New volleyball club to unveil its plans at informational meeting
By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on September 30, 2012 1:50 AM
There's a new Junior Olympic volleyball organization bumping, setting and spiking its way into Wayne County and surrounding areas.
The Eastern Elite Volleyball Club (EEVC) will serve up its inaugural season this winter, and is holding a free informational open house Monday evening at Pine Forest United Methodist Church in the Rosewood community. The session begins at 7 p.m.
Potential club players and their parents will get the opportunity to meet the coaches and learn about the EEVC, which begins tryouts in October and early November. The coaching staff is comprised of head coaches from Louisburg and Mount Olive College, along with several high school coaches from Wayne, Wilson and Johnston counties.
A non-profit group governed by USA Volleyball, the EEVC plans to dedicate itself to the growth of volleyball in Wayne County and surrounding areas. Many middle and high school coaches find that most athletes either want to improve their skill level, earn more playing time on their respective high school team and get some exposure for the future.
Junior Olympic volleyball helps provide that experience, instruction and additional training time those players desire. Most of North Carolina's and the nation's top high school volleyball programs have players who have participated in the JO program.
The EEVC seeks players ages 12- to 18-years-old who wish to reach the peak of their ability and prepare for college-level competition. The EEVC hopes to develop eight different age-group squads that will duel on the regional and national levels.
"We aspire for our athletes to continually improve their individual skills, learn to compete as a team and enjoy the game," said Colby Mangum, who was recently named the new volleyball coach at Louisburg College. "What we provide is an opportunity for players to step outside of their local area and test their mettle against not only the best players in the state, but some of the best in the country.
"Better competition, more repitition and high levels of training make for more skilled and experienced volleyball players. The competition gets more fierce each year."
Four days of tryouts, which will be conducted over a two-week period, are scheduled for Oct. 27-28, Nov. 4 and Nov. 10. Early registration begins Monday and concludes Oct. 20.
For more information, visit www.easternelitevolleyball.org, email info@easternelitevolleyball.org or call (919) 738-8944.