It's that time of year when the team is now selected and getting to know each other both on the court and off becomes a priority. This year we took a different approach to both of these goals and each has turned out to be very rewarding, a lot of fun and educational.First off the court we had a team scavenger hunt, the team was broken down into small groups - with a vet or two combined with rookies. Did I mention that we have 12 rookies this season. Wow! I've never coached a team this young before but their enthusiasm will make up for their experience I'm sure. So our rookies currently out number our vets - one of the vets made a joke about it being a whole team something I honestly didn't even think about. But she's right in fact I think I may have more rookies than some OUA teams have players right now. Oy Vey!
Back to the scavenger hunt - we did all kinds of stuff to get to know Kingston better like ride the trolley, find art deco pieces along the Waterfront trail, find Frontenac memorabilia and hang upside down on the monkey bars. For some that experience was a first. Overall a great time was had by all and it finished with the team going to watch the football team beat Laurier. Go Gaels!
On the court we attended the University of Montreal tournament this past weekend. Usually this is a tournament where we get to see how the old blend with the new, but not this weekend. With vets recovering from injuries it turned out to be a weekend the rookies I'm sure will never forget. They all got an early taste of the speed, power and competitive nature of CIS volleyball. They learned early that the mistakes you can overcome in high school and club will cost you a close set and eventually a match. These are lessons that often it takes years to teach and they all learned it in one weekend. It was risky playing all rookies as we could have been badly beaten every single set but instead we were in each game. In fact a couple of matches had us leading by 4-5 to start.
I was really happy with what the youngsters had to show and it bodes well for this program's future. Now I just have to see what the vets are able to bring to the table to get an idea of where we stand as a team this year. This upcoming weekend we head to Ottawa. All the vets but two will be able to play so I look forward to combining the two groups this weekend.
Hope you are having an excellent day and when you get a chance don't forget to support the women's volleyball program. You can do so by clicking on the following link: www.givetoqueens.ca/w-volleyball
Talk soon,
Joely
