The Munciana Volleyball Club, formed in 1974 and is the longest running club in the country. Today, Munciana is one of the Elite Junior Volleyball Clubs in America, rich in tradition, culture and success.
HISTORY
If one thing could define this Indiana club’s formula for success, it is teaching. Munciana is known to be a great training club and that is no coincidence. From the beginning, Munciana has been a ‘club of teachers’, as well as former volleyball players at Ball State University: The Shondells, Wes Lyon, Mike Lingenfelter, Phil Leswing to name a few. To this day, teaching continues to be a driving force behind the consistent success.
Munciana was co-founded by Steve Shondell, son of International Volleyball Hall of Fame Inductee Don Shondell, with one team in it’s first year. Under his mentorship, the club has become a Cradle of Coaches with 88 former Munciana coaches advancing to the collegiate volleyball coaching ranks.
Today there is 42 girls teams that train and compete for Munciana: 10 Open, 17 National and 15 Regional. In addition, since 1989 Munciana has run their TNT program to introduce volleyball to beginners.
Munciana has four arms so to speak and each arm supports the other.
- CLUB
- CAMPS
- TOURNAMENTS
- APPAREL
CLUB
To understand Munciana you must know that the club is about ‘everything volleyball’.
Three key factors have driven the club’s success
- The club is comprised of young athletes who are committed to being successful.
- The Munciana gym culture creates high expectations.
- The coaches are focused on teaching and training athletes.
FACILITY
Munciana elevated to a new level when it completed its 6 court facility in November, 2009 and installed a comprehensive ‘all things volleyball’ business plan led by Tim Kuzma, Co-Owner. Prior to 2009 the club practiced in high school gyms since it’s formation in 1974. Since 2009 the club operates year round by offering endless camps, clinics, tournaments and volleyball programs for all ages.
Another benefit of having a facility, has been the growth of Gear Munciana, the club’s wholesale apparel business, which sells volleyball apparel to schools and clubs in the Midwest. In addition, the club’s partnership with ASICS has been instrumental in the growth of the Apparel arm.
NEW PROGRAMS & EDUCATION
MPT- Munciana Physical Training
This program is in its third year and consists of hourly training sessions – Mon thru Friday. The club refers to it as the best deal in the country. At $30 per week, each session is 1 hour in length and is open to the entire club. Sessions include: conditioning, ball control, hitting, defense and setting. On an average day 40-50 players dedicate their time to being there between 4-5pm with the goal of advancing their skills and physical abilities.
MuncianaRecruits
As an elite club, Munciana believes you must have an elite recruiting program. The club has invested in a full time recruiting coordinator and partnered with a leading edge technology company in the area of recruiting platforms. These services are offered to all of the recruitable age athletes. Munciana’s recruiting program includes seminars, showcases, consulting and education opportunities for athletes, parents and volleyball clubs. To date Munciana has had over 480 of it’s players commit to playing at the collegiate level.
Pendleton Satellite Club
The satellite club is located in Pendleton, Indiana and opened in the Fall of 2016. Munciana offers camps & weekly training sessions for the local players and fielded two teams for the 2017 season. The relationship is already proving to be a win-win. The kids are already making an impact on the club in year one.
“It is so gratifying for a community of 70,000 people to go out nationally and compete successfully with communities twenty times its size” shares Co-Owner Tim Kuzma.
Perhaps that best documents Munciana’s training methods and passion for the game. Munciana’s largest goal is to create a business where everyone would win, and that goal has come to fruition with 31 National Championships, 218 All-Americans, 52 Top 5 Finishes, 93 Medals Awarded at AAU’s, and thousands of players growing up “the Munciana way.”
The kids obviously benefit; the community benefits from all the visitors the club attracts; the employees benefit from having meaningful career opportunities with brilliant futures; and the volleyball industry benefits from Munciana sharing its expertise with the volleyball world.
Munciana Volleyball Club 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.
