All of the offer emails went out this afternoon.  Got through some evaluations but as usual, I’m taking way longer on them and writing way more than I planned on each so I’m going to have to finish them in the morning.  thanks for those of you who have already answered your offer.  Looking forward to lots more tomorrow – please don’t hesitate to email any questions you might have about your offer or evaluation!

coachmattera@gmail.com

Thanks!

Tryouts went very well Sunday night and after 18 hours in the car to Toledo and back, we are putting the finishing touches on the teams that will be offered.  If you have not received your email (sometimes email addresses are unreadable on forms) by 6:00 today please email us at:

coachmattera@gmail.com

Also please check your spam box too…

I’m trying to get these out before practice today as my college team won our conference and are getting ready for nationals – with everything that’s going on, it might not be until late afternoon that they all get out!

Thanks!

Greetings everyone!

Tryouts for 15 & 16 year olds will be at Notre Dame Academy from 7:00 – 9:00 on Sunday November 13.  Registration will begin open by 6:15.

Due to the NDA Volleyball banquet that evening, NDA players may come at 6:00 and we will get them through our process before hand.

The coaches for these age groups will be Doreen Birney – Southview Varsity Assistant, Kristen Gyori – Clay JV Head & Varsity Assistant, Lauren Rafdal – Outside Hitter @ UT and 2nd year TR Coach, Kassie Kadera – Setter @ UT and 2nd year TR Coach.

Please see the previous post for the tryout forms that you can print and fill out before hand to help speed up registration!  The cost of the tryout including the individual evaluation that you will receive is $20.

See you a week from Sunday!

Click below for the two forms you’ll need to fill out for tryouts if you’d like to save some time and speed up the process that day!

On the Tryout form, please only fill out the items with a star by them.

waiver

tryout form

Thanks to everyone who came to the meeting Sunday night out at Clay.  I’ve also received more emails than I can count, so we are expecting a great turnout for tryouts!  Below are some excerpts and highlights in case you missed the meeting;

Important Dates (tournaments subject to change but this should give a general idea)

October 30^th: 13’s & 14’s Tryouts – Fetterman Gym 7:00 – 9:00 (registration open @6:15)

November 13^th: 15’s & 16’s Tryouts (specifics TBA)

January 9^th: Performance TRaining Begins

February 27^th: Regular Practice Schedule Begins

March 17^th & 18^th: Dunes Tourney (South Bend, Indiana)

April 21st & 22^nd: Motor City Madness (Warren, Michigan)

April 28^th & 29: Premier Invite (15’s & 16’s)

May 5^th & 6^th: Premier Jumble (13’s & 14’s)

May 26^th -28^th: Memorial Day Tournaments (Chicago or Louisville)

June 19^th – 27^th: 4 days in this block will be Orland Nationals for 15’s & 16’s

Late March / Early April – One more 2 day tourney

Further Explanation of the Cost Increase

- Extra Memorial Day Tourney

- Didn’t Raise Prices for 2 years

- Extra Practices this year ($175 per)

- Positively Fit Increase

- Nationals Included – 15’s & 16’s Don’t Get Sticker Shock

- Still Lowest of National Clubs – In Most Cases Significantly, especially if you compare travel costs!

Number of Tournaments: All teams play 5 tournaments with regular season ending Memorial Day weekend.  15’s & 16’s will continue on to nationals in Orlando.  All tournaments are multiple day, high level tournaments.  We don’t waste your time or ours with po-dunk single day local and regional stuff.

Coaching: TR is coach in a collaborative manner meaning all of our coaches are involved with all of the teams within the OHSAA rules.  We never put a first year coach in charge and all of our coaches always have assistants.  All of our coaches are high level high school coaches or college players. We have purposely kept our growth smaller than it could be because of our standards for who we allow to coach. We have several advisor coaches come in at various times to evaluate and consult with our staff as well as we are seeking constant improvement.

Performance TRaining:  Like how I capitalized the “TR” ?J  One of the hallmarks of TR Volleyball is our outstanding conditioning program.  Maryellen Grogan, owner of Positively Fit will be back with us again this year.  Maryellen is simply the best trainer I’ve ever worked with and her list of teams and athletes speaks for itself.  We follow Olympic and professional models of periodization in our training.  This year our performance conditioning will run 6 weeks.  Players will sign up for two sessions per week at her studio focusing on strength, stability, and explosion.  Saturdays they will come in as a team for an agility, speed, and endurance workout.

Practices: We go 4 times per week, 3 team practice and 1 position training night.  If we play Saturday and Sunday, Monday will be an off day.  All practices are the beautiful Fetterman Gym at the University of Toledo.  There are a total of 40 practices, with 5 more for teams going to nationals.

Other Sports/Activities: TR is built to allow athletes to participate in winter sports.  Spring sports especially at the high school level will NOT work with our program.  We are making this as clear as possible.  Even if your schedule “works out” there will be conflicts and you owe it to YOUR TEAM to bring your best energy and effort every day in addition to your attendance.

Scott’s Role: I’m in North Carolina coaching college ball.  I will not be here on a day to day basis.  I am still the owner and I have a commitment that goes way beyond business interests.  This is a project and a mission that includes master’s degree work, published articles, and a desire to change the sports culture.  I am reachable via email, will be up multiple times throughout the year doing evaluations and guest coaching along with meeting everyone at various tournaments.  The other thing you have in me is recruiting connections literally all over the country…

I trust the people on the ground back here in Toledo completely or I would not put my name on this thing.  Matt has been with me in TR since Day 1 several years back. Tina handled most of the admin last year and grown into a wonderful coach and manager over her 5 years with me.  Kristen Gyori has built a fabulous reputation in a short time at both Clay and TR.  Our college player coaches are high energy and have great expertise.  TR is an idea and it is spreading regardless of where its founder is geographically.

Howdy Everyone!

The Toledo Revolution Organizational meeting this Sunday, October 23rd will be held at Clay High School at 7:00.  Come on out to learn more about the program, what makes us different, and ask any questions you may have.

13’s & 14’s tryout will be Sunday October 30th from 7:00 – 9:00 at the Fetterman gym at the University of Toledo (attached to Savage Hall-Enter From Douglas) Registration will open at 6:15, the cost will be $20, and will include an individual evaluation of each player via email.

15’s & 16’s tryouts will be Sunday November 13th most likely in the later evening to avoid conflicts with other clubs.  Specifics will be confirmed on the website!

Hope to see you all Sunday Night!

In case you haven’t figured this out yet, the volleyball community has an “interesting” rumor mill not always motivated by the best on intentions.  I’m hearing from several sources that certain clubs are telling people that TR is closing up shop because Scott moved to North Carolina to take a college coaching  job.  This is laughable as I have been very up front about our intentions.  TR isn’t going anywhere and we began the transition last season in preparation for the time when I would leave.  TR is an idea, not one person.  Ideas don’t die because one person has to connect via email and travel a bit more.  I’m sure some of the rumors are honest misunderstandings, but…I’m sure you can draw your own conclusions about some sources

No we did not offer early commitments like many other clubs because we don’t think it’s the right thing to do and is yet another OVR policy that plays into the hands of the big club machine.  We think kids improve over the course of a school season and that families should have all of their options on the table when making a choice about where to spend their money.  things can look very different in November than they do in August…So while it may hurt us as a business, we simply won’t participate in a system we don’t support.  We will host informational meetings and tryouts like normal and here are some of the tentative dates;

Important Dates:

Sunday October 23rd: Organizational Meeting – Scott will be in town to host an informational meeting for paretns and players to explain the program and the philosophies of TR.

Sunday October 30th: 12’s – 14’s Tryouts @ UT 7:00-9:00 (registration opens at 6:15)

Sunday November 13th: 15’s – 18’s Tryouts (Specific time & location TBA)

Facilities: We already have a verbal agreement in place to practice out of UT’s beautiful Fetterman Gym attached to Savage Hall again this season.

Coaches: We have many returning coaches, several college players to assist and are talking to several more. We take great pride in the quality of our coaches as it is the life blood of any good club!

feel free to email me anytime with questions about TR and we will see you in the fall

coachmattera@gmail.com

This post was originally added as a separate page just after nationals in Orlando.  I am re posting it here where it belongs

TR wrapped up its season at the AAU National Championships in Orlando Florida with all 4 teams showing some of their best volleyball of the year.  A few inconsistencies and some great competition kept us out of the top but it was clear to everyone there that TR kept its promise that everyone would have fun and get better!  The level of improvement from tryouts until now is simply fantastic.  Congrats to all on a great season in preparation for high school tryouts!

Plans for next year are already in the works with organizational meeting dates, tryout dates, and practice facilities for the entire season already done.  In the coming weeks, we will announce the number of teams and the tentative coaching staff for next year.  So many people are truly buying into the idea that you don’t need to play from December through July to have a great club experience and that it’s actually good for players to take some breaks and concentrate on conditioning the right way.

We are not perfect and we know that some changes need to be made to continuously improve.  We are compiling feedback right now and comparing notes to make next year the best year ever for TR Volleyball.  Some items already being addressed are; shortening the break in May and giving more optional opportunities during the down time, playing an additional tournament, ending the younger age groups a bit earlier, and renting UT for the whole season, not just March and April.  Much more is being discussed and we welcome your constructive feedback at coachmattera@gmail.com

Thanks for a great year!

The final week of practice draws to a close, it’s just a scrimmage on Saturday with our friends from TVC, Blackswamp and Michigan Elite then off to Orlando, Florida for the AAU/JVA National Championships.  All four teams will be competing in the club division from June 15th through the 18th.  Updated results can be found at the Advanced Event Systems Website;

AES Results Website

Best of Luck Ladies and Coaches!

Well we are off and running!  The fund raiser went extremely well with over 100 people in attendance.  $15 of every ticket sold will go back to the family that sold it to help pay for nationals.  If you missed it, you missed a very fun night!

Our 12-1 team kicked off their year going undefeated in the Lake Michigan Championships in Grand Rapids Michigan.  Congrats to coach Carrie and her team for their great performance with only 6 team practices under their belts.  Most important, the girls had fun, the team camaraderie was great, and they improved so much over the course of the weekend as they got more and more comfortable in their positions!

Our 14’s teams both had good showings in their first weekend of play as well.  They played in the final week of the Power League in Maumee and really showed that they will be serious contenders as they grow together.  I saw lots of smiles, and lots of good plays mixed in with the normal early season jitters.  It’s so fun to see them get better right before your eyes!  I had a parent comment to me that it was amazing to see after only two weeks of practice and they can’t wait to see where they will be in another 2 weeks! 

A special public thank you to Stephanie Harms at Premier.  She was extremely accommodating to our club and for that we are very appreciative!

15’s are in in Mason Ohio this weekend for their first tourney and we are happy to welcome our first outside college coach to this week’s position night.  Margot Fredrick from D1 Texas Pan American University will be running the show Wednesday!

Viva!