The Game Plan – quarter one updates (from April to June 2025)

Published

5 months ago

July 16, 2025

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GET. KEEP. GROW

Connected and stronger Regions, Counties, Clubs and Stakeholders

Achievements:

Support Club Networks through partnerships and resources

Two drop-in sessions were organised for the clubs wanting to use VolleyZone to manage their memberships.

A Leadership and Governance workshop was held for affiliated clubs, attended by 11 club volunteers, ahead of AGM season.

Building and strengthening the relationship with Universities, Colleges and Regions

The HEVO programme for 2024-25 was completed with 46 HEVOs reaching over 5,000 unique participants in running more than 75 mass participation sessions for nearly 3,500 people. A bigger focus on sitting volleyball resulted in 27 sitting volleyball sessions being delivered to over 450 participants.

Ensuring the volleyball community feels valued and engaged

Coming up in Q2 (July, August and September): 

VOLLEYBALL FOR LIFE (WORKFORCE)  

Building a diverse, inclusive and engaged volleyball workforce .

Achievements: 

 Pathway Management and Development  

Make educational opportunities accessible to continue to improve the number of confident and competent referees   

Make educational opportunities accessible to continue to improve the number of confident and competent coaches  

Coming up in Q2 (July, August and September): 

Grade 4 beach volleyball referee course.

The first in a series of Junior Player Development Clinics locally across England.

Professional development for the Beach Volleyball Development Centre coaches to be led by Beach Volleyball Performance Director Kirk Pitman.

VOLLEYBALL FOR LIFE (TALENT)

Building a diverse, inclusive and engaged volleyball workforce and strong talent pathway. 

Achievements:

Develop a robust Beach Volleyball Pathway to create athletes with podium potential 

A total of eight men’s and five women’s teams competed and earned ranking points at the NEVZA Beach England tournament in Bridlington, with Gleed and Bello taking gold, and Bullen and Keefe winning bronze.

Develop a robust Indoor Volleyball Pathway to create and select the Athletes with the highest Podium Potential

Scoping has begun to establish four Talent Zones around the country, which would serve as a bridge between club and national team, to help drive a more inclusive Talent Pathway.

Implement the New Talent Plan with its focus on the key areas of coach development, athlete support, and improved competition profile 

Coming up in Q2 (July, August and September): 

AN ACE SERVICE

High quality domestic and international events.

Achievements:

Deliver the domestic major events focussing on player and spectator experience

The Cup Finals Weekend was hosted in Kettering, with 11 cup finals, a Back to the 80s heritage event, the Annual Awards 2025 and a sitting showcase.

Super League Final 4, supported by MAAREE and DYNAMIK, was staged at the Crystal Palace National Sport Centre, where attendances trebled from 2024.

Maximise the impact of the talent strategy by hosting targeted international events

The NEVZA Beach Championships was hosted in Bridlington at the end of June, giving the opportunity for domestic teams to earn ranking points (Senior) or attempt to secure U18 and U20 Euros qualification (Youth).

Raise standards in the National Volleyball League

What’s coming up:

A RESPECTED AND VALUED NGB

Achievements:

Coming up in Q2 (July, August and September):

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Women’s Volleyball Puts Three on AVCA All-East Coast Region Team – Penn State

Published

9 minutes ago

December 10, 2025

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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Three Penn State women’s volleyball players earned All-East Coast Region honors as announced by the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) on Tuesday. Gillian Grimes, Kennedy Martin, and Maggie Mendelson all received the award after helping the Nittany Lions qualify for the NCAA Tournament for the 45^th-consecutive season.

Grimes earned All-East Coast Region for the first time following her final collegiate season. The senior was a much-needed consistent player and presence as a team captain for Penn State. She was named the Big Ten Libero of the Year thanks to her impressive passing numbers. Defensively, she finished with 441 digs (3.64/set) and contributed offensively with her 30 aces. A two-time All-Big Ten selection, Grimes now turns her attention to the pro ranks as she will play for the San Diego Mojo in Major League Volleyball.

Martin put together one of the greatest statistical seasons in program history, etching her name in the Penn State record books. She set program records for the 25-point rally scoring era (2008-present) in kills (634), kills/set (5.42), points (728) and points/set (6.22). She was a first-team All-Big Ten selection in her first season in the conference and now adds All-East Coast Region recognition to the two All-Southeast Region awards she won at Florida.

Mendelson closes her collegiate volleyball career with her first All-East Coast Region award. The middle blocker hit .363 with 2.19 kills/set and tallied 91 blocks to lead the team’s defense at the net. She had 10 matches with double-digit kills, nine of which came during Big Ten play. She hit .500 or better in five of those matches.

Penn State has now had a middle blocker make an all-region team in back-to-back seasons as Mendelson joins Taylor Trammell (2024) as the recipients of the award. Grimes is the first Penn State libero to make all-region since Jenna Hampton in 2021, while Martin is the team’s first right side to earn the honor since 2021.

The 2025 Penn State women’s volleyball season is presented by Musselman’s.

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Ugolini Named AVCA All-Region – America East Conference

Published

25 minutes ago

December 10, 2025

Your Sports Nation

<br /> Ugolini Named AVCA All-Region – America East Conference <br />

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BOSTON – After claiming America East Player of the Year honors, Bryant’s Arianna Ugolini has been named Honorable Mention All-Region by the American Volleyball Coaches Association.

Ugolini led the conference in kills (419), service aces (43), and points (476.5) while helping Bryant claim a share of its first-ever regular season title. She is Bryant’s first-ever Player of the Year in volleyball and was a First-Team All-Conference selection.

ABOUT AMERICA EAST

Founded in 1979, the America East Conference is an elite NCAA Division I athletic conference that fosters an environment for student-athletes to become champions. Comprised of academically renowned, like-minded member institutions located in the Northeast region of the United States, America East is committed to broad-based excellence and progressive in its approach to supporting its more than 3,500 student-athletes across 18 sponsored sports. For more information, visit www.AmericaEast.com and follow the America East Conference and its social media channels, @AmericaEast.

– America East Conference – Where Champions Rise –

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Behrend sprinter wins at Houghton December Classic

Published

40 minutes ago

December 10, 2025

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ERIE, Pa. — Penn State Behrend runner Carter Tobin won the 60-meter dash at the Houghton December Classic. He finished in 6.85 seconds — a qualifying time for the All-Atlantic Region Track and Field Conference.

Tobin, a sophomore from Irwin, placed third in the 200-meter dash, finishing in 22.22 seconds.

Lee Qualk, a freshman from Coal Center, placed third in the triple jump, clearing a distance of 7.13 meters.

In the women’s events, the 4×200 relay team — Anna Buck, Caroline McDevitt, Abigail Falk and Ruby Lormejuste — placed third, finishing in 1:54.41.

Behrend’s basketball, swimming and diving and wrestling teams also were in action last week. Here are the scores and highlights:

Men’s basketball

Penn State Behrend 69, Carlow 53
Penn State Behrend 75, La Roche 71

Jacob Dunkle, a freshman from Washington, scored 23 points and grabbed nine rebounds against La Roche. Dolan Waldo, a senior from Pittsburgh, scored a career-high 19 points and grabbed 11 rebounds.

Women’s basketball

Penn State Behrend 94, Carlow 38
La Roche 68, Penn State Behrend 64

Alaina Fabin, a sophomore from Indiana, scored a career-high 23 points and grabbed 12 rebounds against La Roche. Emma Marsteller, a sophomore from Sandy Lake, scored 21 points and grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds against Carlow.

Men’s swimming and diving

Penn State Behrend 129, Allegheny 70

Behrend’s 200 medley relay team — Nevin Rutherford, Evan Tritt, Nicolin Pierce and Michael Kali — won, finishing in 1:45.52. Isaac Stoeckle, a sophomore from Pittsburgh, won the 1,000 freestyle, finishing in 10:57.86. Kyle Malec, a freshman from Edinboro, won the diving events; he earned 198.35 points in the 1-meter event and 195.25 points in the 3-meter event.

Women’s swimming and diving

Penn State Behrend 154, Allegheny 106

Kaitlyn True, a freshman from Denton, Texas, won the 100 freestyle (59.42) and the 100 breaststroke (1:14.31). Izzy Sheridan, a senior from Orefield, won the 100 backstroke, finishing in 1:07.79. Rylee Ondrejko, a freshman from Washington, won the diving events; she earned 139.80 points in the 1-meter event and 150.20 points in the 3-meter event.

Wrestling

Fifth (of 14 teams) at the RIT Invitational

Mason Savitz, a freshman from Corry, won the 165-pound weight class. He finished the tournament 5-0, with one fall and two major decisions.

Scores, updates and video links for Penn State Behrend athletics are posted at psblions.com.

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Big West Trio Lands on AVCA All-Pacific Region Listings

Published

41 minutes ago

December 10, 2025

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Representing three member-institutions, a trio of Big West women’s volleyball players have been announced as American Volleyball Coaches’ Association (AVCA) All-Pacific Region honorable mention student-athletes.

Big West Player of the Year Jade Light helped UC Davis to their first regular-season Big West title while pacing the Aggies and the conference in both kills (4.01) and points (4.52) per set in 2025. Posting consecutive seasons of 400+ kills, the outside hitter from Sloughhouse, Calif., has tallied 1,162 career strikes and is just the 13th UC Davis player to reach the four-digit plateau. Light stands as the first – and only – Aggie to earn Player of the Year honors in UC Davis’ last season of league membership while also earning first-team All-Big West distinction.

UC Santa Barbara redshirt sophomore Eva Travis claimed a first career All-Region distinction after trailing only Light in both kills (3.93) and points (4.42) per set to lead the Gauchos back to The Big West postseason finishing the year tied for second in the conference standings. The product of Aliso Viejo, Calif., finished the year with six 20-point games reaching double-figures in all 28 matches played and started, earning All-Big West second-team honors.

Finally, Cal Poly middle blocker and Big West Championship Most Valuable Player Chloe Leluge made the listings after a stellar sophomore campaign. The powerful net play provided by the Bend, Ore., native has resulted in 126 total blocks, or 1.02 per set, along with 2.30 kills per set while sporting an efficient .383 hitting percentage for The Big West champions. Leluge and the Mustangs upended No. 5 seed BYU and knocked off host and No. 4 seed USC last weekend to advance to the regional semifinals of the NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship. Cal Poly is set to square off with No. 1 seed Kentucky in the Round of 16 on Thursday at 12:30 p.m. PT.

Last year, the AVCA instituted a new 10-region alignment based upon state lines rather than conference alignment. In the new configuration, the Pacific Region consists of the states of California, Hawai’i and Arizona.

Regardless of various regional changes throughout the years, The Big West has enjoyed at least one All-Region/All-District selection every season, since 1986. Dating back to the 2015 season, this marks the ninth set of All-Region listings to include at least three Big West performers.

AVCA All-Pacific Region

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Frantzich and Nemecek land MIAC Athlete of the Week accolades

Published

56 minutes ago

December 10, 2025

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BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – First year Svea Frantzich and senior Lance Nemecek of the St. Olaf College women’s and men’s track and field teams were named one of the two Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Athletes of the Week in their respective sports on Tuesday.

Frantzich was chosen as the MIAC Women’s Field Athlete of the Week, while Nemecek collected MIAC Men’s Track Athlete of the Week honors, with both Oles landing the first MIAC Athlete of the Week accolades of their careers.

Frantzich recorded the fifth-highest pentathlon score in NCAA Division III this season with 3,005 points in her collegiate debut at the M City Classic on Friday. Frantzich posted top-10 all-time performances on St. Olaf’s indoor list in the 60-meter hurdles (9.47) and long jump (5.44m) on her way to compiling the No. 8 pentathlon score on the Oles’ all-time performers’ list.

Nemecek ran the second-fastest 800-meter time in NCAA Division III this season with a meet record time of 1:54.02 at the M City Classic on Friday. Nemecek’s time ranks third on both St. Olaf’s all-time performers’ and performances lists. He also led off the first-place 4×400-meter relay that won the event in a meet-record time of 3:21.77, which ranks fifth nationally and second on both St. Olaf lists.

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No. 3 Volleyball lands four on AVCA Southwest Region Team

Published

58 minutes ago

December 10, 2025

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AUSTIN, Texas – No. 3 Texas Volleyball landed four on the AVCA Southwest All-Region Team, led by Torrey Stafford who was named AVCA Southwest Region Player of the Year.

Stafford became the fifth Longhorn to earn the award, which marked the seventh overall award joining Chiaka Ogbogu (’17), Micaya White (’18), Logan Eggleston (20-22) and Madisen Skinner (’23). Stafford leads the Longhorns with 488 kills, has totaled 4.74 kills per set, is hitting .359 and leads the team with 32 aces.

Stafford was also named to the All-Region Team along with freshman Cari Spears, sophomore Ayden Ames and senior Emma Halter.

Spears was also tabbed as the AVCA Southwest Region Freshman of the year. Texas has now won the award three-straight seasons following Ames and Ella Swindle.

Texas is set to host #15 Indiana on Dec. 12 at 11 a.m. CT at Gregory Gym in the Sweet 16.

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