Valley Volleyball Academy (VVA) is excited to collaborate with local clubs and schools to create the best volleyball experience for prep athletes here in the Central Valley! VVA aims to combine the strengths from Central Cal, Club 559, Pac Pre, & Elite Indoor; bringing a wealth of sustained knowledge, history, and quality coaches. While Covid-19 brought to light some of the limitations each entity had as individuals, this also was an opportunity to assess what our community needs and wants in order to grow the game to an elite level. By pooling our talents and syndicating our experiences, we aim to provide the most comprehensive volleyball opportunity. Being a team sport, we know that by working together we can accomplish much more.
Our long-term vision is to be unified in our endeavor so that we can be the premier volleyball club in the Central Valley and one of the best in California. We believe the talent and desire here in our community is to be great because we have seen it for decades in other sports. The time is now to start building the excellence in volleyball that we demand in our academics and in other sports.
Part of our long-term vision is to bring to fruition a volleyball facility that creates more opportunities for boys and girls in the Valley to train and compete. This will allow families to save on travel, save on cost, and provide access at younger ages to kids in the Valley to explore the sport. We are prioritizing player development over professional profit.
This group is led by a leadership team with decades of experience at every level in the sport locally and nationally. Additionally, it is led by an advisory board of local volleyball leaders with an interest to make volleyball an elite sport in the Valley - not a feeder program to any school or organization. Bringing the players from all different schools across the Valley will allow us to foster the energy of growth in the game and build the most competitive environment to compete at the highest level nationally.
What the community leaders are saying...
“The education and training plan for the coaches paired with the experience and desire to make high caliber volleyball athletes makes VVA a special program. The collaboration that has helped form the mission of this club is extensive and inclusive. I am excited to support and be a part of this volleyball academy and look forward to being a part of the success of the program and celebrating the growth and development of our athletes here in the Central Valley.”
Kelly Winter
Coach for Elite Beach VB and Fresno City, Former Head Coach at Fresno Pacific, 3x All-American
“For many years, local volleyball coaches have dreamt of unifying all of our best players and coaches under one roof. The time to do so has arrived. I can think of no better group of people to undertake this unification than the coaches from our local university. It is my expectation that VVA becomes the predominate club in the valley, producing the best volleyball student-athletes possible and creating a culture that players, parents and coaches will all appreciate being a part of.”
Travis Herb
Clovis North Girls' Volleyball Director of Sport
“The valley has a tremendous amount of volleyball talent from athletes to coaches. We have always wanted to have a club that is inclusive of all and where player and coach development is at the forefront. It is exciting to have a clear vision that unites the volleyball community in an effort to give our athletes the best opportunity to elevate their abilities and invest wholly in the athletes, their families, and our local community. Bringing together the best our area has to offer to lead the next generation of volleyball athletes to represent the valley is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I am excited for what the future holds.”
Michael DeRaffaele
Director Elite Beach Volleyball
“After two decades of coaching volleyball here in the Central Valley, I am extremely excited to see the leadership and hands on approach that Coach Winder is taking in the creation of VVA. For years coaches have talked about joining forces to return Valley volleyball to where it was when I first moved here over 20 years ago. I believe in the vision and direction of VVA and am honored to be a part of it. The Central Valley has had amazing athletes and brilliant coaches for years, and bringing them all together under one common goal and vision is exactly what needed to happen, and Coach Winder is exactly the right person to lead the charge!”
Matt Terra
Head Coach of Central High School Girls' Volleyball