2012 Tryout Schedule
Participants pay a one-time tryout fee, and may attend as many tryouts as desired. Players receive a tryout shirt at the first tryout they attend, and must wear the same shirt and CHECK-IN at all subsequent tryouts.
Saturday, March 10 in East Peoria, IL
River Plex Center
Check in: 3-3:45pm
Tryout: 4-6pm
Sunday, March 11 in Mount Vernon, IA
Cornell College
Check in: 4-4:45pm
Tryout: 5-7pm
Friday, March 16 in Des Moines
Iowa Events Center
Check in: 6:00-6:45pm
Tryout: 7:00-9:00pm
Friday, March 23 in Des Moines
Iowa Events Center
Check in: 6:00-6:45pm
Tryout: 7:00-9:00pm
Sunday, March 25 in Marshalltown
Marshalltown Community College--Student Activity Center
3700 S. Center St.
Marshalltown, IA 50158
http://www.iavalley.cc.ia.us/mcc/maps_directions.html
Check in: 4:00-4:45pm
Tryout: 5:00-7:00pm
We are currently planning to add an additional tryout in NW Iowa (near Carroll).
Precise event information--TBA. What We're Looking At During Tryouts
What are we looking at when we are evaluating you at tryouts?
- Middle Hitters: We watch their range and armspeed when they attack. We look at their height and athleticism, both vertically and side to side. We look at their positional IQ and how they are able to transition on both offense and their blocking. For middles, it is not always important that we look at the result (did they get a kill or a block), but at WHAT they did well (did they close the block or are they able to get a good hit out of transition).
- Outside Hitters: We are looking at their ability to terminate any set whether they are in system or out of system; do they have good ball control and a live or fast arm swing. Also looking for overall ball control as a primary passer/defender. It is important to look at the overall game of the outside hitter as a six rotation player.
- Setter: We evaluate the location, tempo, and consistency of the sets, in addition to the player's ability to play the game and make good decision on where to set the ball as well as leadership on the court. The player's ability to get their feet to the ball and be balanced is viewed and evaluated separately from pure athleticism.
- Libero: We watch ball control on serve receive and defense, while also factoring in hitter coverage. We look at their ability to set the second ball when out of system, and also their leadership and communication in controlling the court.
USAV National HP Tryouts
USAV Web Site - HP Section |
Tryout Registration
Registration for HP tryouts is now online!
You can pre-register for tryouts and pay your tryout fee online. You only need to register once, and can attend as many of the tryouts as you want to. You will be given a tryout shirt at the first tryout you attend, and must wear the same shirt and check-in at every tryout you attend.
- Tryout Fee for Online Registration is $25.
- Instructions for Registering for HP tryouts online (pdf)
- Medical Release (required for all participants)
- Please complete your online registration 24 hours before the first tryout you plan to attend.
- You do NOT need to turn in a paper tryout form if you register online. You DO need to turn in a medical release form.
Players may send in a paper registration form, and walk-ins are always welcome at tryouts.
- Tryout fee for Paper forms or Walk-ins is $35
- HP Tryout Registration Form (PDF) (WORD)
All HP tryout participants must have a current USAV membership. If you are playing on a USAV club team, you have a current membership. Non-members have 3 membership options for HP Tryouts:
- $5 HP Tryout Membership (good for one tryout only, does not apply toward a full membership)
- $15 one-day membership (good for one day only, can be upgraded to a full membership for an additional $35)
- $50 Full membership
All players who are chosen to attend the HP Camp or are on an HP travel team must be full members.
What to Bring to Tryouts
- If possible, register and pay in advance ($25) through the online HP Tryout registration process.
- Bring a completed medical release form (if you have not already turned one in). If we do not have a medical release for you signed by a parent, you will not be able to take part in HP tryouts.
- If you are registering at the door, bring the tryout application form, including the medical release, and your $35 fee (cash or check).
- We will give you a numbered shirt to wear for tryouts. You wear your own shorts, shoes, kneepads, etc. If you attend more than one tryout, you must wear your shirt to every tryout.
- Everyone must check-in at every tryout they attend.
What to Expect at Tryouts
• The Iowa HP programs works hard to keep the tryout as neutral and unbiased as possible. Please don’t feel bad if your club coach or high school coach doesn’t spend a lot of time talking to you—we don’t want to give the impression that we are favoring one person over another. Our goal is to choose the best players according to their performance at the Iowa HP tryout. If you feel that you did not perform to your best potential at a tryout, you can attend as many additional HP tryouts as you desire for no additional cost.
• After you check in, you will do some fitness testing, including height and reach, and vertical jump testing.
• On the court, players will be mostly divided by age group, and sometimes split by position as well.
• Players will go through a series of drills that demonstrate their proficiency in ball handling, their ability to communicate and lead on the court, and their skill in the positions they play. Players will also compete in game-like situations.
• Evaluators watch players during drills and 6 on 6 play, and evaluate them according to the criteria used by USA Volleyball to choose a High Performance athlete.
• From the tryouts, 20-35 players in each age division will be selected to attend the Iowa HP Camp in June. At that camp, 8-10 players in each division will be selected for the travel teams, and will compete at the USAV HP Championships in July. |
