With NO High School Volleyball in the State of Vermont, it's a little
tough getting kids excited and interested in a sport that a lot of them
have never really seen. Not only that, but there's no place for them to
go with their "new" skills, except to come back to our clinic next year!
That didn't stop these kids from signing up for our Free Clinic, and
having a ball, literally, in Pepin Gymnasium with our Team. After they
warmed up with games like elbow tag, and sharks and minnows, they were
introduced to the basic skills of passing, setting and even hitting
(sort of...). The team had a great time, and so did the kids.
We had a trial run last year with a group of Home-schooled children. It
went well, so we tried to generate more interest this year by putting
flyers at the local elementary schools. It was open to boys and girls in
grades 1-6, and we had about 4 kids from last year come out again this
year, so we're hoping it'll grow little by little each year. There were
lots of laughs, and smiles, and a lot of excitement from our newest
fans, I think.
Just as we do, we started out with a lot of passing. You can never do
too much passing!!
Then came the time to HIT! Even at this stage, everyone wants to hit. Not as easy as it looks...even with a low net and a ball that's just sitting there.
Then we had them try to set. Lauren was our resident
expert, and got them shaping their hands appropriately into the bowl. I
don't think we got to the point where they actually realized what a real
"set" is other than another way to pass, but it's a good start!
Then came the time to HIT! Even at this stage, everyone wants to hit. Not as easy as it looks...even with a low net and a ball that's just sitting there.
