We are making changes to our fall recreational program this year. Here are some of the most important:

• We are opening registration even earlier this year! Mark your calendars!
• Registration will be closed 2 days before Evaluations in order to facilitate efficient planning and organization for the upcoming season.
• You can only designate one practice night conflict during registration. If your daughter can't make the assigned practice night she may be able to practice with another team; that team may or may not be at her assigned level of play.
• You no longer register for a specific division of play. Instead, your division is determined based on grade level and the coaches' evaluations.
• Evaluations will happen earlier. This will give us more time to build teams.
• Since evaluations will be a larger driver of play level (division), please consider evaluations attendance mandatory.

• Registration will start on July 1st, 2024 at noon
• Evaluations will be the weekend of August 17th/18th, 2024
• Practices will start after Labor Day weekend (i.e., first practices are Sept 2nd-6th, 2024)
• Matches will begin on the weekend of September 7th/8th, 2024
• The season ends with a final tournament on the weekend of October 19th/20th, 2024

MVSA Volleyball Club offers a girls' recreational league that runs during the fall (late August through October). The league has multiple divisions of play and can therefore be a wonderful fit for a wide range of athletes. It is open to girls in grades 4 through 8 and will teach volleyball skills and tactics while in competition with other girls of a similar age and skill level. Whether you have never played before or are a seasoned club player, there is a place for you in the league.

At a high level, the MVSA Volleyball recreational league is structured as shown below. Please see the individual sections further down for more information.

• Registration - Opens in mid/late summer from the registration page.
• Evaluations - Evaluations happen in mid/late August. This process drives our division assignments and is an important part of ensuring everyone has the best experience possible.
• Practices/Clinics - Practices start the week after Labor Day. Teams will practice once a week for 1.5 to 2 hours.
• Matches - Teams will participate in at least one match each weekend of the season.

Evaluations occur in mid/late August at Lake Marion Community Center. This is NOT a tryout. Everyone who registers for the league will make a team and will play. This is our opportunity to get to know you, and to learn where you are as an athlete and volleyball player. Evaluations allows us to build out competitive divisions of play and to create evenly matched teams within them. This ensures the best possible experience for everyone involved.

Because the evaluation process is such a key component of making our recreational program a success, you should consider evaluations attendance to be mandatory. For more detailed information on this topic please see our FAQ page.

The recreational league is comprised of two "classes" of play. The Junior class is for rising 4th, 5th, and 6th graders. The Senior class is for rising 7th and 8th graders. Each class is further broken down into divisions based on experience/level of play.

Our goal is to ensure that everyone has the best experience possible. An important part of that is finding an appropriate level of play for each athlete. Your class will be determined during registration, while your division is based on our evaluations process. The table below shows the breakdown of classes and divisions.

MVSA reserves the right to modify the divisions from what is shown above based upon the overall level of play demonstrated at evaluations.

Our goal is to place your athlete in the division that is most appropriate for their development. The placement of players in divisions is at the sole discretion of MVSA and all placements are final. We use three divisions within each class to ensure everyone practices with, and competes against, players with comparable ability based on their grade, age, size, skill, and experience.

NOTE: Divisions 1 and 2 start the season with Newcomb and progress towards regular volleyball over the course of the season. All other divisions play regular volleyball with rule modifications designed to encourage division-appropriate developmental growth in key areas of the game (three contacts, communication, tough serving, etc.).

Teams will practice once a week at a school in the Montgomery Village area. Practice/clinic sessions are run by a master coach with team coaches assisting. Our master coaches come from MVSA's club volleyball program and have years of experience coaching young athletes.

The season is seven weeks long and every team will participate in at least one match each weekend of the season. The first six weeks are the "regular season" while the final (seventh) week is a season-ending single elimination tournament. Team performance during the regular season will determine team seeding for the tournament. The tournament is a wonderful finale to the season and a lot of fun for everyone.

The match format and rules used will differ from division to division, but players in all divisions will be given the opportunity to apply what they have learned during practices in real game situations. The rules of each division are tailored to ensure that:

• Every player has equal opportunity to participate in matches
• The game mechanics are both age and skill level (class/division) appropriate
• The rules are designed to reward volleyball-positive behaviors (e.g., three contacts) as seen in the higher levels of the sport

The MVSA recreational program relies on parent volunteers to serve as team coaches. Without these volunteers, the league would not be possible. Our use of a master coach to run practices/clinics ensures that all players receive high quality instruction as well as limits the amount of work that needs to be done by individual team coaches. There is no need to plan practices and you always have someone to go to if you have questions. If you have ever wanted to know more about coaching or volleyball (techniques, rules, etc.), or want to be more involved in your child's life, volunteering as a team coach can be a great way to get started. If you are ready to learn and can organize an email list, then you can coach in the rec league.

You can indicate your desire to serve as a team coach during athlete registration.