Div. 1 Final 4 Volleyball in Tampa

If you did not already know it, the Div.1 National Championships are in Tampa this week. On Thurs, there will be 2 final 4 matches at the St. Pete Times Forum. Penn St. will face off with Hawaii and Minnesota will play Texas. Saturday is the Final. It is a true treat that this type of volleyball will be played in our own backyard. If you would like to go, you can find out more info at www.ncaa.com/volleyball Here you can find ticket information, scheduless, and everything you want to know about the teams.
This will be an excellent event for all of our volleyball families as some of the best volleyball players in America will be right there. If you haven't seen the outside for Texas who touches 11 foot, you do not know what you are missing. My prediction is that the Longhorns will put up a good fight but will lose in the championship to Penn State.
The coolest thing about this week for some of the Venetian Bay coaching staff is not only the matches but the AVCA convention that also takes place this week. Its important for a coaching staff to continue to be students of the game. This week we will hear some of the best volleyball coaches in the game discuss coaching philosophies, different techniques, and different ways to make our team better. It is also a great place to make new contacts with college coaches as the recruiting process continues to develop. This will be my 3rd AVCA convention. I traveled to Cleveland and New Orleans a few years ago. It is an awesome experience and we always bring new innovative ideas back to Venetian Bay.
I want to encourage you to make the drive up to Tampa this week and see it live. It will be an excellent experience that you do not want to miss!

Venetian Bay Tryout

Venetian Bay will have the best coaches in the area. Our coaching staff has collegiate and National Caliber High School experience as well as college and professional playing experience. We are anticipating on fielding 12s, 13, 14, 15, 16, and 17 teams. Possibly a second 12’s and 16's team as well. Every year, our teams are limited due to the number of quality coaches and gym space. We will take 9-11 players on each team and as much as we hate to have to cut players who want to play, this is the only way we are able to continue to produce the top volleyball players in the area and state. We encourage players to tryout for different clubs in the area to see and feel the difference of our training and cost but also to have a back up plan in case a player is not selected for a VBAY team so that they may continue to play. If any club pressures you to make a commitment on the day of tryouts, they are afraid you will go elsewhere. Keep your options open!

Vbay will once again be a part of the elite Florida Power League. The top 8 volleyball clubs in the Florida Region have come together to form the Power League. The Power League provides the top teams in the state a place in which they can compete at a high level and compete against each other. Each Power League tournament is a one day tournament in which each club plays 4 matches. There are normally 2 - 1 day tournaments in Orlando. This provides better competition then going to a 2 day tournament. Venetian Bay is one of the 8 programs in the state invited to be in the Power League. The other clubs in Power League include: USA South, Tampa United, Gainesville Juniors, Jacksonville Juniors, Pinellas Heat, Boomers, and Orlando Volleyball Academy

As Coach Wheatley wrote last Jan

Why does Venetian Bay want to play in the power league? Why do we have to drive all the way to Orlando for 1 day? What is the big deal? “To be the best, you have to beat the best.” You will find throughout the season that I love quotes and this is one of my favorites. I am a firm believer that a team must face stiff competition for them to improve. Any team can go out and be undefeated if they play less talent. It may make you feel good, but it is a false sense of security because you really don’t know how good you are as a team. In power league, all teams are excellent and there are no easy wins. For Venetian Bay to play in power league, we will find out our weaknesses immediately and be able to go to work the next couple of weeks to try and fix them. It would be simple to just play some local tournaments and be the best in the area but we want to be the best in the state and in some teams, compete at the National level. That is why this is such an excellent opportunity. So many people judge performance on win/loss record. I think we need to change our mindset and judge teams on the progression from this weekend to the last tournament. Good Luck teams!!

12’s, 13’s, 14’s: Sunday, Nov 22nd @ Venice High School
Registration: 2:00-3:00 3:00-4:45

15's, 16's, 17's: Sunday, Nov 22nd @Venice High School
Registration: 12:00-1:00 Tryouts 1:00-2:45

16th Annual Wild West Camp

Save the date for the 16th Annual Wheatley's Wild West Volleyball Camp. June 1st-4th. This year will feature a brand new exciting format! {Click Here}

Big South

The Big South- What an interesting trip is would become. On the court, our 2 teams were extremely competitive. The 17's made a great stride as they made it into the clubs 1st ever gold round in the open division. This would have probably been improbable feat at the beginning of the season but through a lot of hard work, this team seems to be playing their best ball of the season as they go into Regionals in Orlando. This will be their last opportunity to qualify for JO's in Miami in early July unless they get an at large bid which is very possible.
Due to one of our coaches getting married this past weekend (Michelle Gorton) and Stefanie Peters being one of the bridesmaids, I had the priveledge of coaching the 16's over the weekend. It was an excellent experience as the 16's responded with a 7 win and 2 loss record. In fact, after winning the first 6 matches, we went to a 1 match playoff where we ended up dropping a heart breaker 18-16 in the 3rd game. This team played relaxed and competed in every game throughout the weekend and is a very exciting team to watch with some very talented players on the team. Like the 17's they will definitely make a splash at Regionals too. This week our club is off due to spring break and Easter Sunday but will get back at it next week as the club season winds down.

Team of the Week

The team of the week has got to go to the 16 Bugles team. It is amazing how far this team has come in one year's time. This past weekend at the Tampa Pre Qualifier, the 16s made it all the way to the 16 open championship where they lost to a tough Gainesville squad. On the road to the championship, they stuck it to the Sarasota Volleyball Academy's best team in the club in 2, defeated the top 16s team in South Carolina, and also beat a tough TVA team out of Orlando in the semis. 10 of the 11 kids on this team are from Venice HS and its amazing to see what a mostly one high school team can do to all star players from different high schools on the same team from around the state and country. What a difference a year makes as last year, this team struggled in the club divisions but through a lot of hard work, concentrating on our training philosophies, and gaining that all needed mental toughness, they are getting the champions mentality . All the team members have played well but two of the members of this team who have really stepped up are the outside hitters. The extremely high flying, athletic tooling Autumn Duyn and the heavy hitter who terminates times after time, Payton Herschberger. Anytime a team has two dominate outsides, that team is sure to take it to the next level. Many colleges have also taken notice of these up and coming players as well. It has been a lot of fun to see this team's ball control and tenacity grow over the past year. All of the team members are working hard and forming that all needed team chemistry for them to succeed. Their next tourney will be the Big South Qualifier in Hotlanta, Georgia.

Indianapolis

The coaching staff was the the last to arrive to the airport as traffic on 275 was a little heavy. As we walked in, Mr. Bassetti had already checked us in and handed us our tickets and I had to laugh as we went through the terminal and took Debbie Steranko's motto, "It's Brian, it always works out" Expecting Indiana to be freezing in early March, I packed too much as I usually do. Well, it turned out to be an extremely warm weekend. The whole plane was filled with Florida volleyball teams. I was a little relieved when I took my seat and I was not sitting in front of Dorothy Rahal and gang as they usually try and mess with me on the plane. When we arrived, things went very smooth. Flight was on time, travel to hotel was easy, and check in was a breeze. After grabbing a quick bite at Champs in the hotel lobby, Jay and I went to our room to catch a couple of late college bb games and anticipated how both of the VBAY teams would do the next morning. The 16's were playing in the club division with 156 teams entered and this group has gotten steadily better since last season and really coming on as one of Florida's premier teams. The 17s were venturing out and playing in the OPEN division. To play in an open division at a National Qualifier, the team has to apply and be selected. There are only 32 teams in this division and the competition is fierce. The next morning as we warmed up to play one of the top teams in the country from Cleveland, I scanned the sidelines to see all of the college coaches scouting both teams with their palm devices. I would say at least 50 -70 division 1 coaches watched Venetian Bay play. Some of those schools included, Stanford, Texas, Oklahoma, UF, Miami, LSU, Auburn, Georgia, all of the IVY league schools, mid majors, and many more. It definitely helped as the 17 Funyons upset the mostly all committed Cleveland squad. Both VBAY teams competed for every point all day as the 16's placed 1st in the pool and the 17s lost a heartbreaker tie breaker 25-23 to barely miss the gold bracket. The 2nd day was much the same as the 17s went undefeated and the 16s lost a 18-16 decision in the 3rd to not move on. That night, our teams found an open ballroom with music going. They had a blast line dancing and just getting their groove on to some tunes with some other vb clubs. As the 3rd day of play ended, the 16s finished 45 out of 156 and the 17s finished a respectable 19th out of 32. It was awesome competition and many of our players got A LOT of looks from college coaches. This tourney will definitely help earn some scholarships and prepare us for the rest of the season as both teams will have 2 more opportunities to qualify for the Junior olympics in Miami, FL this summer. I was probably a little obnoxious on the sidelines but our other coaches, Jay, Stefanie, and Michelle coached with class and the players won and lost with alot of class as well. The players handled themselves very well and acted like mature adults exept for just a few. I'm just kidding!! They were all great! The parents were a HUGE help as they usually are and helped propel Venetian Bay up the ladder in the volleyball world. Looking forward to the next tournament.

Orlando Invitational Results

Congrats on all of the teams this past weekend.

The 17s finished 2nd in Gold (Open) losing in the finals to OVA in 2 games 25-20, 25-16. The 17s finished the weekend with 4 wins and 2 losses.

Venetian Bay also had a good showing with the 15 south team coming in 5th in Gold (4W and 1 L) and the 16s coming in 7th in Gold (Open) losing to Pinellas Heat in 3 games (25-19, 17-25, 15-12). 16s finished the weekend 2 and 2.

The 15N played in the Silver losing to Fort Myers in the final 25-15 and 25-11. The finished up the weekend at 4 wins and 3 losses.

And finally the 14s after a rough start finished the weekend playing in the Bronze finishing 2nd losing to Sparks in the finals 25-17 and 25-10. They finished up the weekend with 3 wins and 3 losses.

This weekend the 16s and 17s will be in Indianapolis while the 12s will be playing in the Suncoast Bash and the 13s will be playing in Bradenton at the MAV Challenge.

Good Luck to all the teams!!!

Tampa Results

Congrats on all of the teams this past weekend. Venetian Bay had a good showing with the 15 south team winning the 15 club division and the 16s placing 3rd in the 16 open division. Wave times are now up for OVA Asics Invitational. The 14's and 17's will be staying both nights at the marriott while the other teams will only be staying Sat. night.

1st day Tampa Kick off results

Venetian Bay faired pretty well in the 1st day of competition at the Tampa Convention Center. Our 14s, both 15s and 16 went undefeated in pool play and will advance to the gold bracket on Sunday. Our 12 and 13s team both went 1-2 and will go to silver division. Despite going 2-1 in pool play and playing in the 18 open division, our 17s lost the tiebreaker tonight and will play in the silver division on Sunday.

Tampa Kick off

The pools are now available. All matches will be played at the Tampa Convention Center. If you see other Venetian Bay teams playing, make sure to cheer each other on throughout the tournament. Good Luck to all teams!!!

Clearwater tourney Day 1- update

Five of our Venetian Bay teams played in Clearwater this weekend. For our 12 and 13s team, it was their first chance to play this year. I had the opportunity to watch the 13's, 14's, and 15N team. All of the matches I saw were very exciting and it looked like there was a lot of team spirit going on out there. I really liked Karlee Ream new side jump serve. It was very effective. I am pleased that the the 12's, 13's, and 14's all made it into the gold round for tomorrows single elimination games. The 15N was extremely close to pulling out a 2nd place bid but came up just short. Also, as I write this, the 15S team has won their 1st two matches of the day and will probably make the gold round as well. They had an afternoon pool.

Last weekend's trip to Orlando" Power League was a huge success regardless of our teams who won their pools (17’s and 15S) and teams who did not fair as well. It was a huge success because we had the opportunity to play the best teams right off the bat. I have enclosed a fantastic article in this weeks edition of “From Wheatley’s desk” that explains what should be focused on at the beginning of club season. We all want to win right off the bat BUT is that what is important this time of year. Do we want to stress the win column while maybe sacrificing doing things the right way or do we want what is best in the long run and beat those teams when the season is winding down? What can you do as a player? Believe in our system and trust our coaches. Try new things and be comfortable while being uncomfortable. What can parents do? Be energetic, encouraging, and supportive and enjoy the process.

Here is an example from my past. In 2006, Our high school team had just won the Class 5A State Championship and I decided to coach a 14’s team with kids on the team who had very limited playing experience. As we struggled early on in just the “club” divisions, most of the time we would not even make it out of pool play but parents were excited and supportive, players were soaking up volleyball IQ and getting better by the practice. By the end of the season, we were getting to the gold division from pool play and beating those teams that had humiliated us at the beginning of the year. It was an extremely refreshing year to see that team come so far. Now, those same kids are playing 17s and are disappointed if they do not come in 1^st place out of their open division pools. They are consistently in the top 3 or 4 teams in the state, they are now playing in older divisions at the open level and will compete in the open divisions in National Qualifiers around the country. Why? Players believed in the system and parents were patient, encouraging, and supportive. Enjoy the article!

How to Approach the Start of a Club Volleyball Season.
Segment 1: Priorities and Perspective
Written by Ed Gohen, Golden Bear VBC Tuesday, 13 January 2009

There is an old saying in sports, if applied to the club volleyball calendar, that goes something like this: "You can't win a championship in January, but you can lose one."

While every team has its own goals and many do not include championships, there are things everyone has to do at the beginning that are essential to success at the end. Some of those things are physical, but many of the challenges are mental and emotional. These challenges are often the most difficult, and I believe dealing with them productively is a prerequisite to physical skill development and competitive success.

This is the first in a seven-part series aimed at making the early season more productive and positive.

Priorities and Perspective

Let’s start with a premise:

At this point in the season, a foundation for long-term success is more important than immediate gratification.

As a starting point for any team working towards that end, I would look for these four things:

1. Skill development as the top priority.

2. Encouraging moments when the team shows its potential.

3. An understanding that this stage is a very difficult but essential part of the growth process.

4. Morale is not tied to results.

Much of the rest of this is about #3 and #4.

Early in the season, there should be a lot of technique on which to concentrate. If that’s happening, everyone will seem a little mechanical and generally too wrapped up in trying to perform a skill correctly. At some point, however, things start to click and all the work pays off. This is not only true for individual learning, it applies to team development.

Coaches need to be mindful of the relatively flat beginning of the learning curve. It is the job of coaches to do what needs to be done, even though it means some slow progress early on.

For players, the job is to work hardest through the tough times -- they need to have faith this process is not only normal, it's necessary. Building a solid foundation through improved technique will pay off.

Parents can help with the hardest part for all of us: patience. Expectations and goals are appropriate but can be a heavy load to bear, especially when the plan is not focused on immediate gratification.

While some teams focus on results and competition early and often, others accept that they are not going to win as much as they’d like at the beginning. This is a continuum, and all teams have some of both. Clearly, I advocate more of the latter approach. But for all teams, the goal is to stick to the plan with effort and enthusiasm, so you will still be improving when others are burning out. This, I believe, is easier to achieve with patience and perspective.

The segments that follow are aimed at showing the wisdom of a long-range vision, while maintaining a sense of urgency and purpose. Coaches will find perspectives on individual and team development from a variety of sources. For players who find themselves on teams where a forward-looking perspective is missing, I hope these pieces will help you get through the early season with your confidence and enthusiasm intact.

Power League

Why does Venetian Bay want to play in the power league? Why do we have to drive all the way to Orlando for 1 day? What is the big deal? “To be the best, you have to beat the best.” You will find throughout the season that I love quotes and this is one of my favorites. I am a firm believer that a team must face stiff competition for them to improve. Any team can go out and be undefeated if they play less talent. It may make you feel good, but it is a false sense of security because you really don’t know how good you are as a team. In power league, all teams are excellent and there are no easy wins. For Venetian Bay to play in power league, we will find out our weaknesses immediately and be able to go to work the next couple of weeks to try and fix them. It would be simple to just play some local tournaments and be the best in the area but we want to be the best in the state and in some teams, compete at the National level. That is why this is such an excellent opportunity. So many people judge performance on win/loss record. I think we need to change our mindset and judge teams on the progression from this weekend to the last tournament. Good Luck teams!!

Let the Games Begin

This weekend will mark the beginning of the 2009 season. Excitement fills the air as our Venetian Bay players reach for new heights. Throughout the season I will be sending out news clips, articles, pictures, etc about sportsmanship, competitiveness, team chemistry, being coachable, and things like working hard throughout the season. As we go into Power League this weekend, we want to look into the area of developing the “it factor”. You hear coaches say, “She has “it”. I have found myself talking to newspaper reporters about the “it” factor. Yes, some athletes are naturally skilled but not all have it. Why? Because I think “it” needs to be developed on a daily basis to be good at whatever sport or profession that you choose. I found an excellent article on being competitive by Tim Engles and I actually filled in some words with Venetian Bay to make it hit home a little more for our athletes.

Developing Competitive Toughness

In the next few weeks, all Venetian Bay players will be facing the competitive challenges of scrimmages and the Power League tournament. We all talk about being mentally tough in competition, but what does mental toughness really mean and what does it entail?

Mental toughness is about managing your thoughts, emotions and focus of attention. Here’s what Maggie Sherrill and MacKenzie Marlowe learned about mental toughness in the pre-season. They call it “Sally Eats Noodles.”

Before the point starts, See. Visualize yourself “doing my job.” For passers, this means seeing themselves tracking the serve and passing to the appropriate target using “Hit, Mine, Pass.” If the passer is also a hitter, she sees herself handling the pass, and then moving outside, calling to the setter and swinging to kill on the set.

For the server, it means going through her serving routine: taking a cleansing breath, visualizing her serve, and breathing in and out as she tosses and serves. For blockers, it’s seeing themselves moving to the set and stuffing the hitter. For the libero, it’s digging and controlling the opponent’s hit.

Then it’s time to Execute. Notice the rhythm and depth of your breathing as you prepare for the ball to come into play. It’s impossible to breathe diaphragmatically (abdominal breathing) and feel anxious at the same time, so use belly breathing to keep your mind confident, quiet and ready. Expect and “want the ball” to come to you. As the ball comes into play, call out “Hit, Mine, Pass” to focus with relaxed eyes on the ball and respond to what it’s doing.

When the point ends, Notice and correct. Now’s it’s time to use visualization again to notice what you did, reinforcing the things you did well and correct any errors. For correcting, first take a cleansing breath and then pick just one thing to correct. Visualize yourself making the correct move and seeing the good result. Then it’s time to get ready for the next point.

Use Sally Eats Noodles during the competitive drills in your practices. Notice how well you’re using Sally Eats Noodles. Make it a habit. You’ll be rewarded by your mental toughness and good play at the seeding tournament and through out the season. By Tim Engles

2009 Volleyball School - Begins Jan 11

Venetian Bay Volleyball School is an individual skill based program. Girls will not be learning team offenses or defenses. Our goal is to prepare girls with the physical skills necessary to compete on club teams in the future and in turn reach their personal volleyball goals for their middle school/high school seasons. The 8 week seesion It is designed for girls ages 6-14 (elementary and Middle School only) . Venetian Bay Volley Ball School is coached by the coaches that will be running VBVBC teams, High School players, along with Kristen Batt and Megan Wallin.

Go to {click Here}