By Staff
NILES - For those attending the volleyball camp this week at Brandywine and Niles high schools there was a big surprise waiting for the campers Monday morning.
USA National Team player Alexis Crimes accompanied Erikka Gulbranson, coach of the Girls Youth National Volleyball Team to the camp.
Crimes, who will be a sophomore at Long Beach State, is helping instruct campers.
She towers over almost everyone, including the high school coaches who are assisting, as she stands 6-foot-3.
Crimes and Gulbranson are teaching a variety of skills, but the main focus has been on a new way to pass the ball.
Gulbranson and Crimes are showing campers the same techniques they use.
Along with a volleyball camp for players, there has been a coach's clinic held the past few evenings.
As a part of the clinic, coaches are actually participating, not just watching Crimes and Gulbranson demonstrate skills.
The High Performance clinic is focusing on teaching practice planning, execution and tempo. The coaches are also learning how to teach the intricacies of the skill training process used by USA Volleyball in all age groups.
In speaking with the coaches and several players it was easy to see how excited they were to be able to learn from not only a national coach, but to watch a national team player's work ethic and techniques.
The camp is divided into a pair of age groups with the younger players working out from 9 a.m. until noon at Brandywine high school and then the older players working out from 1-4 p.m. at Niles High School.
Campers warm up for 45 minutes before practicing for the remaining time.
Everyone seemed to be having a good time despite hot and humid conditions in the gyms.
Among the players I talked to, each of them said basically the same thing.
They all were interested in the new passing technique and they couldn't believe what a great opportunity they had to learn not only from Gulbranson, but from Crimes as well.
They also expressed that they were working extremely hard and were sore from the new technique.
Gulbranson and Crimes took time out of their busy schedule to talk with me about volleyball and what they were teaching these players.
I also spoke with a couple of coaches and several players about the camp.
You can read about this on Thursday in the Dowagiac Daily News.