- What is Great Bay Volleyball?
- Where and when are practices?
- When are Tryouts and is there a fee for tryouts?
- How much does it cost to play at Great Bay and when is the first payment due?
- How many Games/Tournaments do we play and which teams play and on what dates?
- Tell me more about Great Bay Teams.
- What is this “Practice Squad” I keep hearing about?
- What are the different levels of play within NERVA
- When will we know about tournament locations?
- Is there an official web site for NERVA?
- What does the Gold Medal Certification mean?
Great Bay Volleyball is a Registered 501 C 3 non-profit organization that trains volleyball players from age 8-18 for Junior Olympic Volleyball . We are part of the New England Regional Volleyball Association (NERVA), a sub-region of USA Volleyball. We compete throughout New England and Beyond. Great Bay was founded on the belief that volleyball should be fun, competitive and rewarding. Please take a moment to browse this site and learn more about us. We pride ourselves on communication and we are constantly adding information to this website. Please visit the Forms and Links Page for our Great Bay philosophy, Coaches Creed, A Parent’s promise and Policies and Procedures Manual along with many other helpful documents.
Practices will be held at various locations including Portsmouth Christian Academy, Spaulding High School, New Heights Gym in Portsmouth and other similar places to be announced on this website once they are finalized. The main practice is held on Sunday afternoons. Most teams will also practice once more during the week.
When are tryouts and is there a fee?
Tryouts are normally held directly after the High School season ends. 2010-2011 Tryouts are scheduled for Sunday November 7th and Sunday November 14th at the Rochester Community Center in Rochester NH (150 Wakefield St.). The fee is $65.00 (please write two checks; one for $25.00 and one for $40.00). Please Click here for more details.
How much does it cost to play at Great Bay and when is the first payment due?
The estimated prices for 2012 teams are posted here.
All Checks made out to “Great Bay Volleyball Club, Inc.” Mail to:
P.O. Box 186
Seabrook, NH 03874Payments are due on the following dates (a $150.00 deposit will be due at tryouts for all Travel team players and credited equally to the three payment dates.)
- First Payment Due: January 10th
- Second Payment Due: February 10th
- Final Payment Due: March 10th
Which teams play on which dates (read the next 5 entries including this one)?
Locations will be announced as they become available on the schedule page. NERVA has two designations: Club and Open. This Year Club and Open will all be reciprocal and play on the same dates (other than open qualifiers or designated Travel Team tournaments). These are generally single day tournaments on Sundays and the tournament dates for 2011 are:
Please checck the schedule page for updated schedules and changes
2013 Girls Club Division Dates:
- Feb 2-3 16′s Qualifier (open and Option teams only)
- Feb 9-10 18′s Qualifier (open and Option teams only)
- NERVA I – March 3rd
- NERVA II – March 24th
- NERVA III – April 7th
- NERVA IV – April 21st
- May 5th Championships
2013 Girls Open Division:
(all dates subject to court availability)
- Feb 2-3 16′s Qualifier (open and Option teams only)
- Feb 9-10 18′s Qualifier (open and Option teams only)
- NERVA I – March 3rd
- March 9th – 10th – 15′s and 18′s Possible Great Nor’Easter
- March 16th – 17th – 16′s and 17′s Possible Great Nor’Easter
- NERVA II – March 24th
- NERVA III – April 7th
- NERVA IV – April 21st
- May 5th Championships
NERVA allows for the movement between levels of top and bottom finishers at each tournament. They will determine how many teams to move from each level based on the number of teams in each division or flight. Therefore, a Club team can conceivably become an Open team and vice versa. Teams moving up from Club to Open are required to pay for tournaments (Officials are added at most open levels) and may realize an increase in fee structure. That possibility will be discussed with players and parents whenever practical.
Our Travel Teams will play in tournaments other than NERVA tournaments. These tournaments generally last 2 days or more and teams will stay overnight thus making them “travel teams”. Examples of such tournaments are the Bay State Invitational (NY), LIBA(Long Island), and the Winterfest tournament in Hartford CT. (Run by NERVA!). Yet another possibility is a trip to Baltimore for the Northeast National Qualifier. These are not NERVA events and there are entry fees, hotel costs and travel expenses associated with these tournaments.. All travel teams generally apply to play in the NERVA Open Division. Open division teams generally participate in the Open Qualifiers and are charged a fee for the qualifier. Lastly, Travel teams generally require 2 uniform tops as they play in multi-day tournaments. This is partly why the cost is more for these teams.
Our Club Teams:
Club teams play in reciprocal tournaments and the cost of each team is directly related to the amount of practice time and price of tournament facilities associated with each tournament. The Reciprocal system used by NERVA mandates that each club in New England have court space available equal to the number of teams they have. In other words, for every group of 4 teams Great Bay has, we must have 1 court available for each tournament date (please note that if we had only 5 teams, we would still need two courts). Those courts are available to the NERVA scheduler for any level. The Scheduler attempts to place Club teams closer to home when possible but the entire Northeast Region is considered “Local”.
Club teams are the heart of the NERVA region; the largest segment. Our goal is for most teams at Great Bay to practice at least 2 times a week. The Cost for Club teams is generally lower than travel teams.
Clarification of levels at each age group:
Club/Local Teams:
Teams will Practice twice a week, unless otherwise noted (check with Director or Coach for details), at locations to be announced on the Schedule page.
All teams will be provided uniforms (numbered jersey and spandex)
Entry into all local tournaments is provided. Travel to and from tournaments is the responsibility of the player and their family. No player should drive themselves to or from a tournament.
All U16′s teams will receive a Great Bay Outer Garment to be determined (Hooded Sweatshirts or Jackets for instance).
Open – Option Teams:
Teams will practice twice a week at locations to be announced on the schedule page.
All teams will be provided uniforms (numbered jersey and spandex)
Entry into all NERVA, regular season Open tournaments is provided. All Teams must qualify with NERVA to be eligible for the Open Level. Travel to and from regular NERVA tournaments is the responsibility of the player and their family. No player should drive themselves to or from a tournament.
Open – Option teams will be offered the option of traveling to out-of-region Tournaments in or outside of the New England area. The Club will determine the potential of a team to travel and if the team (parents and players) is willing and able to pay for such a tournament the Club will make good faith efforts to enter that team.
Open-Option teams will receive a Great Bay Outer Garment to be determined (Hooded Sweatshirts or Jackets for instance).
Open – Travel Teams:
Teams will Practice at least twice a week at locations to be announced on the schedule page.
All Open-Travel teams will be provided home and away uniforms provided they play in multi-day tournaments (numbered jersey and 1 pair of Black spandex). Open Travel teams will receive a Great Bay Outer Garment to be determined (Hooded Sweatshirts or Jackets for instance).
Entry into all NERVA Open (formerly Power League) tournaments is provided. All Teams must qualify with NERVA to be eligible for the Open Level. Travel to and from regular NERVA tournaments is the responsibility of the player and their family. No player should drive themselves to or from a tournament.
These teams will enter one Out of Region Tournament for travel. Travel to and from the tournament is not included in the price. Lodging for the players is included however parents are responsible for their own lodging.
Open – Travel teams will be offered the option of traveling to other tournaments in or outside of the New England area. The Club will determine the potential of a team to travel and if the teams (parents and players) are willing and able to pay for such a tournament the Club will make good faith efforts to enter those teams. A list of potential tournaments will be announced on this website and may or may not include LIBA, BAYSTATE, THE GREAT NOR’ EASTER, AAU NATIONALS or the NORTH EAST QUALIFIER (a qualifier for USA Nationals).
The Practice Squad meets once a week. Recently we have experienced a high demand for the squad and we are considering expanding opportunities to participate. For details about the Practice Squad please see Practice Squad Page.
When will we know about tournament locations?
During the season, the NERVA coordinator has to place more that 300 teams at facilities throughout New England. Clubs are responsible for providing one court for every group of 4 teams they have (reciprocal system). On any given tournament date, there are teams that withdraw for various reason including travel out side the region, school vacations and sickness. The schedule goes out first to Club directors, is corrected for errors and then sent out to the general public. It is a process unique to New England. Most regions operate on a first come first served basis meaning NOT EVERY TEAM GETS TO PLAY ON EVERY TOURNAMENT DATE! Our best suggestion is to be patient. We promise you will know when we know.
Is there an official NERVA web site:
Official information about NERVA tournaments is posted on the NERVA website
What does the Gold Medal Certification mean?
- 80% of the coaches in the club have attended a GMS Coaching Clinic
- The 12 and under, 17s, and 18s coaches MUST have attended a GMS Coaching Clinic
- The club designates a representative to oversee training and to ensure proper teaching methods and training philosophy
- The club makes a general commitment to train all their players using GMS methods
- For More information about the Gold Medal certification please visit Gold Medal Squared
That’s it for now. We will keep you up to date as information becomes available. We hope for our players and parents to be the most knowledgeable club around!
