Anonymous wrote:Keep in mind that a lot of players who return to their clubs aren't necessarily attending the club clinics, so you can assume that there are even better players who will get club spots that are not attending the pre-tryout clinic.

I completely agree with this. My DD made the top division in the MVSA league, but she didn't get any offer from MVSA (not even on their bottom team). She was on the top court during MOCO clinics, but she didn't get any offer from MOCO. If you end up on the bottom court during club clinics, it is safe to assume that you would not make a team.

Keep in mind that a lot of players who return to their clubs aren't necessarily attending the club clinics, so you can assume that there are even better players who will get club spots that are not attending the pre-tryout clinic.

TerpShooters wrote:Hello, we live in the Arlington area and my daughter has yet to play club (likely parent error missing primary tryout dates last year), although she made her Freshman and now JV volleyball teams. She made great strides by grinding through clinics and coed play at St James and Ace Volleyball, really the only options for her age in the area during club season.

We have talked to friends (and parents of teammates) whose daughters played in various clubs last season (Metro, Vienna, Mojo, St James, VA Elite, X Factor…). We noted their opinions but they are primarily a sample size of one. Curious to combine with the experience of others based on coaches and development considering my daughter’s size and skill.

She is a 5’4” but long armed DS, elite passing skills, weaker with overhand back row hits and sets. Would like her to continue developing the latter skills while playing DS.

Any guidance would be great!

I agree with the advice the shoot for a mid-tier club and using AES National rankings are a reasonable place to start. Freshman and JV volleyball barely resemble the volleyball played by high level 16s club teams. While it’s possible your DD is an amazing player, I would think a player with truly “elite” passing skills (even a 9th grader) would make her HS varsity team.

Clinics are a good way to see how your DD’s skills match up to the level at various clubs. Most clubs will break girls up onto courts by skill level during the course of a clinic. It’s generally really obvious which is the top court. If your DD isn’t sorted onto that court, her chances of making the top team at that club are probably small.

FPYCparent wrote:Fair point on what to do with the rankings.

Only use the national rankings to compare one team to another based on last year's results. If your player tries out for a team that finished in the top 200 nationally and one team that finished #2954, you might expect that the top-200 team might be a bit tougher to make than the other.

I think I looked at last year's U17 teams earlier today for the spreadsheet (see other thread). There was 3600 or teams in the U17 group. I think it is reasonable to think that a team in the 1000 to 2000 range may be a good target for s first-time player. Our area (the Chesapeake region) isn't super strong across all age groups, so just manage expectations.

I would suggest the team in the 1000-2000 range to be a reach club (where you try hoping that you get an offer if all the stars align during the tryouts). For a decent chance of making a U16 team with no club experience, I would look at the bottom 50% teams. If you find clubs with multiple teams per age group, you compete for both higher ranked teams and for the lower ranked teams at the same time. Consider yourself extremely lucky if you make the higher ranked team, but be realistic and hope that you would make the lower ranked team.

Anonymous wrote:And St. James has a full bar.

The food is good and if you want a gym membership and can afford a lot of extra money on top of club fees, they will be happy to sell you a membership. You can then get priority parking. I forgot about that.

Still, last time we were there for a tournament I was in such a bad mood about the parking I didn’t even go to the bar. I did eat there and it was good.

And St. James has a full bar.

Anonymous wrote:You have some good advice above and still have time to go to clinics. For a first time club player as you described at U16 and your location, I would go to some clinics and consider trying out at X Factor, Vienna Elite, NVVA and Metro regional.

Personally, I can’t stand the parking at St. James so I’d skip it just for that.

But the food at St. James is so much better than anyone else!

I do mean that, but yes, I'm joking about that being a serious reason to try out for them

You have some good advice above and still have time to go to clinics. For a first time club player as you described at U16 and your location, I would go to some clinics and consider trying out at X Factor, Vienna Elite, NVVA and Metro regional.

Personally, I can’t stand the parking at St. James so I’d skip it just for that.

Fair point on what to do with the rankings.

Only use the national rankings to compare one team to another based on last year's results. If your player tries out for a team that finished in the top 200 nationally and one team that finished #2954, you might expect that the top-200 team might be a bit tougher to make than the other.

I think I looked at last year's U17 teams earlier today for the spreadsheet (see other thread). There was 3600 or teams in the U17 group. I think it is reasonable to think that a team in the 1000 to 2000 range may be a good target for a first-time player. Our area (the Chesapeake region) isn't super strong across all age groups, so just manage expectations.

Anonymous wrote:Just curious, who at the clinics your daughter attended said she should try for travel in her first club season? Who deemed her to have "elite passing skills"? Just wondering if you might be shooting yourself in your collective family feet by going only for travel teams at the start of tryouts and risking not getting anything and it also being too late for any good clubs she might have made it onto?

I second this post. When my DD was in rec, I thought very highly of her skills myself. I thought Metro Travel would be lucky to have her on its roster. Then the reality hit and she didn't get any offers from the clubs we tried out for. The first answer on this thread told you how to find the rankings, but there was no advice what to do with those rankings. At U16 with no club experience it is highly unlikely to make any of the teams that are ranked in the top 50%. Focus your search on the bottom 50% and cross your fingers. The clubs that have teams both in the top and in the bottom 50% would be ideal to try out for because you pay for one tryout and you have chances to make the bottom team. But you won't be hitting your head against the wall that you didn't try to make it in good teams.

Just curious, who at the clinics your daughter attended said she should try for travel in her first club season? Who deemed her to have "elite passing skills"? Just wondering if you might be shooting yourself in your collective family feet by going only for travel teams at the start of tryouts and risking not getting anything and it also being too late for any good clubs she might have made it onto?

Good advice. Also consider that for most HS teams U16 club teams are significantly better than JV teams and many are better than varsity teams. A good way to determine the types of clubs to tryout for is to look at what clubs the players on your HS teams play for. If your varsity players all play for highly ranked club teams but your JV is a mix of lower ranked club players and/or non-club players, you need to adjust your expectations accordingly.

There's a big difference between the clubs you mentioned. At 16s X-Factor, Vienna Elite (all teams) and St. James 2s tend to have teams at the lower end of the rankings. Metro regionals are hit and miss -- South FX and Central tends to be in the same group as X-Factor, Vienna Elite and St. James but sometimes they are a bit better than those clubs.

Mojo pink and St. James 1s are in the middle of the pack. VA Elite and Mojo Black tend to have very good players at U16, including players that are likely to commit to play in college.

FPYCparent wrote:For the first year of travel VB, I'd start with a map and draw a circle (or some relevant shape) that encompasses how far you may be willing to drive one-way on any given weeknight. Take rush-hour traffic into consideration. Look for clubs that practice within that circle ... and that are within your budget.

After that first year, you can expand the club search to the one's you/your player got to see in-person during the first season.

I's also check out last year's rankings (https://advancedeventsystems.com/rankings/Female/U15/aes, for example) to get a realistic sense of where these teams fared. Select 24-25 from the Historical Seasons list, filter on the Chesapeake region, and tick the national ranks checkbox.

That's great advice. I can't think of anything else anyone could say, that sums it all up very well.

For the first year of travel VB, I'd start with a map and draw a circle (or some relevant shape) that encompasses how far you may be willing to drive one-way on any given weeknight. Take rush-hour traffic into consideration. Look for clubs that practice within that circle ... and that are within your budget.

After that first year, you can expand the club search to the one's you/your player got to see in-person during the first season.

I's also check out last year's rankings (https://advancedeventsystems.com/rankings/Female/U15/aes, for example) to get a realistic sense of where these teams fared. Select 24-25 from the Historical Seasons list, filter on the Chesapeake region, and tick the national ranks checkbox.

Hello, we live in the Arlington area and my daughter has yet to play club (likely parent error missing primary tryout dates last year), although she made her Freshman and now JV volleyball teams. She made great strides by grinding through clinics and coed play at St James and Ace Volleyball, really the only options for her age in the area during club season.

We have talked to friends (and parents of teammates) whose daughters played in various clubs last season (Metro, Vienna, Mojo, St James, VA Elite, X Factor…). We noted their opinions but they are primarily a sample size of one. Curious to combine with the experience of others based on coaches and development considering my daughter’s size and skill.

She is a 5’4” but long armed DS, elite passing skills, weaker with overhand back row hits and sets. Would like her to continue developing the latter skills while playing DS.

Any guidance would be great!