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Post by josiah on Oct 11, 2013 21:41:35 GMT -5
On another site a Holy Cross parent posted this narrative regarding volleyball ranks.
I would assume the ******* is pretty accurate, unlike the Post. For example, one of my kids plays on the Holy Cross girls volleyball team. Ranked # 1 in MD by MaxPreps and # 1 in the county by the *******. The Tartans destroyed Sherwood in their annual pre-season game - five game to none (played all 5 games, not the usual best of five.) Complete domination - not even close. Yet the Post has Sherwood ranked above Holy Cross which is ridiculous. The ******* reporters were at the Sherwood HC match and saw firsthand what a private school which plays in the most competitive VB league in the area will do to a public school. There is no comparison. There should not be. The private schools recruit the best players, provide scholarships, and have the toughest competition. It is the same for football. They private schools which recruit the top players naturally will have the superior teams. We were joking during today's match against a top ranked Virginia team which HC destroyed that in reality, the MOCO volleyball schools are basically rec teams, as far as competition goes. Football is a little different, but not by much.
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Post by vbdementia on Oct 11, 2013 22:28:44 GMT -5
Your memory seems to be very short or you just came on the vb scene. What happened when HC and GC met SHS over the last couple years?
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Post by In the mix on Oct 13, 2013 18:49:56 GMT -5
Although AHC beat Sherwood in the preseason, I think both teams have grown a lot since then. But I think the biggest growth has been from the two Sherwood middles (a Fr and a Jr) who have now hit their stride and are now contributing. Whereas I think Holy Cross is trying to solidify its front row when Rhamat is not in the front row. On defense both teams are strong. It just depends on how you look at it. I think that it is not realistic to just say that the private schools are always better. Simply because they aren't always. Many years they are, with the funds they can throw into it. But definitely not always and definitely not necessarily this year. Good luck to your daughter who is playing. AHC has a great team and a great coach. So does Sherwood.
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Post by Scott Zanni on Oct 15, 2013 11:12:25 GMT -5
The statement posted at the start of this thread was originally posted on the Montgomery County Football website. We can compare how some of the top teams in the WCAC and the MCPS "rec league" have fared over the years.
2007-Good Counsel won the WCAC and MD private school championship. Likely best private school in MD area. They defeated Magruder in four close sets with Magruder missing their best OH. Magruder was a top 2 or 3 team in MCPS, but not the best team.
2008-Good Counsel won the WCAC and MD private school championship. They finished the year ranked #1 in the DC area and were briefly ranked nationally. Defeated Magruder in 3 (pretty easily). Magruder was probably a top 4-5 team in MCPS that year.
2009-Good Counsel won all the private school league championships meaning they were the best private school out there. They lost to Magruder in four. Magruder was the best team in MCPS that year.
2010-Good Counsel again won the WCAC and MD/DC titles. They defeated a Magruder team in 3. Magruder was not one of the top 2-3 teams in MCPS that year, but probably a top 5 team.
2011-Good Counsel again won the WCAC, MD and City titles (great run for them). Sherwood defeated them. Sherwood won the state title.
2012-Sherwood defeats Good Counsel again. Holy Cross wins the WCAC and possibly MD title (not sure). Good Counsel is a solid team in the WCAC. Again Sherwood won the state title.
Since 2007 Good Counsel has been the best team in the WCAC and Magruder and Sherwood have consisently been at or near the top of MCPS teams.
Good COunsel (a program I have great respect for) is 3-3 against these two schools.
Additionally there are a few times where the MCPS team and Good COunsel were the top teams in their leagues. Those matches are also evenly split.
So for a rec league, MCPS is doing pretty well in direct competition between "the most competitive volleyball league in the area".
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Post by MCPS VBparent on Oct 15, 2013 13:04:08 GMT -5
I don't think HC and GC pay scholarships to volleyball players. They may "recruit" more easily (since it doesn't matter where the player lives, which can be a problem for public schools). But the parents still have to pony up for tuition. One place the private schools might have an advantage is their demographics may mean the parents are more willing/able to pay for club volleyball. The more club players on the floor the better the team. I'll bet the proportion of club players is higher for GC and HC than the average MCPS team. (My MCPS daughters have played club with players from both HC and GC) HC and GC have a tradition of good VB teams, with good coaches aho have been there for a while. That's not always the case at the high schools. But at public schools with a VB tradition, and good coaching, you see pretty good teams. Sherwood, Magruder, Poolesville, Wootton, Damascus...
Take a MCPS school with no club players, no VB experience, yeah, rec league, what do you expect.
But the good teams are far from rec league and can hang with the private schools.
Football may be different, by the way.
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Post by Scott Zanni on Oct 16, 2013 13:16:58 GMT -5
I agree the proportion of club players at Holy Cross and Good Counsel is higher than the average MCPS team, but probably not much different than the top MCPS teams, which I think is what we are comparing.
Also, I think the good MCPS teams have done more than "hang with them". I think they have beaten them with some regularity.
I agree that Holy Cross and Good Counsel are great volleyball schools (though Holy Cross is a recent addition to this, not a school I'd say has a long history of success---by long I mean more the 3-5 years). If you compare the success of HC and GC to the top MCPS teams, I think it's pretty similar.
If you want to compare HC and GC to the weaker public school teams then sure anyone will see the difference. But the same could be said for the top MCPS teams versus the weakest teams in the WCAC.
Just my two cents.
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Post by Frank on Oct 17, 2013 20:40:53 GMT -5
Much of winning is defined by how many Club players a school has, but it is also defined by what the coach does with the players they have. All the strong teams that Scott listed - GC, AHC, Magruder, Sherwood, Poolesville, and Wootton have long running excellent coaches. I think MoCo is lucky to have many many other good coaches too.
I think it would be fun to have a tournament at the end of the season with the top division winners from each state bracket and the top private school teams and see who wins. But alas State of MD won't allow it. So we all have to ponder who is best. But let us not get petty. Let's cheer for good volleyball and be proud of girls (and boys in the spring too). Go Volleyball !!
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marym
Junior Member
Posts: 51
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Post by marym on Oct 18, 2013 7:52:01 GMT -5
Very kind of you to include Wootton with the other good programs listed, but, as a "long-running" (does that mean "old"?) coach, it definitely makes a difference when you have a lot of club players. There are a several excellent coaches who have been working with young athletes for years with little recognition and doing a fantastic job - Ray at Northwood, Alex at Wheaton, Wanda at Kennedy come to mind. While some may consider them "rec teams," I would consider them to be top programs as far as the positive influence they have on their players. Success is measured in many ways and winning, while fun and easy to notice, is not always the most valued measure. HC is incredibly fortunate to have a wonderful coach and a winning program this year, but before you start denigrating a whole county, remember that everyone isn't starting out on the same level and high school sports is about a lot of things, not just the final record.
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Post by Frank on Oct 18, 2013 9:33:28 GMT -5
Well said Mary M !!
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Post by VB on Oct 18, 2013 9:51:45 GMT -5
Mary - what you said is more important than all of the other stuff. I have seem some great, motivational coaches getting the best out of their teams. "Coach of the Year" should not be for the coach who inherits the best travel players, but one who can make the most out of what they have!
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Post by Scott Zanni on Oct 18, 2013 10:56:56 GMT -5
Mary, your comment gets best post of the year award.
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Post by allisoncox on Oct 18, 2013 15:39:33 GMT -5
"Mary, your comment gets best post of the year award." I agree. Mary, you know what really counts in life and the kids who've played for you over the years and their parents are a very lucky bunch.
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Post by Cindy H on Oct 18, 2013 18:29:58 GMT -5
I have to agree, Mary. You cut to the core of the matter. Well said!!
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Post by see me set on Oct 18, 2013 18:46:06 GMT -5
Mary definitely wins the prize! (and Scott's two cents made good sense, too)
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Post by grow vb on Oct 21, 2013 7:03:55 GMT -5
HS coaches are saints for the time and energy they put into their programs. It is truly a labor of love. I would also like to give props to the college level coaches/assistants who work with these ladies in the club season. Each year I am amazed at the vb development when they return for HS tryouts. It would be nice to make some of that high level exposure available to more of the athletes developing programs. For a county so rich in vb interest more could be done. I have been to some club tryouts with 300 kids giving their all, where they where only looking for a handful. Some HS have 40 + kids at tryouts who give up on vb after they don't make the team. The interest vb is there! More needs to be done to develop affordable competitive enviroments for young athletes to strive.
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