Volleyball camp offered at Tech
Matt Boone/SPPSWomen's volleyball coach Chris Riley talks to campers."We heard it was one of the best that's around," said parent Lisa DesLauriers, as she and her husband watched their daughter Brittany DesLauriers from the stands of Cassell Coliseum.
"It was a lot of fun, and I met a lot of really great people," said Brittany, who is a rising freshman at Forest Park High School in Woodbridge, Va.
The 14-year-old setter is a member of the Ichiban Volleyball Club and will be attempting to earn a spot on the Forest Park volleyball team this coming school year.
"It was a lot of fun being able to improve my skills and have fun doing it too," Brittany said, "I would definitely come back to this one."
The camp, run by Riley, who will be beginning his third year as a Hokie, is expected to have 160 to 170 campers for the individual camps while team camps will see 400 to 500 students.
The goal is to "advance the kids, let them have fun … The most important thing is that they're enjoying themselves so they keep playing," Riley said.
Setter/Hitter/Libero camp is the first of a series of camps hosted on campus by Tech. Campers' ages range from 10 to 18 and are separated into groups according to ability level.There is a 9 to 1 camper instructor ratio, allowing for individual instruction, helping to advance each player's game during their two-day stay.
The camp is focused on taking each player's skills to an elite level within an individual and team environment, with emphasis focused toward positive attitude, sportsmanship, and team work.
On Saturday, campers were required to check in at 8:30 am. The first day is focused on individual training for setters, hitters or liberos.
Setters and hitters received individual instruction by position and were given the opportunity to work together.
Liberos, a fairly new position that was introduced to the NCAA in 2002, were given the same individual instruction but also perfected their passing, serve receive, and defensive skills.
The second day all three positions come together, allowing the campers to practice their newfound skills learned from the previous day.
Students are given the choice of being a day camper or an overnight camper. Day camp runs at the cost of $215 while night camp is $295. All night camps include meals while campers are on campus.
Today begins the NIKE All-skills/ Advanced Camp. The all-skills camp is focused on players of all ability levels from ages 10 to 18. They will master volleyball fundamentals, develop proper mechanics and gain gameplay experience.
Advanced camp is geared specifically toward rising sophomore, junior and senior high school varsity players who are committed to the sport.
"Advanced Skills camp is more of a recruiting camp," Riley said, in comparison to the Setters/Hitters/Libero camp.
"We invite kids to come and attend that camp and use it as a recruiting tool," Riley said. "It gives us a chance to get kids that we want to look at on campus."
Other camps that will be held during the next two weeks include the All-skills Day Camps for boys and girls, which will be held from July 21 to July 24. It is open to all ages and ability levels.
The Team Skills Camps for grades 8-12 will be held on July 25-27. Team Skills Camp is designed for junior varsity and varsity high school teams.
