 "Photo: Cody Cruz")
 "Photo: Cody Cruz")
On a June evening, Home Court America hosts volleyball and basketball in a building the size of three high school gymnasiums.
Teams of children as young as 8 and teens up to 18 are training at the private facility at 8131 Pinebrook under the watchful eyes of coaches.
Onlookers might not realize the young athletes don't simply play. They're there to improve their skills.
Club sports have become the breeding ground for young athletes to sharpen skills and advance their abilities to ensure spots on high school teams and attract athletic scholarships.
This training and exposure don't come cheap.
"I've spent $5,000 to $6,000 for club a year, and $2,500 was just for volleyball," said Mark Higgins, whose daughter, Hayden, participates in volleyball at Home Court America.
He readily admits, "Getting a scholarship is a benefit; well, that's the goal."
Hayden Higgins hopes to snag a full ride to the University of Texas at Austin. She is 13.
Home Court America and other local organizations, such as Club Alamo, San Antonio Volleyball Association and Club Viper, have become the "gateway to reach volleyball at the college level," said Marcus Wlodarczak, 18, a 2006 graduate of Marshall High School, who played volleyball on four club teams while in high school.
Although he did not earn an athletic scholarship, he said he plans to play volleyball at California State University at Long Beach in the fall.
Clubs stretch volleyball season. Most clubs play volleyball from November to May, while the high school season, under the auspices of the University Interscholastic League, runs from August to the end of October.
A relaxation of UIL rules beginning in 1984 allowed varsity athletes to participate in summer leagues and camps. In 1989, the concurrent participation rule, which had forbidden public school students from playing on teams outside of school, was eliminated, according to the Nov. 23, 2003, San Antonio Express-News.
Kari Chapman, 20, is a senior at the University of the Incarnate Word, where she received a volleyball scholarship.
She began playing the sport when she was in the fourth grade and starred at O'Connor High School.
"Some coaches won't pick you if you don't play in club," she said.
Another teen who participated in club and high school teams is Alexandra Allard, 17, a 2006 graduate of Warren High School.
"I saw what I could do at club that I couldn't do at school," she said.
She spent four years in high school playing school-sponsored volleyball and playing with a club team. She also has coached teams for 3 1/2 years at Home Court America.
Allard said she began playing club volleyball because she saw how good she could become. That effort paid off with a full volleyball scholarship to Laredo Community College.
Both players were spotted by a recruiter at a club tournament.
National Collegiate Athletic Association bylaws, under which college athletics function, specify that in-person, off-campus recruiting is limited to authorized athletic department staff members, and limitations may be placed on the number of staff members who are permitted to recruit off campus. Rules don't limit where these recruiters can scout talent.
Christine Plonsky, director of women's athletics at UT-Austin, agrees that participating in clubs is highly beneficial to student athletes.
"Coaches from UT and other institutions observe competitions in summer programs and club team programs as a part of their evaluation for scholarship prospects," Plonsky said.
Jennifer Montoya, has been the volleyball coach at the University of the Incarnate Word three years. During the summer, she coaches at Incarnate Word in a program called Cardinal Volleyball Academy. Montoya also coaches at Texas Juniors Volleyball Club.
"We teach athletes what other coaches may overlook," she said of the summer camp.
While competing in club tournaments with her Texas Juniors team, Montoya also scouts other teams for talent.
"After our team is done playing, I go check out teams and potential players," Montoya said. "If a local kid is good, they'll be noticed by local schools, but clubs allow kids to be noticed on a national level."
Montoya was recruited by the University of Florida after being spotted in club tournaments when she was at Providence High School.
Allard agrees club sports help an athlete attract attention.
"You have to be really good and rare if you want to be noticed by recruiters at high school," Allard said. "You have a better chance of getting noticed by a recruiter in club than at school."
Players like Allard and Chapman have garnered scholarships and places on college teams, but it required an investment much like Higgins is making for 13-year-old Hayden.
"My mom has spent about $7,000 or more just on club volleyball," Allard said. "She actually had to take out a loan to pay for club."
Chapman's parents have spent about $15,000.
Club sports require players and their parents to cover annual fees, travel, equipment, uniforms, shoes and even socks, parents and club players said.
"There are monthly fees by each player, but if out-of-town travel is required, p lane tickets fall on players, as well," Wlodarczak said, adding he found a job to help pay those expenses.
Hoping his experience will make him more valuable on a college team, Wlodarczak maintains, "If you have the opportunity to play on a club team, then you should take the opportunity."
Be the first to comment on this article!