Empowered Volleyball Academy grew from a man’s passion to grow and increase the level of the game throughout the Midwest. Upon arriving home from an overseas professional indoor season, Founder William Robbins and his wife Ashlee Robbins, revolutionized the local market by implementing the areas’ first ever volleyball specific sports performance program, and a hybrid program of beach, indoor training and character building.
This multifaceted program, focused on ministering to the whole athlete, addresses the mental, physical, and spiritual aspect of each player, in order to develop not only an outstanding athlete and volleyball player, but an outstanding example of a godly student athlete.
HISTORY
Empowered Volleyball Academy started it’s indoor program in 2014-2015, following the success of its beach club, which began in 2011. The club is a great example of a northern club implementing beach year round and allowing its athletes to enjoy both indoor volleyball and beach volleyball in a complimentary way. Today the club is comprised of 230 indoor players and 135 beach players.
What started in a backyard beach court, and a 2,000 square foot performance studio, has grown through many locations and expansions, into the one stop shop Empowered Sports Club and Volleyball Academy have become today.
Empowered’s home is a state of the art 90,000 square foot, multi-sport facility housing 4 indoor hard courts, 5 beach courts, 5 tennis courts, and is the 13,000 sqft home of the areas sports medicine and performance leaders, Parkview Sports Medicine, AWP, and Chiropratic Sports Medicine. With all of this under one roof, and owned by the founder of the club, Empowered Volleyball Academy looks to be an industry leader for years to come.
PROGRAMS
Robbins attributes most of his athlete’s indoor success to his year round beach program, Pro Beach Juniors, which is in the process of finishing a new 21,000 sq ft indoor beach facility, where it will continue to host multiple national qualifies and professional beach events.
“Not only does beach increase your first step quickness, vertical leap and overall core strength and coordination, it teaches you how to read the game and become an intelligent and well rounded player,” Robbins says.
The club fields 4 boys indoor teams (12U-18U) in partnership with Team Pineapple. The teams practice two days per week, and the program is marketed as a “fast paced and intense sport” that is also an “excellent cross training tool for many other sport such as basketball, baseball and football.” With several alumni who went on to play at top collegiate programs, Empowered is making a statement to grow the boys game in northeast Indiana.
Empowered’s 5 yr plans look very bright as well. With several markets and locations identified throughout the Midwest, Empowered is entertaining several partnership opportunities for indoor and beach facilities and satellites.
“Our goal is to grow the game, using the resources God has blessed us with.”
Empowered Volleyball Academy (Fort Wayne, IN) is a member of the Junior Volleyball Association, an organization committed to enhancing the junior volleyball experience for club directors, coaches, players and fans. For more information about joining the JVA click here. For more information about JVA Awards click here.
