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Since it's almost summer and things are slowing down, I wanted to get people's opinion of the purpose of JV/Freshman teams.

By the time a player reaches High School Varsity level, the emphasis is on winning. What about the lower levels of high school volleyball? I understand there is a mixture of winning and training players. There is more to it than that. Obviously, when you are a large D I school, 40-50 girls may tryout. Therefore, it's easy to field 3 teams. There aren't any D I schools in the area. D II/D III may only have 20-25 girls tryout. How does your team run the program?

What is the purpose of the lower level teams? Do Southern/Southeastern Ohio teams have 25-30 girls tryout very often? How often are there cuts? How many schools field a freshman team?

I would think there are two schools of thought:

1. Have a JV team only. Keep only the players that head coach feels will develop into varsity level players. Cut the lower skilled players early. Concentrate developing one team in hopes of filling graduating seniors on the varsity. This route needs 16-20 players at the high school level typically. If 30 tryout ... cut 10. 8-10 on varsity ... 10-12 on JV ... some players play JV, but dress Varsity. This route may mean having 10-12 players on JV. Not all players are developed equally, since all don't get the same playing time.
2. Have a JV and a freshman team. Keep as many players as possible. Some may make the varsity before they graduate ... some may quit/get cut later in their high school career. This route route needs 20-30 players typically. Almost every year all players are kept. 8-10 on varsity, 8-10 on JV, 7-9 on freshman ... some players may play at a lower level, but dress for the high level. This route may mean having 7 freshman players of widely varying ability. Due to this success may be limited, but the everyone at least gets a chance to develop.

George, good topic for discussion. I and my staff believed keeping a freshman team was critical to the growth of your program. We usually had 40 to 45 girls try out and tried to keep 12 for varsity, 10 for jv and 10 freshman if class had enough talent. There were a couple of seasons we kept 12 and the reasons were potential that we believed might develop. Most freshman girls are still developing their coordination, confidence, and maturity. We liked providing the opportunity for all to grow in all these areas. By the last week of September 1 or 2 freshman would stand out and we would dress them on jv and play if good enough. That usually sent a message to sophs that you better pick up your game. Its not dog eat dog but it was an eye opener for those that wanted to make varsity the next season. It kept kids hungry and worked for us. Just about every year we had 5 or 6 seniors ( one year 9 but that class was loaded ) so it was a natural progession for the class to downsize. Kids decide they want to try another sport, focus on school or other activities. Once you reach high school the commitment is deeper.
We did emphasize winning at all levels as we felt that feeds the program. Many schools do a great job of managing their program without a freshman team but we had the numbers and were fortunate to have the talent. You will have upset kids and parents every year due to playing time but it always worked out in the end. We never had a girl quit once tryouts were over and tried our best to manage playing time and complaints. You have to earn your time on the court and that should be bottom line. Playing time is not a given even as a senior and kids should not feel entitled. Hard lesson but true. Ultimate goal was to make sure it was a positive and good experience for each girl. Much of that comes from the kid and their parents too. Balance was the key to the good experience. Just enough training, practice, conditioning, spirit, and bonding as very few move on to the next level. This was our programs attitude and worked well for us. Thanks for the topic.

Thanks boo33vb,

I agree with you. I would think most teams go with number two. I am wondering the why's for both choices. Why have only a JV team, when a freshman team is possible. Is it money that prevents you from fielding the team? The same could actually be said about small D IV schools that only have varsity teams. Do you cut 7/8 players? Is this a monetary reason also?

One thing that comes to mind that will impact these types of decisions for all sports is the competitive balance issue. Volleyball, like soccer, has a multiplier of 5 if a student resides outside the district and has not been continuously enrolled since 7th grade. So if you are the coach of a team with an enrollment count of 10 below moving up to a higher division and have 3 girls who fit this multiplier category and you know are only going to see the floor 2-3 times a season and those will be at times when the contest has been decided, are you going to keep them? The kids that are on the roster this fall will impact the divisions on where teams compete in the tournament in 2016.

I agree 4th n Goal. The number of teams within 10 or even 20 of the cutoff and are big enough to have a freshman team (D II / D I) is low - 40 out of 700. Take out the non-competitive schools and the number is even lower. I would hope a player wouldn't be cut for no other reason than to work the numbers, but I am not so naive to think it doesn't happen.