News

The Junior Gryphons are preparing for the upcoming season and we want to provide everyone with a quick update on Tryouts, Programs and Coaching Staff as well as a recap of our activities from this past summer.  We are looking forward to another great season!  READ MORE

The start of the 2020/21 season will look a little different this year due to the ongoing Pandemic.  With that in mind we wanted to keep everyone informed as to how the upcoming tryout period and the first few months of the season will look this year

Re-signs - The GYVA will be following recommendations set out by the OVA in regards to re-signs and tryouts.  In an effort to minimize a large number of athletes at tryouts, clubs will be offering re-signs to athletes as selected by the coach during the month of August.  Players 14U and up are eligible this year to receive an offer as they competed in the OVA last year.  Returning 12 and 13U players will be contacted by coaches.  

These re-sign offers are valid until Aug 31st but can be returned at any time before then.  We will still hold smaller tryouts during the OVA scheduled tryout period for those teams who still require additional players.

Not all re-signs are sent at once and may be sent anytime during the month of August.  In the event where the club had two teams last season in the same age category one team will be established first.  If there is enough interest for a second team or additional players are needed on the primary team these positions will be filled during the tryout period.

Tryouts and New Application process This year the OVA is releasing a new process by which players can apply to the club/team they wish to try out for.  The club will then host invite only tryouts based on those applications in an effort to keep the number of players participating at any given time down.  The application process does not start until September, as such the club will open registration in August to get an idea of how many athletes will be applying to the club.  Once the application window opens, those who have registered will be contacted with instructions on how to apply. 

Practices All community use permits will be on hold to start the school year which means we will not be able to start practices as we normally would.  However we were permitted to renew all of our permits from the previous year so teams will know their practice schedule for when we are able to start.  As most of our permits start early/mid October we will not have to look for alternative options until that time.  If need be we will begin outdoor practice to start the season, weather and daylight permitting.  We are also looking into securing other indoor court spaces at this time.

Competitions Competitions are set to begin in January.  Teams will only be losing their one fall tournament.  Competition format may change this year based on Covid restrictions which may see fewer teams at tournaments.  The possibility for exhibition tournaments and scrimmages will be evaluated as we get closer to the start of the season.  The club will not be sanctioning trips to the US for tournaments this season.  Provincials are set to go ahead in April and will be split between Waterloo and Mississauga this year. 

Return to Play policies in Regard to Covid Player safety will be our first priority this season.  The club will be following Volleyball Canada’s and the Ontario Health Minister’s return to play guidelines.  We are currently in stage 3 of the reopening and will abide by those rules.  We will be releasing our Covid Operating Procedure for the upcoming season shortly.

All refunds from OVAs have been returned and Team managers have been instructed to provide a financial report to their teams and refund the Team Kitty.

Our end of season survey has been sent out. If you did not receive the email you can find the link to the survey at the bottom of the page.

All inquiries can been sent to the GYVA email at the bottom of the newsletter.

Awards

Our first wave of awards is out on Instagram and is featured below. Congratulations Athletes! The award write ups were written by each team’s coaching staff. Keep checking Instagram for more awards!

Girls U12

Head Coach: Andrew Aiken

Assistant Coach: Allison Leonard

Assistant Coach: Jadyn Pestil

A round of applause for Nicole Barrera for being nominated the MVP for the Girls U12 team. Nikki always gives 110% while demonstrating the true spirit of volleyball by never letting a ball hit the floor. Nikki was looked up to by all of her teammates in terms of her skill set, knowledge and passion for the game as well as her positive attitude and sportsmanship. She was inclusive, and consistently looked after her teammates both on, and off the court. She continually made adjustments to her game according to constructive feedback from coaches with both respect and gratitude. Nikki is a natural leader and a true future Gryphon. We can’t wait to continue to support you, and see what you do in your future volleyball career!

Congratulations to Sophia Wong from the Girls U12 team for being nominated as the MIP. This season Sophia stood out by demonstrating determination, commitment and constant discipline to improve her skills and gameplay. As a player brand new to the game at the beginning of the season, her passion for the game and substantial development as a team player is evident. She has improved her coordination and accuracy in both underhand and overhand passing, has one of the most effective under hand serves on the team, and worked diligently at practice to improve her overhand serve. Additionally, we were proud of how her court awareness and movement on the court improved significantly. Sophia actively looked for ways to strengthen her foundation of knowledge and insight to the game itself, and openly looked to her teammates and coaches for direction. She is coachable, and has all the qualities of an athlete that will allow her to continue to excel in the sport.

Great job Tenley MacNeil from Girls U12 team. Nominated as the Gryphons All Star, Tenley was consistently the player that provided her undivided attention to the coaches and showed a lot of determination to improve her skill set and gameplay. From the very beginning, she was an extremely coachable player who embodied what it means to be an all-around athlete, with a passion and drive for volleyball. Tenley promoted positivity throughout the team, demonstrated good sportsmanship and was a true team player. Overall, we have seen significant skill development and improved insight to gameplay throughout the season. These qualities are the key to being successful in anything you choose to do in life and Tenley stands to be a true role model for the rest of the team.

Girls U13

Head Coach: Andrew Aiken

Assistant Coach: Cassandra Sgarbossa

Assistant Coach: Lidia Rajcan

Congratulations to our Girls U13 MVP, Kayla Adamuszewski. Kayla is committed to putting forth her best effort at all times. She consistently paid attention to coaches during practice and her skills on the court were consistent as well. Kayla is true leader by example and is well deserving of the most valuable player award.

Well deserved!!! Kyla Barber has been awarded the MIP for the Girls U13 team. Kyla always wants to do what it takes to become successful. She asked many questions about how to become better and by listening to the answers she learned to be a team player both on the floor and on the bench by becoming a team mate that encourages her team. Through her efforts, her skills also improved greatly from the beginning of the season. Congratulations Kyla for earning the Most Improved Player award.

The OVA Award of excellence for the Girls U13 team has been awarded to Corrina Clipsham. Corinna has a positive attitude and works hard at every practice. Because of her coach-ability and willingness to improve, Corinna has developed into one of our most reliable players. She is always ready to play any position on the court, and does so with an effective and focused application of various new volleyball techniques. Corrina has shown great sportsmanship and has proven herself to be an all-around great athlete. Congratulations Corinna on earning the award of excellence.

Girls U14

Head Coach: Ben Gostlin

Assistant Coach: Heather Pierce

Congratulations to the Most Valuable Player for the Girls U14 Jr Gryphons team, Selma Enns.

Selma is an outstanding athlete. This kid blew me away with some of the athletic plays she would make on the court. She showed no fear and would step in to dig any ball she could get her platform on. What made Selma stand out was her court awareness and her ability to read the play. She would often be a step ahead and could turn a tough play into a fairly easy one. Selma also learnt quickly and would hit open spots on the opponents side. She would casually hit line to position 1 and then drop a tip into the pot when asked. She then had the privilege of just figuring out left positioning and then being asked to quickly learn middle too in order to help the team through an injury. Although it wasn’t easy, she pushed through and did an awesome job filling in for a teammate. Selma is an excellent all around athlete and I hope she continues to strive to be better everyday!

Well done Annika Stoter! You are the Girls U14 team Most Improved Player!

This award is very tough to give out when we saw so much improvement on this team. I was very much looking forward to seeing this group of athletes showcase their improvements at provincials. That said, both Heather and I felt that Annika showed the most overall improvement and was really just beginning to get into her stride. Annika had an incredible showing our last two tournaments and stepped up in many ways. She was a rock star on defence, stepping in to some big swings and making some nice digs. She worked so hard on getting that overhand serve going. She impressed me on her decision making as to when it was time to use it, not to mention that she nailed it!!! Annika is a fantastic teammate that roots on her peers from the bench and remains positive even when things might not be going our way. It was a pleasure to have her on this team this year and I hope she continues to work hard in the future!

Congratulations to OVA Award of Excellence winner for the Girls U14 Jr Gryphons team, Hadley Karabela.

Hadley is being given the OVA Award of Excellence based on a number of characteristics that this award entails (Perseverance, Commitment, Dedication, Leadership, Performance). Before Hadley was injured, she was really starting to make some key progressions in a number of areas in the game. Most notably her attacking footwork. Although there were some moments of frustration, she persevered and was really starting to get that 1-2 finish in the approach. Unfortunately, she did break a bone in her foot, and thus had to sit out our last tournament. That said, she was incredible on the bench as a cheerleader and was asking to help in warm ups. She continued to be a leader on the bench for her teammates even though she was dying to step onto the court. Hadley continued to come to practice and was adamant about helping with tossing or hitting at her teammates. This kid lives and breathes volleyball and I know she is counting down the days that she can play this sport with her friends again!

Boys U14

Head Coach: Jeff Tomkins

Assistant Coach: Jeff Sessions

The MVP for Boys U14 goes to Alex Clinch! Alex lead the team the team all season with both his skills and leadership abilities, he truly was the MVP of the team. He lead both line ups, worked so hard and always provided positive feedback to other players. He mentored and lead by example and was a pleasure to work with this past season, congrats Alex!

The MIP for the Boys U14 team goes to Caleb Snyder. Like most of the players this season, Caleb was new to volleyball starting the game from scratch. Caleb is deserving of the MIP as his skill set grew across all the fundamentals of the game, passing, serving and hitting. By the end of the season his skill in all 3 fundamentals made him an integral part of the roster, congrats Caleb!

The OVA award of excellence for the Boys U14 team goes to Gabe Bennett! To win this award takes many factors, and I am incredibly proud of how Gabe handled himself this season. Not only did he champion the role of setting, but he became a team leader in many ways. His enthusiasm, willingness to learn, coach-ability, work ethic, practice attendance, attitude, setting up nets, tearing down after practice are all reasons why he was chosen for the award. Gabe, thank you for everything this season, it was a pleasure to coach you.