Volleyball is Back in McLean!!

McLean Youth (MYA) Volleyball is kicking off a new program this Spring 2012 for girls in grades 5 thru 8.  The initiative is modeled after the highly successful programs started in Vienna and Arlington. 

Our Philosophy

• The goal of McLean Youth Volleyball is to allow student athletes the opportunity to play and enjoy volleyball in a safe and fun environment. To this end, we encourage all those interested, regardless of experience/ability, to join our program and play on our teams.
• If you don't know how to play, we will teach you. There are no tryouts - if you register you will be placed on a team.
• We promote maximizing ball "touches" as the best way for players to master volleyball skills, and participating in competitive league matches against other teams as the best way to learn and enjoy the game.

Program Scope

• Girls in grades 5 thru 8 are welcome to join our program regardless of skill level. In future years, we plan to expand to include boys, 4th graders and high-schoolers.
• Teams are grouped according to age/grade. Our groupings are grades 5  & 6 (Elementary School League) and grades 7 & 8 (Middle School League)
• The first phase of the season involves 2 weeks of clinics aimed at developing foundational volleyball skills such as passing, setting, hitting and serving. Experienced clinic instructors and players run the clinics.
• In the second phase, which starts right after Spring Break, teams meet once a week to practice and once a week to play league matches.  
• At the end of the season, playoffs are held to determine season champions.
• We also plan to select teams to participate in the Fairfax County-wide All-Star tournament on June 9.

Player Commitment

• The commitment level is intended to be student-friendly and multi-sport friendly
• 1 practice on a weekday for 1.5 hours between 6-9pm in McLean area schools
• 1 match (3 games) on the weekend for 1 hour in McLean area schools.  The target is Saturday afternoons*.
• The day, time and location of practices are determined by coaches (HINT: if you want to control your schedule, volunteer to coach!)
• To support carpooling, we make the effort to form teams around school affiliations and teammate requests.  Participants are also welcome to propose a team change if the practice time conflicts with other commitments. We'll try to accommodate as best we can.

*NOTE: Fairfax County Recreation manages the allocation of spring gyms to organizations like McLean Youth Volleyball. We've requested our preferences but will not know exactly which gyms and dates are available for clinics, practices and matches until the County announces the allocations in early March.

Notable Dates

• Registration opens on January 10 and closes March 9.
• Rosters and practice times are published by March 14.
• Skills Development Clinics are run from March 19 thru 29. 
• FCPS SPRING BREAK - All gyms closed from March 31 thru April 9.
• Team practices and league matches run from April 10 thru May 25.
• MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND - All gyms closed from May 26 thru 28.
• League playoffs are targetted for June 2.
• The Fairfax All-Stars tournament is scheduled for June 9.
• The end-of-season awards picnic is tenatively scheduled for June 16.

Volunteers

• We are looking for adult and High School student volunteers to help with all aspects of McLean Youth Volleyball.  We have volunteer positions at different levels of commitment that can fit into busy schedules.
• Our primary need is for team coaches and assistant coaches. We plan to provide training, mentoring and supporting materials regardless of previous volleyball and coaching experience.
• For additional detail on volunteer roles and responsiblities, visit the Volunteer Info page and sign-up as a volunteer through the register online process.

If you have questions, please feel free to email us at .

We hope to see you on the court soon!

Chuck Pruitt, Co-Director, McLean Youth Volleyball
Xavier Slotkoff, Co-Director, McLean Youth Volleyball