WHAT TO EXPECT:

Our tryout process will evaluate performance on a range of skills specific to the athlete’s primary position, along with more general skills and concepts appropriate to their age group. Time will be split between skill work and scrimmage-based drills, and our full program staff will be on rotation between all courts to keep our training environment fast-paced and high energy.  We understand the pressure associated with a tryout, and do our best to help all athletes treat this process as if it were any other night of practice – nobody wants you to succeed on the court more than us!

At this tryout we will be fielding athletes for our Middle School Program’s Fall/Winter Season, but note that teams will not be assigned until later on once training is underway.

Lastly, when registering for tryouts please be sure to select your rising age group for next Fall. For example, if you played 13’s (typically 7th graders) during the 2024-2025 season and will be in 8th Grade in the Fall, you should sign up under the 14U age group. Additional details will be sent out to all registrants ahead of our tryout date, including information on the tryout results process and when you can expect to hear back from us.

MIDDLE SCHOOL DETAILS

Our Middle School Program focuses on mastering the fundamental skills of volleyball while developing sport-specific strength and game knowledge. Athletes in this program are committed to honing their skillset while building a firm understanding of volleyball’s core tactics and concepts.

• Season Structure:
  • Fall/Winter: September – February & March-with a reduced practice schedule during the school season.
  • Spring/Summer: April – June, this season includes an opportunity for new players to join the club and extends to AAU Nationals.

• Practice Days: 2-3 practices per week, typically held on weekday evenings but also includes weekend positional training.

• Practice Length: Main practices will run for 2hrs and position practices 1hr20.

• Practice Location: The NSSC & Fairview South Elementary

• Practice Projections: Our Middle School teams will train on Mondays and Wednesdays for a 2hr window between 4:00-9:00pm. Final scheduling details TBD.

• Season Breaks: Our seasonal breaks will take place during the following dates:
  • Thanksgiving Break: 11/24 – 11/30
  • Winter Break: 2-2.5 weeks surrounding Christmas and New Years
  • Fall/Winter Season Concludes: March with reduced practices during the school season.

• Tournaments:
  • Approximately 13-16 competition dates throughout the season (13 local, 3 travel).
  • Local events are classified as any tournament our teams are able to commute to by car within <2 hours, so while in some cases your event may be out of state know that it can STILL be considered “local” (e.g. Milwaukee, Rockford, NW Indiana, etc.). The travel event we have slated for our Middle School Program is the SoCal Cup in Anaheim, CA, which takes place in January. We currently only plan to field our top middle school teams for this event, and would charge a separate fee of (approximately) $600-700 for those that are able to commit to this trip. Additional details to follow, but feel free to email blake@modvolleyball.com with any specific inquiries.

• Coaching: All Middle School Program teams will have 1 Head Coach along with an additional “floater” coach for training support (1 per 2-3 teams).

• Price: When factoring in all of the costs that go into running a successful season, MOD continues to offer the most complete programming for our area at the lowest price possible! We understand firsthand that youth sports can be a large commitment, and we pride ourselves on being an organization that is committed to delivering the top-of-the-line experience our community has come to expect. Our season dues cover all costs associated with our scheduled training, tournament registration, coach compensation, and admin operations – the only additional fees that families are required to pay are for 1.) our Uniform Package (typically $250-350) and 2.) personal travel and lodging during competition weekends out of the area. While we are still crunching the final numbers for our 2025-2026 season dues, you can expect totals to land within the following range for our 12-14U teams. To learn more about potential scholarship opportunities or to better understand our cost projections please email andrea@modvolleyball.com.
  • 12-14U Cost Projection | $2800-3100