Western Buckeye Volleyball Club

About

Our Mission

To ensure our players will be given the opportunity to learn the game of volleyball at the highest possible level as well as learning the important life lessons of teamwork, commitment, sportsmanship and dependability. 

COACHING/CLUB PHILOSOPHY

Often times, when young athletes are in a huddle and are asked, “What do you want to do?”, they often answer back with, “Win!”  Or, they wake up each morning saying to themselves, “I want to be better at volleyball”.  Yet, how many of them are willing to put in the effort necessary to get that win?  Or, instead of saying they want to BE better at the game, how many say, “I want to GET better”?

Simply put…younger athletes should focus on “PROCESS” over “RESULTS”.  At Western Buckeye, we are firm believers that an athlete has to LOVE the process even more than the winning itself.  If you want to win, you have to strive to do all what is necessary in terms of practice, mental and physical preparation, and looking out for your teammates.   That’s the extra 10 sit ups, taking that extra step to the volleyball, and never taking a play off (NPO)!

Practice like a champion in order to become one!

Our philosophy for younger athletes is to create a player with a strong foundation of skills.  As the skills are refined and mastered, along with team strategies, the joy of playing the game and winning will naturally follow.  This process will be accomplished in a positive, structured, and disciplined environment in an attempt to help the players grow as individuals, students, and volleyball players.

WHAT WE STRIVE TO ACCOMPLISH

• Physical training.  Fundamentals, fundamentals, fundamentals!  Process over outcome.  The little things are really the most important.  In order for an athlete to excel, they must first possess the unconscious discipline of the fundamental skills of the sport they play.  We strive to train in a manner so that eventually the athlete can perform the essential skills without thought or effort. A solid foundation must first be built in the athlete before pushing them to achieve more than they think they are capable of.
• Mental Training – An area that is often overlooked.  The “self talk” that occurs inside an athlete’s mind at the moment of a mistake is made is directed related to the quality of the next moment.  A lapse in focus or self-confidence will almost always produce an undesirable next result.  It’s necessary to train athletes to pay attention to their “self talk” and teach them methods for properly handling mistakes in order to retain focus, control and self-confidence. 

WHAT ARE OUR PRIORITIES?

• First and foremost, we should always keep in mind why kids play sports, and why we all played sports.  Kids enjoy playing sports because it’s fun!  If the fun is lost, so is the interest.
• We don’t frown upon mistakes…we welcome them.  We teach our athletes that mistakes are ok because they are teachable moments.  We focus on the empowering techniques of handling mistakes.  Errors are what should be avoided.  Errors occur as a result of straying from the fundamental skills and movements of the games.  Mistakes are made while performing those movements correctly, but without the desired results.
• To encourage our athletes to be proactive rather than reactive…to be a step ahead of the game, reading and anticipating events before they occur.  If an athlete merely responds to plays in a reactive manner, they will never achieve control.  The girls will become volleyball players, not girls that just play volleyball.

HOW IS SUCCESS MEASURED?

• At the younger ages, focusing on a winning record is not our first or even second measure of success.  We're more interested in Process over Outcome.  We measure success by our athletes making continual progress towards mastery of the fundamentals of the sport.  Wins will naturally come when the fundamentals are mastered.
• Getting an athlete to achieve more than they thought they were capable of is another level of success.  Taking an athlete that often says “I can’t” and empowering them to trust in themselves and build upon achievements that foster greater self-confidence is often the greatest level of success a coach can have.  And that confidence flows into other facets of their lives.

History

Let's do this!!

Western Buckeye was established in 1993 here in the Miami Valley.    Sarah Miller started coaching at Western Buckeye in 2010, then purchased the club, becoming club director in 2013.  The club has seen dozens of WB alumni go on to play college ball.  We count ourselves fortunate to serve this wonderful community and are thankful for the opportunities to work with such talented, motivated and kind young ladies.