What I will remember from Middle School.

1- Kieve

In sixth grade we went to Kieve and I had so much fun.  I loved the rock climbing and just being with my friends.  

2-Cheeseburger test

I hated this test.  It was so stressful; you only got one notecard and could only write on one side of it.  I ended up doing ok on this, but it was so very difficult.

3- Torture Chamber

Ahhhhhh, the famous Torture Chamber test.  This was the worst part of seventh grade for me.  I made flashcards for this and I had 264 cards.  Yes, I actually counted them for this blog post.

4- Word Within The Word

This test caused so many stressful Thursday nights, but my grades were always really good.  I remember stressing out over the five word tests, and now there are 100 roots and words on the test.

5- Quebec

This is my favorite memory of middle school.  I loved this trip so much because I got to go to Canada with all of my friends.

6- Middle School softball

I played on the team for both years.  I had so much fun, and I met so many people I wouldn't know otherwise.  I loved the coaches and my teammates.

7- The "Dungeon"

The dreaded dungeon.  Everyone who comes into the middle school knows what and where the dungeon is.  This hallway is scary for sixth graders, because it is where a lot of the eighth graders are.

8- Middle School volleyball

Middle school volleyball was so much fun.  The coach, June Tait, is so nice, and now when I see her she gives be a big hug and even a kiss on the head.

Summer plans

         This week I chose to write about some thing isn't volleyball but it relates to volleyball.  This summer I am going to be very busy.  I have high school volleyball preseason.  I can't wait for high school volleyball.  I am also babysitting a five-year old girl from my camp on Wednesdays and Thursdays.  I will be at my camp on Sebago Lake and I will get to hang out with my friends from Massachusetts, Florida, and Texas who come up to Maine for the summer.  I am so excited to see my friends because I haven't seen them since  the end of August.  I can't wit for summer.

Team party

Writing for 6/2/17

        Last weekend my volleyball team had a team party.  It was in Scarborough at Brenna's house.  We all got their at  5:30 and we played volleyball.  After that we ate dinner.  Everybody brought something different.  There was pizza, meatballs, pulled pork, and many different sides.  After dinner we played volleyball and corn hole.  Then the host-family made a fire and we had s'mores.  We said our goodbyes.  This part was sad because we were all so close and we won't have the same team next year.  

Why I like Volleyball

        Volleyball is such an amazing sport.  It is becoming more and more popular every year.  In volleyball you create friends for life and you meet so many people that you wouldn't know otherwise.

#1- It is exciting

Volleyball is so intense.  You never know where the ball is going to go.  Volleyball is the most intense sport in my opinion because it is fast.

#2- You meet so many people

This year my team for Maine Juniors became so close.  We had people from Falmouth, Yarmouth, Gray, Gorham, and Scarborough.  If it wasn't for this team, I wouldn't know any of my teammates.  I love meeting people from other towns and this is a great way to do it.

#3- You get to go to tournaments

Tournaments are so fun, especially the full weekend tournaments.  You get to spend a whole day watching and playing volleyball with your friends at tournaments.  

#4- You can dive on the ground

Usually when you dive on the ground, it is because you tripped and fell.  In volleyball, you have to dive for the ball and give all you have to keep the ball up.  I love diving because you save the ball and then everyone is amazed that you got to the ball.

How is beach volleyball different from indoor volleyball?

#1- Court size

The size of an indoor court is 18m x 9m and a beach court is 16m x 8m.  Also, an indoor court has a line called the 10 foot line, and the back row players can't hit the ball from in front of the 10 foot line.  In beach volleyball there is no restriction of where you can hit from.

#2- Balls

Indoor volleyballs are made of leather and are heavier than beach volleyballs.  Beach volleyballs are softer and are a little bit bigger than indoor volleyballs.  The blue volleyball is an indoor ball and the yellow volleyball is a beach ball

#3- Number of Players

In indoor volleyball there are six players on each side of the court.  In beach volleyball there are two players on each side of the court.

#4- Scoring

In beach volleyball you play best out of three and the games go to 21.  In indoor volleyball you play best out of five and go to 25.

Basic Volleyball Rules

1- What is in and what is out?

When the ball is hit at you and it lands outside of the lines it is out, but if the ball hits the line it is in.  If you are line judging, the way to tell if you should call it in or out is if you saw court between the ball and the line.  Also, if the ball lands inside the lines it is in.

2- Can you touch the net?

If you touch the net at all during the play, your team automatically loses the point.  If your jersey or hair hits the net it is okay and your team will not lose the point.

3- What happens if you touch the end line while serving?

When you serve, you have to serve from behind the base line.  If your foot touches the line before you contact the ball, it is called a foot fault and the other team gets a point and the serve.

This is an example of a foot fault.

 

4- If you block the ball can you touch the ball again?

If the other team is hitting the ball, your team can try and block the ball.  If one of the blockers touches the ball, they can then pass the ball without being called for touching the ball twice in a row.  

Nerva V

This weekend is my last Nerva tournament.  There are only five Nerva tournaments and then the season is over.  This tournament is in Boston.  I am going down the day before with two of my teammates and we are staying in a hotel and going shopping.  We are leaving at 1:00 and will arrive at about 3:12 according to google maps.  There is a mall near the hotel and then we are going to shop on the streets.  After we shop, we are going to eat dinner at Cheesecake Factory and then get ice cream from coldstone creamery.  I am excited because we are going to swim when we get to the hotel.  In the morning we have to get up at 7:00 and the tournament starts at 8:30.

Volleyball memes

      This week I found some really relatable volleyball memes.  I will explain them because they might be confusing if you don't play volleyball.

#1

 

In volleyball when I am hitting, I always aim for the player that is the worst so I have more of a chance of getting a point for my team.  

#2

One of the most called rules in volleyball is that a player hits the net.  If you hit the net, the point automatically goes to the other team.  

#3

I love this one because knee pads stink after practice, and when my teams goes into the locker room to change, it stinks.  I wash my knee pads about every two weeks but they start to stink.

#4

This meme is so relatable because when I hit the ball, the ball always hits the other player in the face.

#5

I always seem to serve on game point, and it is the most nerve-racking thing ever because if you miss the other team will win.  If your team is on game point it is a little less stressful but you still lose the point.

#6

I have only forgotten my knee pads once and it was the practice that my coach made us do a bunch of diving.  The worst sound is when someone doesn't have kneepads and they dive because it sounds really cringey and like a screeching sound.

Different types of sets

      This week I chose to write about the four main sets that my team does.  We do ones, twos, fours, and fives.  I am the setter on my team so I wanted to explain the different types of sets.

1- Ones

The first type of set is called a one.  This set is just high enough for the hitter to be able to swing their arm and hit the ball.  When the ball drops it should land one foot away from the setter.  This is the quickest set meaning the hitter will usually hit the ball straight down.  The setter basically wants to put the ball in the hitter's hand.  The picture below is someone hitting a one.

2- Twos
My favorite type of set is a two because it is easy to set and it is a hard hit to dig.   This set is about two feet higher than the net and it should land about two feet away from the setter's feet.  This set is hit by the middle hitter.  The picture below shows someone hitting a two.


3- Fours
This is the second hardest set because you have to push the ball really far and really high, so that the outside hitter can jump and hit the ball.  The is is my least favorite set because of how hard it is to get a perfect set.  The outside hitter hits a four and it is probably the most common hit.  The picture below is of a person hitting a four.


4- Fives
This is the hardest set because you have to set the ball backwards.  I struggle with back sets, but this set is the best for left-handed players because they can hit the ball into the back corners easily.  This pictures is of someone hitting a five.

Volleyball position basics

This week I decided to write about each position on the volleyball court to give everybody an idea of the positions and what you do in each position.  There are six positions on the court and they are all very different.  Also, different teams assign different jobs to each position.  Each position has a number so the order I put them in corresponds to their number.

This picture has the positions but it is abbreviated.

1- Right back or RB

This is the serving position so when you rotate into this position you serve.  This is one of the three passing positions so when the other team serves, you are one of the three back row players who passes.

2- Right front or RF

This position is where the setter plays.  The setter is the person who usually touches the ball second on this side of the net so they can set a hitter.

3- Center front of CF

The CF is also called the middle hitter and they hit from the middle of the court.  The two sets this player hits are twos and ones which are different types of sets.  This person also blocks the hitters on the other side of the net.

4- Left front or LF

This person is called the outside hitter.  They hit a type of set called a four or a 32.  This is the main hitter but it is a harder position to set for the setter because of how far they are from the right front, where the setter is.

5- Left Back or  LF

This is another one of the three main passers.  This person is important because they mainly dig all of the tips from the other side of the net.

6- Center Back or CF

This position is the last of the three passers in the back row.  The CF's job is to cover the corners when the other team is hitting.

What do I keep in my volleyball bag?

1- Knee pads

Knee pads are an essential to playing volleyball, so I always have two pairs of knee pads in my bag.  Also, if I am playing and one of my knee pads rips I will have a replacement knee pad.

2- Volleyball sneakers

Like knee pads, volleyball sneakers are necessary.  Volleyball sneakers are different from regular sneakers because they have a lot of support around the ankles.  The support is good for jumping because when you land you won't twist your ankle. 

3- Hairbands

I hate playing volleyball with my hair down, and hairbands always break, so I keep extra hairbands in my bag. 

4- Food

After a volleyball tournament with no time to eat, I am starving like any other human being, so I always keep a couple granola bars in my bag.

Volleyball reffing jobs

     At a volleyball tournament when you are not one of the two teams playing, you are either working, also known as reffing, or you have an hour off.  When you are reffing there are six different jobs but seven people have to work, I will explain later.  

1- Score flipper

This job is the easiest of all of the jobs.  All you have to do is keep score by flipping a little piece of plastic that displays the score.                                     

2- Scoresheet keeper

This job is tied for the hardest job with up ref, a job I will talk about later.  This job involves a very complicated sheet of paper that has a lot of different components.  On this sheet you write down who subs for who, the score, the number of timeouts each team has left, how many points each server score,  and the captains on each team.                                                   

3- Down ref

This job is fairly easy but you have to pay attention.  This person blows their whistle when a coach calls a timeout or wants to make a substitution.  This works with the up ref if a person goes under the net ur touches the net because sometimes the up ref doesn’t see it, so the down ref has to call it.  The down ref stands next to the end of the net opposite of the up ref.

4- Up ref

The up ref controls the pace of the game.  The up ref beckons for serve which allows the server to serve.  The up ref says who got the point and why after each volley.  The up ref stands on a little stand so that they have a better view of the court.  They also can stop the play if there are any violations.

                              

5- Libero tracker

This is a very hard job to explain but I will try my best.  Most volleyball teams have a libero; a libero can only play back row and they can substitute whenever they want.  This person has to write down who the libero goes in for and who goes in for them.  The libero is easy to find because they wear a different colored jersey.

6- Line judge

This person has the easiest job out of all the jobs.  They have a flag and the watch 2/4 of the lines and they determine if the ball was in or out when it touches the ground. There are two line judges and they each stand on a corner and watch the lines that connect on the corner they are standing on.

Mizuno Boston

     
      This weekend I am going to Boston for a volleyball tournament and I can't wait.  The tournament is run my Mizuno and the tournament "Winterfest" is also run by Mizuno.  This tournament has about 100 courts set up and Winterfest only had 12 courts so this will be a lot bigger of a facility and there will be a lot more teams.
      In the U14 category there are 56 teams.  The ages go from U12 to U18. There will be about 455 teams total at this tournament which is awesome because it shows that volleyball is growing rapidly.  For the U14 category, there are three categories, club, open, and USA.  My team is in the club category which is the lowest category but it will still be competitive.
      My team plays early Saturday morning and we play three games on Saturday.  After we play the three games we can go back to the hotel and go swimming.  I am so excited for this weekend because Sunday is my birthday and I get to do my favorite thing, volleyball.  Every year on my birthday or around my birthday, I get to pick where we go for dinner.  This year I chose to go to Morton's steakhouse, a really fancy steakhouse in Boston near my hotel, and I am thrilled that I can go to this restaurant. I can't wait to get to Boston and play volleyball and spend my birthday in Boston with some of my best friends and family.                            

Tryout process

      Every year if you want to be on a Maine Juniors team, you go through the process of tryouts.  Tryouts last for two hours, and they go on for two weekends.  Maine Juniors breaks up the tryouts by age groups.  Within an age group, they split everybody into two groups.  This year about 100 girls wanted to be on a U14 Maine Juniors team which is the highest amount of people that have ever tried out for U14 teams.
      When you arrive at tryouts, you have to give sign a couple of papers and check in.  They give you a shirt with a random number; they also put tape on your shirt depending on what teams you want to tryout for.  For example, I wanted to be on either gold or silver so I had gold and silver duct tape on my shoulder.  After you check in and get a shirt, the first thing you usually do is play a couple games as a whole group such as queens or doghouse.  These two games are to get everybody warmed up.  Next they split everyone into two groups.  One group does spotlight, which I will explain in the next paragraph, and the other group does skills and drills.
      Spotlight is when everybody in one half stands around one court and one at a time you do different skills.  The first skill they have everybody do is passing.  Next, everybody does setting and then on the next Sunday everybody does serving and hitting.  You do 5 serves and 10 of the rest of the skills.  Spotlight is extremely nerve racking because the best coaches from the whole club watch you individually.  I did really well this year because I was not as nervous as last year.  Last year when I was serving, I was shaking and I got 1/5 of my serves over the net and in the court.  I got 5/5 of my serves over the net and I was so happy with myself.
      When you are not doing the spotlight portion of the tryouts, you do skills with a coach from a different age group.  They pick a coach from another age group so that all of your potential coaches are watching the spotlight.  The drills on the other court are basically games so it is a lot of fun.  I like this side better because it is a lot less stressful than the spotlight court.
      I  like that Maine Juniors does two days of tryouts because if your have a bad day, then you have another day to make up for it.  I find that the spotlight evaluation makes me very nervous but once I am done with it I feel so relieved.  Also, the spotlight allows the coaches to watch every person do all of the skills and it gives them more than one try.  I like the process that Maine juniors uses to evaluate everybody and make the teams.                                     The picture to the left is what the spotlight looks like.  Instead of the coach doing it, it is the players who do it but this is the closest picture I could find.

New Club Facility

      My club is renovating an old hockey arena which is going to be our new gym.  The new building is in Saco, Maine.  Right now and for about the past 10 years, we practice at various gyms.  Some of the gyms we practice at are: Greely Middle School, Biddeford Middle School, and Governor Baxter School for the Deaf, which is on Mackworth Island in Falmouth.  The new facility will have five volleyball courts and three basketball courts.  All of the nets will be brand new and we will also have a lot of new ball carts because all of our current ball carts are broken and duct taped together.  I am so excited for the new facility because we are going to have all of our practices in one spot.  Every year Maine Juniors, the club I play for, holds one tournament and teams from all over New England come. The tournament is usually at Biddeford Middle school which only has two courts, but now at our new facility the tournament will take a lot less time because we have three more courts.  The tournaments usually last from 7:00 am to 5:00 pm.  Now, the tournaments will only go from 7:00 am to about 12:00 pm.  The facility is going to be very nice and will be great for our club.

Volleyball gear reviews

      I play a lot of volleyball and there are a lot of different types of gear you use when you play volleyball.  One of the most important pieces of gear is kneepads.  I will also include what I wear for clothing when I go to practice.  I will talk about my favorite type of ball to use.

      In volleyball I am always diving to get the ball so I need knee pads that won't rip.  I use the mizuno VS-1 knee pads and they fit great.  The pair I have is black but they also make white kneepads.  They are my favorite style because they are super padded and it doesn't hurt when you dive.  My last pair was not very padded and they hurt when I dove so I bought new kneepads.  I really like my pair and I recommend them for anybody that is shopping for kneepads.
                                                                     
      When I go to practice I wear spandex and a long sleeve shirt.  I wear a long sleeve shirt because it protects my arms from getting floor burns when I dive.  I wear any of my three volleyball shirts that I got from past tournaments.The spandex I buy are nike pros and I buy them in all different colors.  For my uniform I have to wear black spandex so I have four pairs of black ones.  I also have a pair that is a mixture of blues and greens and a pair of coral colored spandex.  I really like nike pro spandex because they are super comfortable.

      As you might know there are two types of volleyballs and many brands that make both types.  The two types are just normal volleyballs and volley-lite volleyballs.  Volley-lite volleyballs are for beginners because they don't hurt your wrists as much when you pass the ball.  As you play volleyball more, your wrists become used to passing a volleyball and you can start using normal volleyballs.  I personally hate volley-lite volleyballs because I am used to normal volleyballs.  I really like the mizuno volleyballs because they come in all colors so I get one every year from my volleyball club that is the colors of my club, Maine Juniors.

     

Winterfest!

      Last weekend I went to Hartford, Connecticut, for a volleyball tournament called winterfest.  I play for Maine Juniors, a volleyball club, and I am on 14 gold, the best team for my age division.  My team got first for our bracket and we did not get to play the winner of the bracket because there was another tournament after us and we were running late, so we did not have time to play.  Winterfest lasts 2 days for the bracket of 14 year olds and 3 days for the 16 and 18 year olds.  I had never been so I was really excited to experience my first winterfest and I am so happy that we won our bracket.                                                     

      On Saturday Afternoon my team got to hang out at the hotel, so we played a lot of games in the pool and we had a potluck.  We played elevator tag which is basically tag but you can not take the stairs so you have to ride in the elevators.  My team quit after about ten minutes and we sat on the end of one the halls and talked.  At about 6:00 we went to one of my teammates rooms and had dinner which was pulled pork and salad and a bunch of desserts that people brought.  After dinner we played hide and seek in teams of four and that did not last long.  My team went to one of our rooms and then once their parents came in we went to another persons room.  We played a lot of games like truth or dare or never have I ever.  Below is a picture of my team after the first day of winterfest.

We played five games between the two days.  My team lost the first game, but we won the second game.  We lost the third game which was also the last game of the first day.  We won both games on the second day and we won our bracket!  I had so much fun and it was good for us to be able to bond because in volleyball you have to be able to work together and not get flustered.