PROGRAM BACKGROUND & OVERVIEW

Volleyball has traditionally been a very difficult sport for young athletes. The size of the court, the height of the net, the weight of the ball, and the pace of the game is not well-suited for most athletes younger than 11 or 12 years old. As a result, most kids’ introduction to volleyball is a lot of standing around waiting for their turn to serve the ball into the net.

Other sports have been well-tailored to the younger athlete with more appropriate sized fields, equipment, teams and rules. As a result, sports like soccer are much more appealing than volleyball for young players and their coaches and parents. Volleystart is a program that is designed to change all of that...our goal is to make volleyball an exciting, challenging, fast-paced game for kids as young as 8 and 9 years old.

The program is a series of ten sessions. Each session will include training time for individual skills, but much of the emphasis will be playing games in order for the athletes to get a chance to demonstrate and refine their skills and to foster a love for the sport.

Kevin Seeley is the head of the Volleystart program and will be assisted by Craig Wong. Between the two, they have over 20 years of coaching experience and have worked with thousands of athletes, ranging from 8 and 9 year old beginners to some of the top players in high school and college. A number of experienced club volleyball players, in grades 8-12 will also be involved and working with the kids.

The program is open to boys and girls in 2nd grade through 6th grade. No prior experience is necessary. Program fees vary by session, and covers coaching, gym space, insurance, administration, equipment, and t-shirts. Space is limited and enrollment is first-come, first serve. San Rafael Residents will be given a discount.

LETS PLAY SLAMBALL!!

What is SLAMBALL! ? This is a modified version of volleyball for young athletes, giving them more opportunity to perform all of the skills of real volleyball in a more controlled environment. Rules will be adjusted based on the age and ability of the players, but the game will use a lower net, a smaller court, fewer numbers of players per team, and adjusted rules in order to make the sport of volleyball more accessible to the younger athlete. As a result, all players will get real opportunities to serve successfully, be involved in extended play, and most importantly, get a chance to slam the ball over the net, just like the real volleyball players! After all, who wants to wait until they get to 7th or 8th grade before they get to spike? Not us at Volleystart...not any of our future SLAMBALL! players!!

For more information, send email to info@volleystart.com, or call the San Rafael Community Services department at 415-485-3333.