down too many rabbit holes, I'll claim that my DD's experience with the team was a positive one overall.
I don't know if a better sports facility exists in the DC region. If there is, I'd want to know what/where it is. The club/team fees seem to be inline with all other area clubs.
I .. nor my DD ... had any issues with the 15 Navy coaches or other players/families. My kid didn't interact too much with other club coaches, but I certainly don't have anything negative to say.
This club will be one that we will consider for DD's U16 club season. I asked the 15 Navy coaches if they would be returning to TSJ, and they both stated that they want to come back. I had heard earlier in the season that the coaches may not be moving up to U16 next year, but ... at the time ... that was way too early to confirm.
I understand that some of the 15 Navy players (the ones that are in the Class of 2025) will be moving up to U17 to be in a better position to play U18 after their senior HS season. There were two or three 14yo players (Class of 2026 with "late" birthdays) on the team that I suspect will be pursuing spots on U16 teams ... again, with the intent of playing U18 as HS seniors. To my knowledge, no parent outwardly said that they weren't coming back to TSJ, but it wouldn't surprise me if players pursue other opportunities (within club volleyball or otherwise).
The challenge for my player is finding other clubs that are at least at the same "level" as TSJ and still work for us logistically (getting to practices, minimal scheduling conflicts with other household activities, etc.). Sure, it is easy to look up to Metro and Paramount as the standards. At this point, I'm not sure those clubs work well for us logistically. Mind you, I'd love for her to tryout at both clubs so she can see where she stands as an individual player. So, the question becomes "what are the 'next best' clubs that are based relatively close to the VA side of the Beltway?" I've chatted with a VA Elite 15 parent (acquaintance originally from another youth sport) and I understand that club uses the Madeira School. BRYC is a no-go based on a bad experience we had before pursuing club play. DD would have loved to have played for the DMV Elite 16s last season, but that was a bit of a stretch as DD was simply too new for club play. We don't want TSJ to be DD's only option ... and it seems were are running out of other options ... without having to drive well beyond Fairfax County.
Without going down too many rabbit holes, I'll claim that my DD's experience with the team was a positive one overall.
I don't know if a better sports facility exists in the DC region. If there is, I'd want to know what/where it is. The club/team fees seem to be inline with all other area clubs.
I .. nor my DD ... had any issues with the 15 Navy coaches or other players/families. My kid didn't interact too much with other club coaches, but I certainly don't have anything negative to say.
This club will be one that we will consider for DD's U16 club season. I asked the 15 Navy coaches if they would be returning to TSJ, and they both stated that they want to come back. I had heard earlier in the season that the coaches may not be moving up to U16 next year, but ... at the time ... that was way too early to confirm.
I understand that some of the 15 Navy players (the ones that are in the Class of 2025) will be moving up to U17 to be in a better position to play U18 after their senior HS season. There were two or three 14yo players (Class of 2026 with "late" birthdays) on the team that I suspect will be pursuing spots on U16 teams ... again, with the intent of playing U18 as HS seniors. To my knowledge, no parent outwardly said that they weren't coming back to TSJ, but it wouldn't surprise me if players pursue other opportunities (within club volleyball or otherwise).
The challenge for my player is finding other clubs that are at least at the same "level" as TSJ and still work for us logistically (getting to practices, minimal scheduling conflicts with other household activities, etc.). Sure, it is easy to look up to Metro and Paramount as the standards. At this point, I'm not sure those clubs work well for us logistically. Mind you, I'd love for her to tryout at both clubs so she can see where she stands as an individual player. So, the question becomes "what are the 'next best' clubs that are based relatively close to the VA side of the Beltway?" I've chatted with a VA Elite 15 parent (acquaintance originally from another youth sport) and I understand that club uses the Madeira School. BRYC is a no-go based on a bad experience we had before pursuing club play. DD would have loved to have played for the DMV Elite 16s last season, but that was a bit of a stretch as DD was simply too new for club play. We don't want TSJ to be DD's only option ... and it seems were are running out of other options ... without having to drive well beyond Fairfax County.
We made the jump from travel/club soccer (not at the highest level) after six years to travel/club volleyball for my 9th grader this year.
While Virginia Elite isn't our club, the fees they list (which is all-inclusive) is about what we've paid when considering travel to tournaments (family of 4):
https://www.vaelite.com/club-fees
I doubt we had ever paid over $2K for 12 months of club soccer, but we also never traveled any farther than Fredericksburg or Winchester from NoVA. THe longest trip I can remember was a single weekend match in Hollywood, MD.
While Virginia Elite isn't our club, the fees they list (which is all-inclusive) is about what we've paid when considering travel to tournaments (family of 4):
https://www.vaelite.com/club-fees
I doubt we had ever paid over $2K for 12 months of club soccer, but we also never traveled any farther than Fredericksburg or Winchester from NoVA. THe longest trip I can remember was a single weekend match in Hollywood, MD.
Fine. Turned 48 earlier this year. Salary below SSWB (like 5-figures lower). Here are my retirement/investment accounts (down from a peak of $3.25M at the start of 2022) :
Personal Capital snippet (as of this morning)
FWIW, it's not easy to attach an image here, so I'm using Google Drive.
Spouse (also turning 48) currently earns about $70K+ more but doesn't have as much already saved for retirement. So, that's sub-$350K HHI. Meh 40-year-old SFH (bought for $500K, recently assessed by locality at $660K, still owe slightly more than half of assessed).
I have to challenge the notion that a credit union isn't a good solution. I got my first CU account early on in college and I'm still a member today (... 30 years later). The closest branch to this Richmond-based CU is still nearly an hour's drive south from NoVA and I've had no issues. I went to grad school out-of-state, again with no issues. I joined a second CU (local to NoVA) after getting married and our kids now have accounts there.
With online banking, I've never had any issue that couldn't be easily resolved. I think I've needed an in-branch service maybe once every three or so years, and I've used the CU service center option a few times over the decades.
The only non-CU financial service I've needed were my home purchases (one condo and then a later upgrade to SFH). Each time, I went through a mortgage broker, which ultimately did not involve a "national" bank or any institution where I had previous experience.
As far as I am concerned, I think a credit union can meet your stated need.
With online banking, I've never had any issue that couldn't be easily resolved. I think I've needed an in-branch service maybe once every three or so years, and I've used the CU service center option a few times over the decades.
The only non-CU financial service I've needed were my home purchases (one condo and then a later upgrade to SFH). Each time, I went through a mortgage broker, which ultimately did not involve a "national" bank or any institution where I had previous experience.
As far as I am concerned, I think a credit union can meet your stated need.
My 9th grader is at another Fairfax school, so I cannot comment on Lewis ... or any other. But it seems that softball may have a large hill to climb nationally. If I am not mistaken, softball competes for players with track and field, soccer, lacrosse, tennis, and crew in the spring. My kid is doing club volleyball this winter and spring, and based on the 2023 tournaments we've attended, there are lots of girls who are pursing that sport outside of their schools' teams. I'm sure someone could post a similarly long list of non-sport activities that vie for time ... all beyond their academics.
Top HS sports for girls nationwide (2022: https://www.nfhs.org/articles/nfhs-releases-first-high-school-sports-participation-survey-in-three-years/):
Track & Field
Volleyball
Soccer
Basketball
Softball
Cross country
Swimming and diving
Competitive spirit
"Volleyball continued its rise in popularity among girls sports and was the only top 10 sport to register an increase from three years ago. With 454,153 participants, volleyball is only 2,500 participants behind track and field for the No. 1 participatory sport for girls. In addition, the emerging sport of girls sand/beach volleyball increased from 2,237 to 6,489 participants.
Among other girls top 10 sports, soccer moved ahead of basketball to No. 3 behind track and field and volleyball, with softball remaining fifth. Cross country, swimming and diving, and competitive spirit registered the biggest declines the past three years among top 10 sports with 13-percent drops."
Top HS sports for girls nationwide (2022: https://www.nfhs.org/articles/nfhs-releases-first-high-school-sports-participation-survey-in-three-years/):
Track & Field
Volleyball
Soccer
Basketball
Softball
Cross country
Swimming and diving
Competitive spirit
"Volleyball continued its rise in popularity among girls sports and was the only top 10 sport to register an increase from three years ago. With 454,153 participants, volleyball is only 2,500 participants behind track and field for the No. 1 participatory sport for girls. In addition, the emerging sport of girls sand/beach volleyball increased from 2,237 to 6,489 participants.
Among other girls top 10 sports, soccer moved ahead of basketball to No. 3 behind track and field and volleyball, with softball remaining fifth. Cross country, swimming and diving, and competitive spirit registered the biggest declines the past three years among top 10 sports with 13-percent drops."
I just received a summer camps announcement from AU earlier today. Here's there site: https://www.americanvolleyballcamps.com/calendar
Howard: https://www.howardvolleyballcamps.com/ (the lone offering appears to be sold out)
Corey Somerville lists a few offerings he'll have at The Campus in Capitol Heights (scroll down): https://www.coachcorey21.com/
I'm on the other side of the river, so I'm sure there's a ton more that I've never encountered.
Howard: https://www.howardvolleyballcamps.com/ (the lone offering appears to be sold out)
Corey Somerville lists a few offerings he'll have at The Campus in Capitol Heights (scroll down): https://www.coachcorey21.com/
I'm on the other side of the river, so I'm sure there's a ton more that I've never encountered.
Not much left in CCL in Northern VA/DC/MD
http://clubchampionsleague.demosphere.com/
I presume NCSL is absorbing anything else not named ECNL(-RL)/GA/MLS Next.
http://ncsl-soccer.com/schedules-and-results
http://clubchampionsleague.demosphere.com/
I presume NCSL is absorbing anything else not named ECNL(-RL)/GA/MLS Next.
http://ncsl-soccer.com/schedules-and-results
DD2 is liking her AAP experience thus far at PES. As far as I know, there is a single 3rd grade AAP classroom with 22 or 23 kids. She tells me that three or four kids come into the class in the mornings for (advanced) math. AART has been top-notch for both of my kids.
I'm on the other side of The City, but it is interesting to see that Providence seems to have 5x the AAP enrollment numbers of Daniels Run going back to 2019.
DRES Profile (without emojis):
PES Profile:
We moved DD1 to Mosby-Woods-pre-Mosaic for AAP prior to PES having a full Level IV offering. She nearly completed her 6th grade year there at MWES before the COVID shutdown. DD2 is now in her first AAP year at PES (3rd grade).
DRES Profile (without emojis):
PES Profile:
We moved DD1 to Mosby-Woods-pre-Mosaic for AAP prior to PES having a full Level IV offering. She nearly completed her 6th grade year there at MWES before the COVID shutdown. DD2 is now in her first AAP year at PES (3rd grade).
If I'm reading the coaches pages correctly on the club websites, there are BOC coaches at Virginia Elite and Vienna Elite.
Bishop O'Connell (private) ==> Virginia Elite and Vienna Elite
Flint Hill (private) ==> Arrington Elite (not a club, but ...) and Metro (is it "just" Arrington that's affiliated)?
Colgan (PWCPS) ==> American, 540 VB Academy
There may be one coach from SEED DC who has a team at The St. James, but I cannot yet independently confirm.
Bishop O'Connell (private) ==> Virginia Elite and Vienna Elite
Flint Hill (private) ==> Arrington Elite (not a club, but ...) and Metro (is it "just" Arrington that's affiliated)?
Colgan (PWCPS) ==> American, 540 VB Academy
There may be one coach from SEED DC who has a team at The St. James, but I cannot yet independently confirm.
The PrepDig comments reminded me to ask a question ...
Is there a spreadsheet or some document out there that matches area high school coaches with some of the travel clubs (i.e., the varsity coach at XYZ High is also the 16s coach at ABC club)?
DD is only a year into her club VB adventure, but I think I've picked up a few "relationships." Do I have these right? Are there others?
Bishop O'Connell (private) ==> Vienna Elite
Flint Hill (private) ==> Arrington Elite (not a club, but ...) and Metro (is it "just" Arrington that's affiliated)?
Colgan (PWCPS) ==> American
Is there a spreadsheet or some document out there that matches area high school coaches with some of the travel clubs (i.e., the varsity coach at XYZ High is also the 16s coach at ABC club)?
DD is only a year into her club VB adventure, but I think I've picked up a few "relationships." Do I have these right? Are there others?
Bishop O'Connell (private) ==> Vienna Elite
Flint Hill (private) ==> Arrington Elite (not a club, but ...) and Metro (is it "just" Arrington that's affiliated)?
Colgan (PWCPS) ==> American