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The following information applies only to our TRAVEL TEAMS- not
Kidz Power or Non Travel.
Most Commonly
asked Questions?
My
child plays another sport, can we fit this in?
YES, we train 7 days a week, with an average of 12 teams per
weekday and 30 per weekend, we have a flexible practice schedule
allowing players with conflicts to attend within their schedule. We
prefer players who are athletes and play multiple sports.. almost 65% of
our players play 2 or more sports.
When/Where do you practice? The great news our Spartanburg
location is the only club with a flexible practice schedule. All our
practices are held at our six court facility. We train 7 days a week
with 10-15 teams training per evening. If your daughter can't attend a
scheduled team practice, they can attend another practice on a different
day.
CARPOOL: Some are concerned with
driving. On average practice we have 60 kids in any given practice. It
is likely that several families from your area can car-pool. Once teams
are announced, we provide list of families and zip code to assist in
planning.
Tryout Information
TRYOUTS ARE TO DETERMINE
PLACEMENT ON THE SKILL LEVEL OF THE TEAM, NOT IF YOU MAKE A TEAM.
Click here
for details on our Travel team tryout system.
Who tries out?
Beginners or Developmental
players DO NOT have to attend try outs. All other Travel Team
players are required, non travel team players have separate tryouts.
See Tryout schedule for times and
dates. We prefer players make the
skills test and all
sessions, but this is not mandatory. The skills test and first two
tryouts are very important.
Skills Test will be Nov. 9th.
How are team tryouts
handled?
Year in and year out, this one area will be controversy with
parents who believe their kid is far better than the evaluations of
15-20 coaches. Each must understand, our system has proven itself
for over 10 yrs. Players are NOT pre-selected for teams! Specific
details of tryouts will be provided at the 1st tryout. Each year
we improve on the fairness and accuracy of the tryout system. Each
player will have access to multiple evaluated tryout sessions, plus a
skills test. A minimum of 4 coaches evaluate each player PER tryout.
Each player will participate in a skills testing session, which will
take place prior to tryouts. This test comes from a combination of
ideas from other successful clubs & high school programs, in addition to
the skills test used by the Junior National Team.
Once all of these factors are taken
into place, the end result is very accurate. We have parents who believe
players are chosen based on what school they are from, favorites picked,
or political reasons. Many of our coaches have no idea who the
player is, what team she played with the previous year or what school
she is from. Bottom line, we go on hard data… as above.
The more tryouts they attend, the
better chance of a fair evaluation. Player’s try out by the USAV age
group they are currently in. Age divisions can be found at
www.palmettovb.com
We will post scores in the early
weeks by social security numbers. Scores only tell us the
general group they need to be in, final placement is determined by
the athlete’s skill level, position played, commitment level, age,
attitude, and several other factors. Final placement is determined by
our coaching committee (all our national team coaches).
This type of tryout allows us to form
teams composed of athletes of similar skill and age level, which
provides for a more efficient training program. This reduces the
pressure on those players whose skill level may not be that of their
teammates, and also reduces frustration for those players whose skill
level may be well beyond that of their teammates.
Players trying out for one of our top
teams must be willing to play any position that is best for the team as
a whole, agree to our tournament playing time rule, and agree to the
higher level of commitment.
Can a player join after
tryouts or during the season?
Yes, provided we have space on a team based on her ability.
Contact Jimmy for details.
TEAM AND PRACTICE QUESTIONS
How long does the season
last?
We begin team placement tryouts mid November. Practice starts from
late December to early January. Most Phase I teams will play
through the Palmetto Regional Championships, held in late March
for club (regional) teams and mid April for power teams (national
teams.) This season is considered Phase I. If
white regional teams are made in the 17 and 18 USAV age division, these
teams will have an abbreviated season and will end in early to mid
March. If top teams win regionals, they are EXPECTED to continue
training and attend a National Tournament (in late June). This is
considered Phase II season. Teams will take off after the Nat.
Qualifier for 3-5 weeks in order to give the girls (and parents) a
break.
How often do I practice
Most teams will practice twice a week. Normally, one weekday and one
weekend day. This will vary according to your team. Week nights
practices are from 5:30-7 or 7-9pm. Weekend practices run all day
Saturdays in 2 hour segments, ending by 7pm. Sundays run from
1:30-7:30pm, in 2 hr segments. PLAYERS ARE
ALLOWED TO TRAIN ALL THEY WANT BY ATTENDING OTHER PRACTICES WITHIN
TRAINING GROUPS or attend other practices, which allows flexibility with
team practice conflicts.
Where are beginners or age 12 & under
placed?
There will be different groups, beginners or developmental
teams and limited travel teams under 12. If your daughter has
never played club, organized volleyball, or in the 1st-3rd grade then
they will be placed on our “Developmental Team". If they played
club last year, or in grades 4 or above, they have a choice of
Dev. Training Teams or Dev. Travel Teams. Based on sufficient talent, we
will form 10, 11, & 12 and under "limited" travel teams. We plan
for all to participate in a minimum of two tournaments within the 13
week period. If your daughter is above 6th grade and still a
beginner, you need to discuss options with Jimmy.
Click here
for more info.
Where and when will
practices be held?
Practices for Spartanburg will be held at our facility, Spartanburg
Community College.
We will provide everyone with a directory of all players after teams are
set in order to assist in car-pooling. You may also be allowed to train
with other groups or teams on practice days/times when you can’t
practice with your team. Practice times are usually the same for a two
week period then rotate so to be fair to all and avoid constant
conflicts. We will attempt to provide schedules 30 days in advance.
Remember- we have a practice all-you-want policy, if desired 7 days a week
at no extra cost!
Will I have the same
coach through the entire season?
It is our goal and request that our coaches are at practices and
tournaments. However, don’t expect a coach to be at every practice and
every tournament. Club South has substitute coaches that are used in the
event a head coach can’t attend a practice or tournament. There may be
times that a team must practice with another team. It is possible that
we can’t replace a coach who has a conflict for a tournament. That team
will have a choice to attend with a parent helping, share a coach with
another team, or not attend. There may be times that practice locations
or times are confused, a coach has an emergency and doesn't
attend. Mistakes will happen, but of course this should be the
exception, not the rule.
Are all teams given
equal attention?
No, all teams will not receive equal attention, but YES they will
receive the SAME professional training. That is the reason for
price variations in teams. The higher level teams will pay for, and
receive additional uniforms, training, more practices, and attend
additional tournaments. We have modeled our club after many of the top
clubs in the nation, which operate similar to this. This year we are
structuring some of our gym times so that multiple teams may practice
together and compete in matches. This allows players to be exposed to
multiple coaches and higher number of ball contacts.
Can athletes be cut?
NO, but we do reserve the right to assign a
player to our NON-travel teams.
Can players be moved or added to a team
after initial teams are assigned?
Yes. We prefer not to move players, but reserve the right if the
need occurs based on team needs such as player talent, loss of a player,
players joining later in the season, and other factors. We reserve the
right to merge teams if the need arises.
What is the difference in National
Teams and Regional Teams?
Our National teams are formed ONLY if
we feel we have sufficient talent in a specific age group that can
compete on the national level.
After players try out and we determine their skill level, we place
them on various skill level teams, national or regional. Most
tournaments have 2 or 3 different skill levels within each age division.
Open or Power is the upper level, club is the next level.
Remember, being on a top team the
previous year does not guarantee you that spot the following year.
All National Black teams require a higher level of commitment,
fees are higher and be required to travel to different tournament sites.
Will I play the same
position that I play in school?
Not always. We may move and train a player to play a different
position than they played in school, based on the need of the team. On
our top teams, you must be willing to play any position.
How many players will be
assigned to a team?
Team size is 8 –10 players, however there may be a special
circumstance where there would be more than 10 on a team.
Can players miss practices or
tournaments?
We request initially that you consider our practice schedule and
tournament travel. We want girls that will be committed. Practices and
tournaments can be excused for school conflicts. If you must miss a
practice, we require that you notify your coach
AND team rep a minimum of 24 hours in advance and 3 weeks notice if you
can’t attend a tournament.
Fees are the same regardless if you miss practices or tournaments.
National team players may only have 3 unexcused practices. For Black
teams, a $100 deposit is due when team assignments are made, which is
for the National Qualifier tournament. Deposits are applied toward your
family’s hotel expense (if not using a room, it will be refunded or
applied toward you account), Deposits are
non-refundable if you don’t attend. The three most important
tournaments that can’t be missed are Palmetto Regionals, National
Qualifier, and Atlanta.
School sports come first, and players are
excused from practice, or a tournament if necessary. We do ask Black
Team players to do all they can to attend the 3 important tournaments.
Can I
play other sports and participate in Club Volleyball?
YES! Over 60% of our players participate in multiple sports. These
players find few conflicts with basketball, softball, soccer, or track.
Especially since you can attend other practices, should your teams
practice schedule is a conflict.
TOURNAMENT QUESTIONS
How are travel tournaments handled?
Detailed tournament sites, dates, and
schedules will be posted closer to our season start.
Tournament sites vary. Some of the sites we attend travel to are
Charleston, Columbia, Asheville, Aiken, Atlanta, along with tournaments
held locally that we host. Tournaments each team plans to attend will be
set prior to the season. Most teams will attend several tournaments that
require overnight lodging. The club will usually arrange a block of
rooms at discounts if the parents want to take advantage of this. It is
not required you stay there, but we do prefer it, so players can stay
together. This information will be made available to you. Details of
what to do will be sent prior to each tournament.
Due to the early commitment we must make to the national qualifier
tournaments, we are requiring a deposit be made after team assignments
are made. This deposit will be applied to your room reservation, parents
will be responsible for the balance of room expense. Players are
expected to stay with parents. When a parent can’t attend, we
request that the player stay with another family on her team and share
the room cost. As a rule, if the tournament is within a 2 hour travel
distance, no group hotels will be reserved. Tournament entry fees are
included in your dues but travel expense and lodging are not included.
Players or parents are responsible for arranging transportation.
Which tournaments do the teams attend and how often?
Due to increase in teams, it is much more difficult to get spaces
in tournaments.. we must wait to see if we get all our teams in.
This is out of our hands.. we do attempt to get all our teams in
scheduled tournaments.. but do guarantee our minimums.
Beginning in mid to late January, we
will attend tournaments approximately every other week-end (Tournament
schedule available later ) Regional tournaments are held on Saturdays ,
and we normally travel to and from the tournaments in the same day. The
majority of our tournaments are located in South Carolina. These
are ALL day tournaments, normally 8-6pm.
Tournament entry is based on available slots; we are not guaranteed that
we will get in each tournament that we register. We must notify both the
coach and team rep 3 weeks prior if you can’t attend, except for
national tournaments for our Black teams, which require early deposits
and commitments.
How do we determine what division a team is placed in tournaments?
Coaches and the director will jointly decide what division a team
is placed based on the level of play based on what the team is capable
of. There are up to 3 divisions in a tournament per age group. (Club,
Power, and Open) Sometimes we have to accept what is available.
How is playing time at tournaments handled?
Most parents want or expect their child to play most, if not all
the time during tournament play. This is the number one problem of clubs
throughout the United States. We hope the following will resolve most
concerns. Club South has designed a program to offer everyone a choice.
All players should get equal PRACTICE time.
Club South will have NO guarantee of playing time for the National Black
teams.
Regional White teams will offer fair playing time to each team player.
Fair is not equal, we will play your daughter as much as possible taking
into consideration her position, practice time attended, skill level and
competition.
Our beginner and developmental program will allow as close to equal
playing time as possible.
If during the season you are not satisfied with playing time, you may
request to be moved to a lower team.
Do not approach a coach with
concerns at a tournament. The time to discuss playing time is after the
tournament. For this year- you must put IN WRITING any concerns and
mail to the coach and Jimmy.
How it works when team has officiating duty at tourneys?
Teams are required in each tournament to work some matches as the
officiating team ( referee, line judge, and scorekeep) Everyone on the
team is required to stay.. and work. No one leaves until team duty is
finished. At NO TIME is a parent allowed to yell at ANY
officiating team. Teams are fined and placed on probation should a
parent do this.
CLUB FEE
QUESTIONS
What is
the cost and what does the fee include?
The fee includes all expenses, less any tournament travel-related expenses
(food, transportation, and lodging) for Phase I (Dec-April). Uniform
expense will be separate. Any uniform items purchased will due in
full at the time of delivery. Club South has a season fee based on the
team you are placed on. (See fee section for amounts) Fees are spread
out over installments with the 1st installment (deposit) due on,
or before October 15th, followed by 4-5 installments from November
through March. Understand, we have one total fee due, we allow the
installments as a convenience to parents. If you sign up in January, it
is same cost.
If fees are not current, the player
may not participate in practice or tournaments. Fee statements can be
picked up at the club each month. If you don’t receive one, notify
Jimmy. Please MAIL all fees in. If you quit, the fee is due for
the month you quit in. Club Fee PAge
What is the required Uniform Items ?
Each year we will reuse some uniform items to avoid buying new items from
year to year.
How can I reduce my fees?
Review the fundraising section how you can reduce the installment
payments. We have had players pay their entire season through
fundraising. See the fundraising
section for details. All fundraising profits are split 75% to the
player and 25% to the club.
You may also request to be a team rep, if selected, you receive 50% off
your daughter’s fee. Top team rep discount is 35%. We also have
several paid positions to help offset fees.
Is there a discount for sisters?
We give 100% credit for all fundraising profit. All other players
split profits 75%-25%.
What if
I quit or leave the program early?
We hope that a player does not “quit”. Sometimes circumstances will
require the player to leave the program. Please be aware that you are
responsible for the installment fee in the month you leave. If you plan
to leave, we require that you notify us in writing.
ADMINISTRATION / MISC QUESTIONS
Will
problems arise?
You bet! With
years of directing experience and going through every possible problem
that can arise, you can be assured we will not satisfy EVERY player and
parent in the club. Club South states in writing what your benefits are
and what you can expect. Players and parents are required to read all
FAQ’s and our commitment agreement. If you have concerns, we require you
put them in writing. You cannot approach a coach or director during a
tournament about a problem.
What is our basic commitment to you? Club
South promises the following:
1. We will give athletes the best possible training.
Approximately 70 plus hours of training for Phase I.
2. Practice times and locations will depend on team assignment.
3. Each team will have a qualified head coach that should attend
the majority of practices and tournaments.
4. Specialty Clinics & optional practices will be available to all
Club I players at no additional cost.
5. Tournament play for all players. An average team will
participate in over 80 games!
6. Top teams may attend more
tournaments or receive additional training.
What commitment do we expect from you?
We will need for you to sign on the dotted line within 48 hours of
the last tryout. By this time we will inform you of (1) the team where
you will be placed (2) coach of that team (3) planned location of the
team practices (4) tentative times of practices (5) tentative tournament
schedule for the season. You will have 48 hours if you decide to
withdraw from the club, if you notify us within this time frame, your
first payment will be refunded (less a $35 tryout fee). If you withdraw
after this time, you forfeit your first installment. You must notify
Jimmy Peden in writing or email if you decide not to participate. If you
are cut from the club you will receive a full refund.
What is Optional Volleyball Items?
We offer a complete line of volleyball apparel and equipment
at discounts. These include: warm-up pants and jackets, parent
T-shirts, CS sweatshirts, kneepads, shoes, volleyballs, and other
volleyball related items.
How are we kept informed about club news or
changes?
E-mail or web only! Email is our primary source – check it daily!
95% of participants have email, if you don’t, it is your responsibility
to contact the team rep or coach for information. Information will be
posted on our web site (www.clubsouthvolleyball.com) or sent via email.
CS News will be sent out each Sunday evening.
How do I handle a problem?
If a problem arises, we ask that the player or parent must place
this concern in writing and email it to the coach (copy Jimmy). If
the coach can not resolve this, you may request a meeting with Jimmy and
the coaching committee. At no time is a
coach or director to be approached or confronted with a complaint during
a tournament.
Predicting The
Future
On the lighter side, we called the psychic hotline to determine what
concerns parents will have through the season. With that in mind,
we are going to address in advance the concerns that some will express.
1.
My daughter did
not make the top team.
Could all the evaluations and coaches be wrong?? As explained,
tryouts are fair, and the system used is very precise. That doesn’t mean
it will be 100% accurate. After a few practices and tournaments, we can
determine if someone was placed on the wrong team. Besides, she now is
the “Big Dog” on the next team! NO.. teams are not predetermined.
2.
I’m not receiving enough
playing time.
Only option is to hope the starter moves to
California, you improve quickly, request to be moved to a lower team, or
leave the program. Please don’t complain during tournaments.
3.
I’m not kept informed.
Dah, read
the email before you delete, it will probably keep you informed on 95%
of your questions. We send out weekly news each Sunday.
4.
Practice was changed or
cancelled and I wasn’t informed?
Your right and the coach or team rep should be
screamed at, unless it was sent on email and you didn't check, in that
case, read above. This will happen, we are human, give us a break on the
first or second time it happens. Scream on the third! If you show
up and there is a mix up, just practice with another team.. should be
4-5 more there.
5.
We were not told until Friday
the tournament gym site directions:
Neither
was our club!. Scream at the tournament host, not me.
6.
The directions to the
tournament gym were bad:
They come from the host, read last question.
7.
Our team didn’t win
every game because the coach didn’t …bah,bah:
Neither
does the National team! Winning solves many problems, losing creates
pointing fingers! Don’t be a bleacher coach and don't expect your
team to win 100% of the time. Expect 0% and you will be satisfied. There
are better teams and players; teams will lose games and players will
have bad days.
8.
My coach didn’t attend
our tournament.
They have a life also, and we don’t pay them enough
to stop everything. We expect them to make the majority, but not 100%.
9.
I didn’t know that
rule…. :
I bet if
you read ALL of the FAQ and commitment agreement, you would know.
10.
My team didn’t stay
together through the season:
Around March, you will find that about 10-15% of girls lose commitment
and will leave or quit coming to practice. It happens in all clubs,
including Club South. All we can do is merge teams, if or when
this happens.
11.
I’m with the lower group
in tryouts, I know they put me on that team:
Chill… we will put you all
over the place to see how girls play in various groups. This means
NOTHING until the final teams are set and again….teams are not
pre-determined!
On a serious note, we
desire EVERY player and parent to have a good experience with club
volleyball. That realistically will not happen. We have been doing this
for a number of years and have addressed your concerns in this handbook
and provided various options for players’ needs. Bottom line, club
should be viewed as an “extended summer camp, with tournament play as a
bonus”. We are here to train your daughter in the highest level
possible. If she does her part, she WILL improve and receive the other
benefits of playing club.
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