Venice VB goes Primetime!

I know that you are probably wondering what to do with yourself on a Friday night since the football team has a BYE week. Yes, its date night at the TeePee as the Indians will square off with the Big dogs from Tampa Prep! It should be a good one as VHS and TP have split this year. So come out and bring that special someone for the 7:00 start against the turtles, oops I mean Terrapins, from Tampa Prep.
Thurs, Oct. 16 is Dairy Queen night for the Venice volleyball team. 10% of all of their proceeds from 5-8 PM go directly to the Spiker Booster Club. Eat at DQ!!!
Lastly, it looks like the "Who is the greatest setter ever at VHS" poll is heating up. The two front runners, '94 Briana Sandburg-Peacock and '07 Nickie Halbert have emerged. This polls will end sometime during our playoff run so keep the votes coming in.

3 C's

Calm, cool, and confident. Do you think that only players learn from their coaches? I want to tell you what I have been learning as a coach over the past couple of weeks. I am learning that this group is willing to do what it takes to be successful and they are proving that to me over and over again. Some days we are very hard on them and others we are not but they are trying and that is all that matters. There has not been one eye roll, shoulder shrug, or question about what or why we are doing something. As of last Wednesday, we had not had ONE day off since the beginning of the season. We felt like for us to just have a chance to compete we had to teach, teach , and teach but you can only go to the well so many times w/out it drying up. After we lost to St. Thomas Aquinas last Wednesday night, I wanted to see what the attitude was the next day. I knew our team was physically and mentally exhausted but they came in the next day willing to do whatever was needed to correct the mistakes from the night before and in my book, attitude is everything! That showed me how special this team has become. Bottom line, we gave the kids off for 4 days and this week they have come back recharged and ready to go. It is a fine line with the difficult schedule we play because we are not going to have the best record that we have ever had but we want to keep their confidence high too. I think our players know that without that schedule, we would not really know where we stand. A team that comes into districts with a 25-0 record doesn't truly know how they will react under pressure. The more times a team is in the pressure cooker, the higher chance that they will get used to it and like it. The players and coaches just need to let the learning process run its course and be calm, cool, and confident.

Expect to Win

It's hard to believe that we have just completed over half of the season. Although the time has gone by quickly, I feel like it has been productive in many different areas. The number of days that we practice are so limited now because of games during the week so we have to utilize every day we can and try to improve and maximize every practice or scrimmage. The volleyball staff has been pleased with the progress of several players and encouraged by the commitment of the team. One player in particular, Autumn Duyn, has been on a tear and she does not even realize yet the impact she has on our opponents.
One of our goals heading into the season was to serve tough to force teams to get out of system so we have an opportunity to compete against the bigger and more experienced teams. With big wins against Aquinas, Tampa Prep, Bucholtz, Manatee, and Jensen Beach, we all have been encouraged by the grit that our team has shown this year. Playing in what I think was the toughest field since I have been around (which is a long time) at the Berkeley Premier, our team is finally realizing that nobody is going to feel sorry for them after a mistake and every point must be played with passion. I feel these next two weeks will be a turning point for the rest of the year. It will give our players an opportunity to work on skills again and regain some rest from the last 3 weekends on the road. Our players understand (i think) that practices must duplicate the atmosphere in the Berkeley gymnasium to compete at that level. The last two practices were full of intensity and enthusiasm as players are happy about this months home stand against Aquinas, Berkeley and Tampa Prep, Winter Springs, and Southeast to clinch the #1 seed in the district tourney.
We appreciate your help and support and look forward to the challenges that lie ahead for this club. As the sign reads, "Expect To Win".

To venture out or stay under covers

That is the question that faces the 2008 team. After an exiting showing in the Gatortown classic, this years team is deciding what will their legacy be? Some teams in the past have shown tremendous offense while other Venice teams were known for their stellar defense, while others would scratch and claw to the finish. Last week, we played Manatee and Leon HS up in Tallahassee. Against Manatee, we destroyed them when we decided to play up but when we played just mediocre, we lost. Luckily, we came out ahead. Same thing happened after the 5 hour drive to Tallahassee. The first game was a 29-27 battle, in the 2nd game we seemed to be cruising at 20-16 then the bad people in our heads seemed to get the best of us as each game would be fought hard until we scored around 20 points. Is this typical of a young team or is it that we did not handle success the week before or is that we think we achieved something and thought we could just cruise the rest of the season? All of these questions were "discussed" after the Leon loss. Why is it that a team celebrates so much after beating a Venice team? The reason is simple...... tradition, pride, and entusiasm. These are the things that explain what our teams are about. Many times, we do not have the best athletes or experience or height that other teams possess but we have something much bigger and better. Venice Volleyball teams have a big heart and Every team that we face knows that the Green team is going to scratch and claw all the way to the finish and that nobody will have an easy road. This is the reason why teams celebrate when they rarely defeat the Green Machine from Venice, FL So the question must go out to this years team that must be answered from their actions and not their words. Will the the 2008 team venture out or stay safe in the shelter?

Gatortown classic

After a tough 5 game loss at Tampa Prep on Thursday night, the Indians went to defend their title in the Gatortown classic in Gainesville. VHS was seeded 7th overall in the 16 team tournamant but the Indians proved in the first day that seeds don't mean a thing. In the first match against Gainesville Santa Fe HS, vhs cleared the bench winning 25-15, 25-15. The second proved to be much tougher beating 4A powerhouse Bishop Kenny 25-23, 26-24. The last game of pool play against St. Thomas Aquinas was for the right to go to the gold division on Saturday. Venice beat Aquinas twice last year in 5 games and the rivalry continued its long tradition on Saturday night as VHS defeated Aquinas 25-23, 25-22. It was a grueling, emotional match as the Indians were down 11-6 in the first and finally took the lead at 23-22 as the defense smothered each powerful hit. Emily Daniels had her break out game with 13 thundering spikes to clinch the win. BTW, it is Aquinas turn to visit the TeePee in early October which will be a doozy!

Tampa Prep

Game starts at 6:30

On the Road Again.....

You probably thought I was singing the Kenny Rogers song but I was talking about next week. After a 2-0 start to the season, the Indians will be on the road this coming week. We will go to North Port on Tuesday, Tampa Prep on Thursday, and Gainesville on Saturday and Sunday. I am sure all of the gyms will be filled with Venice haters which somehow usually sparks an emotional VHS volleyball team. The team will be staying in Tampa on Thursday night and Gainesville on Friday night. We will be sending home an itinerary with the players soon. Parents and fans------ Do you feel out of place w/out a new Venice volleyball T shirt? T shirts are on sale now at all home games. Get them while they last!!!! Students---- Over 250 Wheatley Wacko shirts were sold in the first week. There are only a few left so don't be a nerd in the stands without a shirt. I'm just kidding. Nerds are always welcome at our games.
Take a look at some of our preseason pics with the egg drop. This was a team chemistry game where we split the team up into 3 teams of 4. We gave each team 1 egg and told them that in 10 minutes, we would drop the egg from the top of the football stands and the egg was not to break so they had to think fast, work together, and protect the egg. See pics. I am happy to say that that this was the 1st year where all the teams were successful. Hmmm..... could be a sign of good things to come. War Eagle!