Did Paramount form a third 14s team?

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But there is a difference between whether they play open and whether they SHOULD play open. Just because MOJO decided to sign up for the open level, it doesn't mean they are competitive at that level. This is what What I noticed with our team: every time we play close to our (true) level, the games are more competitive and the players have a lot of fun, even when they lose the game. When we pretend to play a higher level volleyball, we are being crushed, the games suck, and the girls are demoralized. There are good reasons to play close to your level, rather than get the players and the parents frustrated.

So, back to the question, who would you suggest in northern Va as high performing?

1. Paramount
2. VA Juniors
3. VA Elites
4. American

I don't know that I would put VA Elite as #3. They occasionally have a strong team in a particular age group, but American, Loudoun Elite, Libero, and others had higher national rankings in most age groups last season. And if you include Blue Ridge as "northern VA", they would be #2 in my list.

Overall, Blue Ridge usually outperforms Paramount. Over the past two years the Blue Ridge teams outranked Paramount 1s in nearly all age groups at least once and sometimes twice. They are also the only competitive beach program in the area and as a result their players generally develop as very good all around volleyball players, especially at the younger ages. Some players spend their entire club career with them and their training success really shows. Despite being in a much smaller population area they compete with all of the top teams in the region.

Because Blue Ridge doesn't generally pursue USAV bids and Paramount uses bids as their main marketing draw, Blue Ridge often gets overshadowed. When they do go for bids they usually win one. And in head to head matches Blue Ridge does very well against Paramount especially at the youngest and oldest ages. Plus they are less than half the cost of Paramount.

Blue Ridge runs a great program. Their combination of indoor and beach is wonderful. Every club should consider doing indoor and beach together. Wish there is another club close to DC doing that.

NVVA has a beach court and the teams all have a few practices each season on that court. The quality of the club isn't close to Blue Ridge, but their facility is very nice.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That doesn’t seem to answer the question of limited experience or “new” coaches on their site. Coach quality is a consistent complaint. Now adding a bunch of new teams on an area already stressed by limited coach availability. You get fresh out of college coaches or those with limited actual coaching experience there. Or both. Metro doesn’t seem to suffer for that issue to the same extend.

Paramount qualifying 9 teams for the 2025 GJNC (which was 2 more teams than Metro qualified) would seem to prove that Paramount doesn't have a problem with providing qualified coaches. If Metro's coaching staff is so superior, why did they only qualify 7 teams?

No one actually said metro was so superior, but arguing that Paramount coaches are great bc teams made qualifiers is also a stretch.

Building a reputation, attracting high caliber players, and happily picking off players from other clubs that trained them present coaches with an a group of players with very high degree of talent. Unless they’re idiots or a$$holes it would be hard not to be able to make something big out of that, for at least one season. You can’t however fairly argue that the caliber of coaches at Paramount rival the Metro staff in terms of longevity and experience. There are a few great more experienced coaches at Paramount but a lot of inexperience and/or fresh-er from college.

Have never tracked turnover in club coaches but maybe someone else has who can inform the discussion with data points vs opinions. Be helpful to see that. The talent pool of great coaches even when you consider the dmv or just d-v is only so large. You can’t however fairly steal them or you can grow them. Kind of like players I guess.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:That doesn’t seem to answer the question of limited experience or “new” coaches on their site. Coach quality is a consistent complaint. Now adding a bunch of new teams on an area already stressed by limited coach availability. You get fresh out of college coaches or those with limited actual coaching experience there. Or both. Metro doesn’t seem to suffer for that issue to the same extend.

Paramount qualifying 9 teams for the 2025 GJNC (which was 2 more teams than Metro qualified) would seem to prove that Paramount doesn't have a problem with providing qualified coaches. If Metro's coaching staff is so superior, why did they only qualify 7 teams?

It’s usually only the Metro Travel teams (and sometimes North) that play in qualifiers, so last year they had seven travel teams that I believe all qualified. This year they added 11 Travel and the three National teams, so at least eleven teams will be competing for USAV bids.

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Anonymous wrote:Guys, get the popcorn. This is going to be good.

Meh. Just click back to the earlier pages of this thread. The Paramount has superior training narrative was already thoroughly debunked using a lot of verifiable data.

This is not about claims that may or may not have have been debunked: this is about passion, relentlessness, and resilience.

lol obvi someone from the paramount owners/ staff.

Still didn’t answer question about how the 13 / 14 tryout went.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Guys, get the popcorn. This is going to be good.

Meh. Just click back to the earlier pages of this thread. The Paramount has superior training narrative was already thoroughly debunked using a lot of verifiable data.

This is not about claims that may or may not have have been debunked: this is about passion, relentlessness, and resilience.

LOL. All the qualities that [insert preferred club] instills in their players.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Guys, get the popcorn. This is going to be good.

Meh. Just click back to the earlier pages of this thread. The Paramount has superior training narrative was already thoroughly debunked using a lot of verifiable data.

This is not about claims that may or may not have have been debunked: this is about passion, relentlessness, and resilience.

Anonymous wrote:Guys, get the popcorn. This is going to be good.

Meh. Just click back to the earlier pages of this thread. The Paramount has superior training narrative was already thoroughly debunked using a lot of verifiable data.

Guys, get the popcorn. This is going to be good.

Anonymous wrote:That doesn’t seem to answer the question of limited experience or “new” coaches on their site. Coach quality is a consistent complaint. Now adding a bunch of new teams on an area already stressed by limited coach availability. You get fresh out of college coaches or those with limited actual coaching experience there. Or both. Metro doesn’t seem to suffer for that issue to the same extend.

Paramount qualifying 9 teams for the 2025 GJNC (which was 2 more teams than Metro qualified) would seem to prove that Paramount doesn't have a problem with providing qualified coaches. If Metro's coaching staff is so superior, why did they only qualify 7 teams?

How did the younger paramount teams turn out?

That doesn’t seem to answer the question of limited experience or “new” coaches on their site. Coach quality is a consistent complaint. Now adding a bunch of new teams on an area already stressed by limited coach availability. You get fresh out of college coaches or those with limited actual coaching experience there. Or both. Metro doesn’t seem to suffer for that issue to the same extend.

Fair point, thanks for that perspective!

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone have any context on why there are so many new, and seemingly inexperienced, coaches at Paramount? Like the 14s B team coach’s bio says that she coached at VA Juniors but I can’t find any info on when/what teams (and it looks like she played club in college, not on a team)?

Lots of good players and coaches played club in college. Some good coaches didn’t even do that much - not playing in college is in no way a disqualification. I know of at least one good coach in the area who didn’t even play in *high school*.

Does anyone have any context on why there are so many new, and seemingly inexperienced, coaches at Paramount? Like the 14s B team coach’s bio says that she coached at VA Juniors but I can’t find any info on when/what teams (and it looks like she played club in college, not on a team)?