Just went out and bought new knee pads and court shoes? Or maybe you are dusting off the old ones from high school? If you said yes to the second question, I would probably give those a smell test and a good wash first.
So here you are with all the equipment, getting ready to bump, set, and spike your way into a season of Indoor Volleyball. Are you looking to register for one of our leagues but are wondering what Recreational, Recreational Plus, Intermediate, Intermediate Plus, and Competitive mean? Well don’t worry, your friend TJ has some helpful ‘tips’ to make your next season the best one yet!
Let’s take a look at a quick description of each division:
Recreational: Are you brand new to volleyball? If so, this is the ideal league for you! In this level, you'll join others who are focusing on getting the ball over the net without emphasis on executing 3 hits. You'll get experience with each position on the court and nobody will be hitting hard (it's not allowed)! There is strong emphasis on playing with a ‘Fun First’ mentality here.
Recreational Plus: Here you’ll start seeing a few less ‘never touched a volleyball before’ players and a few more who have a bit more experience under their belt (even if that experience came from playing in high school 15 years ago).
You will be shifting the focus towards getting 3 hits before returning the ball to your opponents. Hard hitting still isn’t allowed, however you’ll see a few ‘overhand’ hits more often: whether it be an overhand serve or someone returning the ball using a more direct, softer ‘spike’, rather than a high lob.
Intermediate: This is where you start to weed out the remaining rookies. You’ll still see players who are finessing their skills, however the majority of you will be able to consistently serve within the area of play, return a serve, make clean passes, and can keep the rally going. With this experience also comes the beginnings of position preferences; by now most teams will have a Setter assigned.
This is the lowest division in which hard hitting is allowed, and it’s typically seen 1 in every 3 rallies. With hard hitting, many players will be seen fearlessly blocking or even receiving those spikes. But don’t worry – not everyone will be brave enough to get in front of those hits just yet.
Intermediate Plus: You all have experience playing volleyball and have solid fundamentals. Many of you will be seen executing organized attacks, and will often have your preferred positions picked out (Setter, Offside, Power, Middle). Some may go so far as to assign a Libero to amp up your defensive play too. You don’t shy away from hard hitting, as it’s seen in most rallies. And that’s not all – these hits are taken up a notch as you’ll see back row attacks as well as jump serves.
Competitive: If you’re an ex-varsity athlete, or you’ve been playing competitively pretty consistently over the last many years, then this is where you belong! There are no rookies here. Many of you are specialized in one position and will dominate that position for the duration of the game. Everyone on the court plays with high skill and is comfortable with all aspects of the game.
Are you still thinking about which division you should try out? Check out this page for more information, including real CSSC video footage! Now it is time to click that bright yellow “Get in the Game” button at the top of this page and enjoy your weekly volleyball games
