Adrenaline Volleyball Academy (Hiawatha, Iowa) is only in its second year of existence, but the club is already making a statement on the regional and national level.  The club hosts 7 National Teams consisting of 70 players, 5 Regional Teams consisting of 50 players, a youth program and mutiple events at Northwestern Mutual Iowa Sports Academy. In only 2 years, Adrenaline Volleyball has achieved what takes most clubs a decade to accomplish.

History

Club Director Tim Keating grew up in Iowa, and from a young age he spent a lot of time around the game of volleyball, watching Dubuque Wahlert High School matches where his father coached.  It didn’t take long for him to develop a passion for the sport. He began coaching as a Senior in High School, and eventually moved to Chicago and coached for Club Fusion, a long time JVA member club. “At Fusion I learned the business side of club volleyball and it was something that I wanted to pursue on my own one day. After four years at Fusion, I decided to move back to Iowa near my family and create an opportunity for young athletes to pursue their dreams of playing high level volleyball” shares Keating.

Adrenaline’s facility opened in October of 2014. It includes four full size hardwood basketball courts that house 4 oversized playable area volleyball courts. The club shares the facility with a local Basketball Club, which helps the financial burden of owning a facility in the growing stages of the club. All Adrenaline Operations are run out of the office, which is conveniently located at the facility.

Programs

Two of the main focuses at Adrenaline Volleyball Academy are training and college recruiting. The club operates under a lead training model where all teams practice in the same facility together. This allows the athletes to compete against each other on a nightly basis. It also provides an opportunity for each athlete in the club to be coached at some point by every coach in the gym, whether during position training or additional Friday Night Training throughout the year. This is a unique training model for the region and it took a lot of time fielding questions and explaining the benefits.  “Our coaches and athletes have bought into the training model and adhere to the structure and discipline that we expect our members to have” states Keating.

Recently, Adrenaline started its volleytots program that introduces the sport of volleyball to kids ages 4 and up. The club recently hired Marci Novak, former Assistant Coach at Indiana Wesleyan to be the Youth Program Director. With the hiring of Marci, Adrenaline plans on developing an extensive youth program at that will focus on the younger ages, and develop a solid base for the skill development of the game. The club is in the process of creating a fall youth club season that will provide an additional opportunity for young athletes to train in addition to their grade school and middle school volleyball seasons.

Mental Training

Adrenaline’s philosophy is also geared towards the mental component of the game. As a player continues to advance from the youth development program into the Travel Program, the physical training will intensify while the mental training is incorporated. Mental training focuses around the word “confidence.” Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will. If doubt were to be a disease, its cure would be confidence. At Adrenaline Volleyball Academy, all athletes are trained to “Dream Big” and use confidence to propel those dreams. 

At tryouts, athletes and families understand that they should choose a club that will help teach them more than volleyball. Life skills should be taught at every opportunity throughout the season. Accountability is one example. Adrenaline tries to hold its athletes accountable for their actions on and off the court. The 18 and Under team will have a roster full of athletes about to head off to college in the fall and the club leaders and coaches know it is on them to prepare these student athletes for the next chapter. The 18s receive a travel itinerary for each road weekend just like they will receive at the schools they will be attending in college. The athletes are responsible for knowing details on and off the court. The club has certain guidelines that its athletes must follow and holds its players accountable to make sure their teammates are adhering to the rules.

Events

Adrenaline Volleyball hosts the JVA Hawkeye Cup Power League that provides competition for JVA Clubs in the Midwest.  The Hawkeye Cup is awarded to the club with the most points earned and that club earns a paid entry into the JVA World Challenge. The clubs that competed in this year’s Power League are Nebraska Juniors, River City Juniors, Nebraska Elite, Central Iowa Select, Iowa Rockets, IPVA, and Platform Elite. This year Nebraska Juniors was the winner of The Hawkeye Cup.

There is no doubt that Adrenaline has developed a family atmosphere. When there are multiple teams playing in an event, all of the teams are encouraged to support each other throughout the event. One of the best examples was at the JVA World Challenge in April.  “Our 15 Rox team was competing in a challenge set to advance to the Gold bracket in 15 Open. We had multiple teams that stuck around to cheer on our 15s team to a win” shares Keating. 

“I’m excited about the future growth at Adrenaline. I have a dedicated coaching staff that is focused on the development of each individual athlete along with the team development.”

Adrenaline Volleyball Academy 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.