While it's true that most college volleyball recruiters look for the best players to fill open positions in their program, more recently recruiters have been looking for extra qualities that make potential recruits stand out. One of these qualities is beach volleyball experience
   Take the PAC-10 Conference as a good example. Home of perennial volleyball powerhouses like Stanford, USC, UCLA, and Arizona State. this conference has won the last 5 NCAA women's volleyball championships and 13 of the 25 awarded all-time. When asked about what he looks for in recruits, Dave Rubio, coach of Arizona State, states, "You'd rather have your younger players playing a lot of outside ball, because it develops your instincts for the game and it develops the player completely. Whereas in the indoor game, you can be completely specialized and only have one or two skills that you can perform at a very high level, in the outdoor game you have to perform all the skills at an extremely high level. If you are young, (the outdoor game) is advantageous for you early because it translates into the indoor game."
   Granted the beach game can be difficult to excel at since you have to cover much more court area and are inhibited in movement and jumping due to the sand, but the training can prove extremely valuable. Former Rubio player Jennifer Abernathy, who aspires to be a beach volleyball player on the AVP, the professional beach volleyball series in the United States, adds "I think you need to be way more skillful to be a successful beach player than indoor," she continues. "To me, from what I've played and from what I've watched, the only way you win is by being smart." However, as most people who get used to playing in the sand will tell you, once you get hooked, you're hooked for life!

Excerpt taken from 'Crossing Over' by Ryan Casey. Click here for complete article.

   She's won the most beach volleyball tournament titles for a female at 72. She's won the most prize money for a female in beach volleyball at over $1.3 million. She's won the AVP Defensive Player of the Year award 5 times! And don't forget she's also won an Olympic medal. Who is this person you may ask?
   It's Holly McPeak! And vh1vball has gained access to this beach volleyball legend. In the process, we got a chance to ask Holly a few questions and here are her answers:

vh1vball: How/when did you get started in volleyball?
Holly: The first time that I was introduced to volleyball of any type was at the beach in Manhattan Beach, California and I was about 10 or 11 years old. All summer long the beaches are filled with people playing volleyball and my dad played every weekend with all his friends. He drug my twin brother, my little sister, and I down and we learned how to bump the volleyball around pretty well. I started playing club volleyball indoors at age 12 for South Bay Volleyball Club and for my school team at Center Middle school.

vh1vball: What caused you to get hooked to the sport of beach volleyball?
Holly: At around 10 or 11 we also saw our first Manhattan Beach Open (the longest running beach volleyball tournament in the world) and fell in love with the sport of beach volleyball that year.

vh1vball: How many years have you been competing competitively in beach volleyball?
Holly: I am currently starting my 17th season of professional beach volleyball and I still love it. I look forward to practice everyday and want to get better.

vh1vball: What's your most memorable moment playing?
Holly: Winning an olympic medal in Athens (2004) and being on the medal stand with the best beach volleyball players in the world was the best!

vh1vball: What do you see yourself doing after your competitive days are over?
Holly: I see myself possibly doing some color commentary for tv for beach volleyball and trying to give back to the sport that has given me so much!

   ATTENTION JUNIORS: We've arranged to have Holly answer questions once a month during the playing season starting in April. So juniors, if you have questions send them to Mark at mark@vh1vball.com and we'll try to have her answer them. Keep a look out for answers in future newsletters. If her schedule allows, we might get Holly to stop by one day before an AVP event on the east coast.

  New Sites for '06

   With the introduction of sand events this year, we'll be adding a number of new venues. Two that we would like to highlight are Green Hope Elementary School Park and North Cary Park, both located in Cary, North Carolina.
   Green Hope (see map), located on Louis Stephens Road in West Cary adjacent to Green Hope Elementary School and across the street from the Cary Tennis Center, is the home of 4 sand volleyball courts. With a generous donation from Carolina Region/USAV and cooperation from the Town of Cary Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Resources Department, these courts have been given a facelift in the last month. A new layer of high-quality sand has been added with new nets and court lines to follow shortly. Click here for the latest pictures. The court lines to be used are a new adjustable system custom made from Winning Edge Sports. These lines allow for easy swapping between the traditional and new short court sizes.
   Also holding 4 sand volleyball courts is North Cary Park (see map), located in North Cary off of Norwell Blvd. This site has been a popular local facility with 2 courts having excellent sand coverage. While 2 courts are not in the best of playing conditions, plans are in the works to bring in more sand to the facility and replace pole systems this year. With successful tournament events this year, we will be more likely to get improvements made on a continual basis as needed so please show support for the facilities by participating in the sand events.