JV Volleyball Season

Grace students get the opportunity to join the JV volleyball team starting in 5th Grade. Our Senior Kindergarten Teacher Assistant, Mrs. Brayton, and long-time Grace parent, Mrs. Beals, teamed up to coach our JV athletes. We asked both coaches to share a little bit about the season with us.

Coach Beals: “Coaching JV Volleyball is an incredible joy. Many, if not most, of the athletes have little to no experience with the sport other than playing it in gym class. Coaching the kids from ground zero helps them learn the right way to perform volleyball skills so that they can use their bodies in the most efficient and strong manner. It allows them to learn the skills of the sport in a manner in which they can make mistakes and feel comfortable doing so. While it isn’t always easy to coach such a large team, it is wonderful to see so much interest in a sport that I’ve played and loved since I was in the 4th grade. When we start the year, I make it clear to the athletes that it is my goal as their coach to teach them the game and the skills to play. I know as a coach that if I teach them the skills and how to play together that winning will happen. And it did. All of the athletes learned and improved; had personal and team successes. My heart becomes so full when an athlete has tried all through the season to accomplish a skill and finally does. The pride on their face is something special. You’ll probably also see me on the sidelines screaming and jumping around. I think it’s important to acknowledge all the successes the individuals and the team have along the way and not just the end result. So much joy can be missed if the score is the only measure of success at the beginning level. I am proud of their wins, no doubt, but more because they learned to support one another on court, get stronger when called on as an individual player, and put together the skills they’ve learned to think about the game dynamically. For Beginners, that’s no small feat!”

Coach Brayton: “I absolutely loved coaching the 20 athletes who joined our team this year. The season was great. Everyone gave it their all. Coach Beals really summed up the season perfectly.”