An Exciting Change of Leadership for Peninsula Juniors

Posted on February 5, 2011 by tribevb

Peninsula Juniors Families,

I hope that you are all enjoying this beautiful California weather!  Many of our teams are playing this weekend, so I know that many of you are in the gym, which is a close second to sitting in the sunshine.  I write today with an important announcement regarding a change in leadership at Peninsula Juniors.

I am excited to announce that I have been offered and accepted a position at USA Volleyball as the Coordinator for High Performance Programs.  I will be responsible for the administration of the USAV High Performance Select and Future Select age groups at the National level as well as the management of Regional High Performance Programs in the 40 regions across the country.  This is an exciting opportunity for me personally and I am thrilled to have the chance to work for the National Governing Body for volleyball in the United States.  However, the position requires immediate relocation to Colorado Springs, Colorado, home to the USA Volleyball offices.  I will be moving in the next few weeks.

As a result of this new position, it is with much disappointment that I must announce my resignation as Director for Peninsula Juniors Volleyball Club.  I am excited, however, to announce that our PJV Coaches’ Representative Chris Balestrieri, has agreed to assume the position of Director with the assistance of Tribe Coaching Representative, Eric Ballelos. Eric will become the Director for Peninsula Tribe.  I will remain associated with the club as a member of Board of Directors and as a consultant to Chris and Eric throughout this season and next.  Having spoken with our dedicated Board of Directors this past week, we have determined that this is not only the best course of action but will be an exciting move for our club this year and moving forward for the future of Peninsula Juniors.  Chris and Eric bring years of coaching and program management experience to the position, having run the boys’ programs at Serra and Sacred Heart Prep High School, running the Tribe Boys’ division of PJV, and coaching many teams for Peninsula Juniors and the Tribe and a number of high schools along the Peninsula.  I have absolute confidence in their ability to run the club with the same mission-driven philosophy, putting the girls and boys first and providing players the opportunity to grow as young adults while learning and loving the game of volleyball.

Chris will be receiving and answering e-mails at his personal PJV address (chris.balestrieri@peninsulajuniors.org) or at the club address at director@peninsulajuniors.org.

I can be reached at my personal PJV e-mail (denise.sheldon@peninsulajuniors.org) and I will still assist with Director matters that are send to the director@peninsulajuniors.org address.  As always, billing and uniform questions should be send to Treasurer and Uniform Coordinator Sara Medina at billing@peninsulajuniors.org.  The club phone and fax number will be changing in the next couple weeks and that information will be sent to you via e-mail and will be reflected on the website.

Thank you so much for a wonderful year and a half with Peninsula Juniors.  I have been so fortunate to work with an amazing group of committed coaches and administrators in our humble club and have absolutely loved working with our players and enjoying relationships with our families.  I will miss every part of my involvement with Peninsula Juniors, but am excited for the growth that is to come under the leadership of Chris and Eric.

I will still be around, working HP tryouts and teaching IMPACT courses at tournaments, so I look forward to seeing the Peninsula Juniors players and families around the gyms.  I will always consider myself a part of the PJV family, so please don’t hesitate to say hello if you see me!

Thank you again for a terrific few years.  Good luck to every PJV team this season, and I hope to see everyone soon!

Peace, Love, and Volleyball,

Denise Sheldon
former Director, Peninsula Juniors and Peninsula Tribe Volleyball Club

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Is it grass/beach season yet?

Posted on February 5, 2011 by ericb

The title of this blog easily could have been “Why are we in the gym when it’s beautiful outside?”  God bless us it’s early February and while the rest of the country is experiencing blizzards and snow ins, we are essentially in beach mode.  So I ask again, “Why are in in the gym when it’s 70+ degrees outside and the weather is beauuuuuuuutiful?”

I’ll never profess I’m a pro (or even good) sand or grass player; I simply play enough to get by and have fun.  My outdoor doubles experience really didn’t start until I got to college where we ran grass doubles tournaments and got to play for free.  My grass doubles career got off to a rocky start (lost 15 straight sets at one point in both men’s and reverse co-ed doubles), but man were those days fun.  Nothing like getting some sun, chillin’ with your buddies, and playing some volley.  After the day is done, hang out some more, grab a bite to eat, and recap the awesome day.

Now those days are great, but why didn’t I start this sooner?  Why didn’t I play more doubles in high school?  Everyone says doubles works your all-around game and makes you a better indoor player, so why don’t the kids play more grass and beach?  Between club and high school season, there’s very little time off.  It seems to me kids are either playing 6s or re-cooperating from their indoor 6s season.  Shouldn’t we spice up our volley lives with a little grass doubles in the park?

The last few summers I’ve tried to get some of the Tribe and Serra boys to play some grass in the off season.  It wasn’t the cleanest volley, but hey they were out there.  I think at our peak we got 2 nets going with about maybe 10 players.  We had to adjust the rules a little bit so the game would be playable (boys love their overhand passing), but they were able to make a good day out it.  I really wasn’t sure if this was truly a success or not until I found out one of the Tribe/Serra kids bought their own grass net so him and his buddies can play whenever.  They called up their friends and during the summer months would grab some sun, chill with their homies, and play a little volley.  When I learned this, I knew I had to run with this full force.

So one of my goal for 2011 is to get the kids to play more some how, some way.  We don’t need a gym to play.  We don’t even want to be in the gym to play.  Let’s go outside.

I’ll post any new programs that either Tribe or whoever else runs in our Tryouts, Clinics, & Camps page.

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Interview: Tim Wood

Posted on January 12, 2011 by tribevb

Tim Wood was one of the first players when Peninsula Tribe restarted in the Fall of 2008.  He graduated from Junipero Serra High School in the Spring of 2010 and played 2 years of  varsity volleyball for the Padres.  Tim displayed good all around skills and was utilized as a setter, outside hitter, and as a defensive specialist.  Even after club and high school, Tim remains involved in the game through coaching.  He currently is the head coach for Peninsula Juniors Volleyball 12 Gold team.

When did you decide to give coaching a try and what made you make the leap from player to coach?

I first decided to give coaching a try my Sophomore year of high school. A teammate of mine told me his sister’s team needed a coach and asked if I was interested in helping him. I decided to just give coaching a try because it was going to keep me playing and around the game in my offseason. The team wasn’t the greatest and did not do all that well. I was unsure after that season if I wanted to continue coaching. Then, my Junior year, I was offered a volunteer position at Peninsula Juniors Volleyball Club. After a successful season, I found that coaching was something I really enjoyed. At the beginning of coaching, I thought of it as a way to further my playing ability, but found out later that coaching was something more than that for me, and I decided to stick with it.

As a coach, what’s your number one goal for any of you teams and why?

My number one goal for any of my teams is progress and success. Progress is a huge factor in volleyball. Every team is going to start off the season at one level then grow and progress to a better team. It’s just the game. It is how you measure your progress and your rate of progress that determines your success on the court. If you can progress at a faster rate than any other teams in your league you will win, hands down. In success being my other goal, I believe in success on and off the court. I want players to be able to be successful on the court and not be afraid of a challenge. When it is match point, I want my players to be calling for the set to get the match-winning kill, rather than being afraid of committing an error. The other side to success is being successful off the court. Not everyone of my players is going to get offered a full-ride scholarship to a Division 1 school, so I have to teach them some life skills that will guide them to becoming successful in life.

Tim at the PJV Foster City Volleyball Camp

What are your aspirations as a coach? Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 10?

I hope to become a head coach for a high school varsity level team in the future. I would like to coach both men and women’s volleyball. I love being around the game and helping others further their game. In ten years, who knows? Maybe I’ll be out running a college program, it’s too early to say. If that doesn’t work out, then I hope to still be coaching high levels of volleyball.

For you, what’s the biggest difference between being a coach and being a player? Are there any obstacles when you make that transition?

The biggest difference from being a coach and being a player is the level of control I have in the game. As a coach, I am really only involved with preparations and strategy. I prepare the girls in practice for their upcoming matches. I pick the line-up and make the appropriate substitutions. I do not run a quick-pipe combo, or I do not choose to hit line or angle. Those decisions are made by the players. As a coach I can only control so much, whereas the players control pretty much the entire game: the tempo, the sets, passing, etc. In transitioning, my biggest issue was taking a step back. Around the game of volleyball, my intensity was through the roof, and at times over-intense. I had to find a way to curb my intensity so I didn’t scare off any players. I had to find just the right intensity.

What’s your best Tribe memory? Any advice for the current and future Tribe kids?

My best Tribe memory is my 2009 season team. We got along so well and set goals for ourselves, and achieved those goals. It was a blast playing on that team because everyone got along so well. For the current Tribe players: grow the program. You guys are the ones who have the most control in making this program become a top-notch program. Stick with the game and pass along Tribe info. To future Tribe kids: make the most of it. I remember playing my Junior year and wishing it was still here. Club volleyball is fun. The people you meet and things you learn will never leave you. Enjoy the great game we all love.

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2010 Recap: What a year…

Posted on January 9, 2011 by ericb

So another season is in the books and I have to say it has been quite a year.  In our third year of Tribe’s restart, we set some pretty high exceptions and reached them for the most part.  Our goal is to continue to grow this special sport in our area and we are slowly working towards that.

When you have a boys’ club volleyball program where there is barely any boys volleyball, you appreciate the small victories.  Victory number one this year was fielding a 14s team.  With the advent of the 14s division last year, we were determined to find a team of boys to compete in that division.  Remember, only two years ago there were only two 14s teams and they competed in the 16/15 division.  We had a great group of kids on our 14s team, and while they only had 7 players, they competed hard and showed tremendous improvement.  Most importantly, I saw a lot of smiles and heard a lot of laughter from their court and that will hopefully carry them to a long volleyball career.

While we didn’t get a chance to field 16s or 15s team this year, we were able to merge those kids and form a pretty talented 18s team.  This year’s 18s team is by far the most talented collection of boys in my 3 years with Tribe.  But even with all that talent, there was a lot of work to do.  Maybe we could have earned another win or two here or there, but stepping back and looking at our season as a whole, the boys came a long long way.  Going from Aqua to Silver is no small task and it shows how hard the kids worked to get better.

What are the plans for Tribe going forward?  We still are looking to help cultivate the boys game on the Peninsula and hope to do so with an assortment of clinics and after school volleyball programs.  We’ve got some great ideas and hopefully we can put them all into motion.  Who knows, you might be seeing a Tribe after school volleyball program at your school this spring.

We are going to field a boys team to compete at the Junior National Championships in Minneapolis.  In the fall of 2011, we still hope to field 3 boys teams: 14s, 15s, and 18s.  Needless to say, there’s a lot on our plate for 2011.

With that being said, we are always looking for more people who share our vision.  This really is about creating something bigger than me, a team, the club.  We could always use more true fans who care about boys volleyball.

To a great 2010 and a promising 2011.  I’ll toast to that.

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Interview: Domenic Noto

Posted on December 1, 2010 by tribevb

Domenic Noto played for Peninsula Tribe during the Fall 2008 and 2009 seasons.  He graduated from Junipero Serra High School in the Spring of 2010 and played 2 years of  varsity volleyball for the Padres.  Dom currently is attending the University of California Davis and is playing on the UC Davis Men’s Volleyball team.  Dom takes some time out of his busy college schedule to catch up with us here at Tribe.

Compare the players and the level of play between UC Davis and high school/club. What’s the biggest difference?

First off, what is more impressive than the skill level of the players, is the intensity that everyone has in practice. Everyone goes all out in all of the serious drills (excluding triples hitting lines etc). Because of this the practices are really challenging but also a lot of fun. All of the guys on my team are incredibly skilled players. Even though everyone isn’t the prototype volleyball player, they are all very well rounded and very skilled players. Everyone on the team was one of the best players on their high school and club teams, and they are even better now that they have played in college, so it is a higher level of play.


What helped you prepare for playing at the next level?

There are a number of things that helped me prepare for this level. Mainly it was just playing the game as much as I could. Whether it was club or high school, grass or indoor, or just a random open gym, playing the game helped me refine all of my skills. I think the most important thing I did in my preparation was working out, mainly jump training. In high school and club I could get away with not jumping high because of my height, but up here the game is played so much higher above the net that my vertical is essential to my success.

What are you most excited about for the upcoming season? Sleeping on the field? Vegas? Nationals? Far Westerns?

I don’t exactly know what event I am looking forward to the most. But I am very excited forgetting to know my teammates, because they all seem like great guys, and I think I will have alot of fun with them.

Do you have any personal goals for the upcoming year? Team goals?

My main goal for this year is simply to become a better volleyball player. I can get better at every single skill, and i plan on improving in every way that I can. I also think that this is a special team and that we can do great things. So I hope we win as many matches and tournaments that we can.

Lastly, what advice do you have to give to other Tribe players out there?

Finally, my advice to all of the tribe players is to stick with it and work hard. If they want to keep playing volleyball at a relatively high level they will need to work at it, so they should start now. And most importantly, play as much as they can and have FUN.

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14 and Under Summer Clinics Are a Success!

Posted on September 1, 2010 by ericb

Peninsula Tribe organized its first summer volleyball clinics from June to August and it proved to be a successful endeavor. The 8 week program enabled kids to come in and try out volleyball for the first time. Majority of kids did not have any previous volleyball experience and all the kids came out with a new appreciation for volleyball. “This program is especially important since there are no boys youth volleyball programs in the area,” explained Tribe coordinator Eric Ballelos. “We want to give the kids an opportunity to try it out and if they feel comfortable and enjoy the sport, they can pursue volleyball at the club level.” Majority of the players on the current Tribe 14s team participated in the 14 and under summer clinics.

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