Downstate News
News and Information - Downstate Juniors
The Journey
Paraphrased quote: 4,000 teams start the season. 48 teams qualify for National. 1 team wins it all. Winning cannot be your definition of success. Life is about the journey, not the destination.
posted by joel on june 14, 2008
DEFENSE - DEFENSE - DEFENSE
Congrats go out to Danni Etta and Ally Terlizzi for making the Prep Volleyball Defensive Dandies List!! This is a list of the top defensive players in the country!! GREAT DIG LADIES!!
posted by dan on may 29, 2008
Friends and Rivals
Courtney Desmond and Jessica Zerega to Attend School in Oneonta, New York. Both will be attending college in Oneonta , NY this fall. Courtney will be a freshman playing for the Hawks of Hartwick College. Jessica will be freshman Red Dragon at rival Oneonta State. The two friends off the court look forward to facing each other on the court this fall.
posted by joel on may 28, 2008
Allison Terlizzi to anchor Connecticut College Defense
Connecticut College is getting BIG help in a small package as Allison Terlizzi will be wearing the Libero uniform this fall!
posted by joel on may 22, 2008
Stirring rendition of
This doesn't have anything to do with volleyball, but if you missed hearing the U.S. Army Band and Chorus welcome Pope Benedict XVI at the White House Rose Garden ceremony, on April 15, get a load of these high school kids. One of the fathers recorded it, added soem graphic enhancements to the recording, and posted it on the web. This will send a few shivers up your spine, I know it did for me! http://www.greatdanepromilitary.com/Battle%20Hymn/index.htm.
posted by joel on may 21, 2008
NY Times Article on Injuries to Female Athletes
Here's an article from the New York Times that I encourage all parents to read: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/11/magazine/11Girls-t.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all&oref=slogin. In an effort to increase core strength and conditioning, build lower body strength, and increase exposiveness and jumping ability, Downstate introduced a Plyometric workout for all of the National level teams. We ran that training for four months. An article like this one makes me think that perhaps we should incorporate Plyo's, or something similar, into the training regimen for all teams, next season.
posted by joel on may 11, 2008
Fund Raising Winners!
Thank you to everyone that participated in the Fund Raiser. All total, we raised nearly $16,000 and will be sending a check for $8,000 to Danbury Children't First to help fight Autism! Below are the highest individual fund raisers in each age group:
| Age | Player | Team | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | Claudia Percacciolo | 12 Smack | $70.00 |
| 12 | Kristen Sweeney | 12 Smack | $70.00 |
| 13 | Phyllis Lai | 13 Smack | $395.00 |
| 14 | Clarissa Silveria | 14 Blue | $1,208.00 |
| 15 | Olivia Ferrero | 15 Black | $210.00 |
| 16 | Danielle Raskin | 16 Smack | $780.00 |
| 17 | Kayleigh Quinn | 17 Smack | $4,565.50 |
| 18 | April Byllaardt | 18 Black | $95.00 |
posted by joel on may 7, 2008, updated may 8, 2008
Points to Ponder - Interesting Videos
posted by joel on may 4, 2008
Hotels for East Coast Championships
Hotel and travel information for the East Coast Championships has been posted on the Travel page.
posted by joel on april 9, 2008
Downstate 12's lay down some SMACK!
The Downstate 12 Smack team had their best tournament of the season as they took 2nd place from a group of 12s and 13s teams at GEVA Ranking #3. The highlight of the day was taking 4 games off of 3 different 13's teams that they hadn't beaten this year. They're fun to watch as they play with a lot of spirit and energy and came from behind in a couple games to win them. Hat's off for all the hard work the girl's have been putting in at practices - the results show your dedication and continued improvement!
14 Metro avenged a split in pool play with Cut Shot by beating them in straight sets of the final to win their flight!
Congratulations to 16 Black as they were in the finals of their flight before losing by 2 in the 3rd set. 16 Blue also had an outstanding weekend, as they made it to the finals of their flight, without dropping a single game, before losing a hard fought, 3-set match, to DIGS, 16-14 in the 3rd set. 16 Red also advanced to the playoffs, where they meet up with 16 Blue in the Semi's...
15 Black came back from a rough first round of pool play to win Flight 2 of the 15s as the swept through the playoffs and secured their spot in the Open Division for Regionals! 15 Smack kept their GEVA undefeated streak alive as they won their 4th consecutive regional tournament, sweeping the Seeding Event and all three Ranking tournaments. 15 Smack and 18 Smack will enter the GEVA Regional Championships as the #1 seeded teams in the region, in their respective age groups.
posted by joel on march 31, 2008, updated april 2, 2008
Volleyball Volleyball Volleyball
Attention all Downstate members!!
On Sunday April 13th we are going to have college teams competing at the DAC!! All Members are ecouraged to participate since the reason we are doing this is for all of you!!
PARENTS and Players: Half way through the whole expo, we will be holding a College Recruiting session with the college coaches as the spokes people!! Come and hear from them some of the things you as parents and athletes need to know about college recruiting!!
Keep posted here!! More info to follow!!
posted by dan on march 26, 2008
Positive Coaching Alliance Tip
Click here to see a parental tip from the Positive Coaching Alliance, titled "E is for Effort".
posted by joel on february 23, 2008, updated march 20, 2008
Fundraiser
WOW!!!
I cannot express how great the fundraiser went, it was AWESOME!!!
Hats off to Melissa and all that helped!!!
GREAT JOB TEAMS!!! GO DOWNSTATE!!!
posted by dan on march 15, 2008
Nutrition Seminar Series, #2
Linda Arpino, Sports Nutritionist, will be giving her 2nd seminar, at the DAC, on Thursday, March 27th, from 7p to 8p. All Downstate families are welcome to attend. Even if you attended the first one, join us again as the content will be different!
posted by joel on march 14, 2008
Megan Lyons Commits to Southern Connecticut!
Congratulations to 18 Smack's Megan Lyons who has committed her considerable all around playing skills to Southern Connecticut, beginning in the Fall of 2008.
posted by joel on march 12, 2008, updated march 13, 2008
Dani Etta Commits to the University of Hartford!
18 Smack's Danielle Etta has made a commitment to play volleyball for the University of Hartford, beginning in the fall of 2008. Her official signing will be held at the DAC! More details to follow...
posted by joel on march 4, 2008, updated march 12, 2008
Downstate Juniors VBC Banquet
Attention all!!
We are having our Club Banquet on Friday June 6th at 7PM at Maestro's
1703 Bronxdale ave. Bronx, NY 10462 (718) 792-8844
Adults: $35 each
Children 13 and under are $20 each
For information please feel free to contact Nick Rugova or Mary Lynn Etta!!
We again will be holding a silent auction so any donations to this will be greatly appreciated!!
posted by dan on march 12, 2008
Mariah Eble commits to Franklin Marshall!
Congratulations to 18 Black's Mariah Eble who has committed to play volleyball for Franklin Marshall this fall!
posted by joel on march 12, 2008
GEVA Ranking #2
Congratulations to 14 Black, 15 Smack, 17 Smack, and 18 Smack for winning their flights over the weekend! 15 Smack is undefeated against GEVA 15s teams and they, along with 18 Smack, keep a strong hold on the regions number 1 position in their age groups.
posted by joel on march 10, 2008
Rachel Flaherty Commits to Saint Anselm College!
18 Black's Rachel Flaherty has committed and will be setting for Saint Anselm College, beginning in the Fall of 2008!
posted by joel on march 4, 2008
Downstate Fundraiser
Attention all teams!!
Downstate will be holding a fundraiser on Saturday March 15th at the DAC all teams are required to attend. Coaches Please contact Melissa Baccari 18 Black for details. Players should contact their coaches for all details.
Parents, family and friends are welcome!!
Come join Downstate in the fight against Autism!
posted by dan on february 27, 2008
Ankle Braces Curb Sprains in Volleyball Players
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Ankle braces can help protect collegiate female volleyball players from sprains, a new study shows.
After University of Pennsylvania volleyball players were mandated to wear a padded brace on each ankle, just one ankle injury occurred in the course of seven seasons.
"From our data, it appears that the use of such a brace is an effective way to decrease the incidence of ankle injuries in this active but vulnerable group of athletes," conclude Dr. Brian J. Sennett of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia and colleagues.
Ankle injuries are common among female volleyball players, accounting for up to 36% of all injuries in these athletes, Sennett and his team note in their report in the American Journal of Sports Medicine.
Penn players have been wearing the Active Ankle Braces, made by EBI Inc. of Parsippany, New Jersey, since 1998. To evaluate whether the braces had actually been effective, the researchers compared rates of ankle injuries at their university to data from the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for female volleyball players.
There were 797 ankle injuries during 811,710 NCAA practices or games from 1988 to 2005, translating to an injury rate of 0.98 for every 1,000 exposures. For the Penn players, there was just a single ankle injury during 13,500 games or practices during those seven seasons, for an injury rate of 0.07 per 1,000 exposures.
Nearly half of the 132 Penn players in the study had suffered ankle injuries before starting to play college volleyball, Sennett and his team note.
"Although our data are statistically significant and may change current thinking about orthosis use in these elite athletes, further investigation is warranted," they write. This research could include comparison of the effectiveness of various types of braces, the researchers add, as well as how they affect performance.
SOURCE: American Journal of Sports Medicine, February 2008.
posted by joel on february 23, 2008
GEVA Ranking #1
Congratulations to 15 Smack for winning the top flight of 15s, to 16 Smack for winning Flight 2, to 16 Blue for winning their flight, and to 18 Smack for winning the top flight of 18s!
posted by joel on february 11, 2008
GEVA Seeding Event
Congratulations to 15 Smack for winning the tournament and to 18 Black for winning their group at the GEVA Seeding Event!
posted by joel on january 27, 2008
Posted - Summer Camp Schedule!
The Downstate Summer Camp Schedule has been posted! Sign up early as we expect the camps to fill quickly!
posted by joel on january 23, 2008
Rochester and Penn State Travel Arrangements
Travel information for the VolleyFX tournament in Rochester, NY, for 15 Smack, 16 Smack, 17 Smack, 18 Black, and 18 Smack has been posted on the "Travel" page. Also, Travel information for the teams attending Penn State over Memorial Day weekend has been posted. Parents, please use the links provided on that page to make your arrangements if you wish to stay in the same place as the team. Rooms are available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
posted by joel on january 11, 2008
