USA Junior Olympic (JO) Volleyball or Club Volleyball offers athletes the opportunity to participate within various clubs after their school volleyball season. Club Volleyball is an avenue for girls 10 (or even younger) to 18 to play in competitive tournaments and get advanced training. The number of girls playing club has tripled in the last four years in the Palmetto Region (South Carolina, plus Savannah and Augusta, GA, and Hendersonville, NC). In 1999, there were over 75,000 girls that played club ball in the United States. Most JO Club seasons run from November or December until April. A few clubs continue training with their top teams until the National Championships, held in June. Club volleyball provides additional training, knowledge, and tournament play. The various club vary from club to club, but generally players will be placed on a team based on their age and skill level. Clubs provide training and tournament play. Most tournaments offer 7 age divisions (18’s, 17’s, 16’s, 15’s, 14’s; 13’s & 12’s). This allows girls to compete against each other in their same age group. Younger players may play up in an older age group, but players are not allowed to play in a younger age group. Each player has a different experience as a club member. Naturally, some players are more successful than are others. Players who put more effort into the program get more out of it.

Club programs differ from club to club. We encourage you to check out Comparing Clubs for more information.

FITNESS & IMPROVEMENT  – You will get better! That is a guarantee. Every time you touch the volleyball makes you better than your competition.
NEW FRIENDSHIPS – Bringing girls together with similar goals from various schools makes friendships. The relationships that have been formed through practice and team play will be friendships that last a lifetime.
EXPOSURE TO COLLEGE RECRUITERS – College coaches regularly attend JO tournaments. The majority of colleges now recruit directly from club programs. Last year over 98% of the high school girls from Georgia and South Carolina who received college scholarships played club. Remember, if you want to play in college, plan to play club!
EXPOSURE TO COLLEGE RECRUITERS – College coaches regularly attend JO tournaments. The majority of colleges now recruit directly from club programs. Last year over 98% of the high school girls from Georgia and South Carolina who received college scholarships played club. Remember, if you want to play in college, plan to play club!
TOURNAMENT PLAY – JO Tournaments are where the hard practice pays off and many favorable memories are made. Understand that practice and training is where you receive the most instruction and experience. Tournament play is only a supplement to participating in Club. Club tournaments are usually far more competitive and more physically demanding than high school matches.

Today you will find that literally all athletes who play in college participated in club volleyball during high school. All participants enjoy competitive tournament play. Many successful high school coaches are encouraging their athletes to play club volleyball for the experience, instruction, and additional training time. Also, where you find successful high school programs, you will find players who participate in club volleyball. That is a fact!

Junior Olympic (JO) volleyball programs have exploded all across the country. Only 19 years ago, the first National tournament was held, and only 20 teams made the trip. Today, in contrast, the National Tournament held in 2000 hosted 576 teams, was played on over 40 courts, and lasted 10 days. So successful are JO programs that most college coaches recruit exclusively from the JO program ranks. The fact is that if you plan to play in college, club is a MUST!

We find that most girls have several goals.

• Some players want to learn more about the sport, improve their skill level, and get playing time in tournaments.
• For others, it’s simply to extend their high school season by 6 months.
• It may be to challenge starters on their school team for playing time next season.
• For a few, it will be the exposure needed to compete for future college scholarship opportunities.

Is JO volleyball only for the college bound athlete? Certainly not! We are interested in building teams in the younger age divisions, as young as 12 and under (ages 10 and 11 and younger are encouraged), athletes who are just beginning their volleyball experience. For most players, JO volleyball is simply another challenging experience that should lead to a lot more fun on the court as playing skills improve. Many girls find that club ball is “their volleyball season” due to the fact that they experience little playing time during their high school season and find that tournament play is very rewarding.