FAQs

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

My child plays another sport, can we fit this in?
YES, we have a flexible practice schedule allowing players
with conflicts to attend within another team within 2 years of their age
group. We prefer players who are athletes.

When/Where do you practice?
Spring Season: Practice times will be set in stone after we have finished the final count on how many teams we will host. The location of practices will be at Metro City Church in Riverview on either TR nights or MW nights from 6:00-7:45 (usually teams 13-14 age group) or 7:45-9:30pm (usually teams 15-18 age group).

Winter Season: Practices are at Game On Sports in Taylor on Tu/Th or M/W from 6:00pm-7:45pm or 7:45pm-9:30pm

          TRYOUTS ARE TO DETERMINE PLACEMENT ON THE SKILL LEVEL OF THE TEAM
         NOT IF YOU MAKE A TEAM

Who tries out?
Everyone tries out at Atomic. Atomic tryout information is located on our home page.

Can a player join after tryouts or during the season?
Yes, provided we have space on a team based on her ability. Contact Coach Yack for details at atomicvbc@gmail.com

TEAM AND PRACTICE QUESTIONS
How long does the season last?
Spring: We begin team placement
tryouts in late February – early March. Practice starts in mid-March to late May. The will be a week and a half break during the Easter
holiday season.
Winter: We begin team placement tryouts in November. Practice starts in January to early March .

How often do I practice?
All teams will practice twice a week. Practices are from
6:00-7:45 or 7:45-9:30pm. PLAYERS ARE ALLOWED TO TRAIN ALL THEY WANT BY
ATTENDING OTHER PRACTICES WITHIN TRAINING GROUPS (2 years within their
age division) or attend other practices, which allows flexibility with
team practice conflicts. However, we prefer if you practice with your
assigned team a majority of the time. This allows for team chemistry to develop.

Will I have the same coach through the entire season?
YES!!! It is our goal and request that our coaches
are at practices and tournaments. However, don’t expect a coach to be at
every practice and every tournament. Atomic Volleyball has substitute
coaches that are used in the event a head coach can’t attend a practice
or tournament. There may be times that a team must practice with another
team. It is possible that we can’t replace a coach who has a conflict
for a tournament. That team will have a choice to attend with a parent
helping, share a coach with another team, or not attend. There may be
times that practice locations or times are confused, a coach has an
emergency and doesn't attend. Mistakes will happen, but of course this
should be the exception, not the rule.

Can athletes be cut?
Unfortunately, yes. We try to limit our teams to 10 players per team. In addition, we are limited in the number of courts available for practice. If you do not make a team all funds, except tryout fee, are fully refundable.

Can players be moved or added to a team after initial teams are assigned?
Yes. We prefer not to move players, but we reserve the right if the need occurs based on team needs such as player talent, loss of a player, players joining later in the season, and other factors. We reserve the right to merge teams if the need arises.

Will I play the same position that I play in school?
Not always. We may move and train a player to play a
different position than they played in school, based on the need of the
team.

How many players will be assigned to a team?
Team size is 10 players.

Can players miss practices or tournaments?
We request initially that you consider our practice schedule and tournament travel. We want girls that will be committed. Practices
and tournaments can be excused for school conflicts. If you must miss a practice, we require that you notify your coach a minimum of 24 hours in
advance and 3 weeks notice if you can’t attend a tournament. School sports come first, and players are excused from practice, or a
tournament if necessary.

Can I play other sports and participate in Atomic! Volleyball?
YES! Many of our players participate in multiple sports. These players find few conflicts with basketball, softball, soccer, or
track. Especially since you can attend other practices, should your teams practice schedule is a conflict.

If a player is hurt or quits do they get any money back?
There are NO REFUNDS.

TOURNAMENT QUESTIONS
How are travel tournaments handled?
Detailed tournament sites, dates, and schedules will be
posted during the week after tryouts. Tournament sites vary. Some of the
sites we attend travel to are UM-Dearborn, Battle Creek, Livonia, Mt.
Morris, and Troy, along with the state tournament held in Grand Rapids,
MI. Tournaments each team plans to attend will be set prior to the
season. All teams will attend 4 tournaments plus states (states requires
overnight lodging). Details of what to do will be sent prior to each
tournament.

Tournament entry fees are included in your dues but travel expense and lodging are
not included. Players or parents are responsible for arranging
transportation.

Which tournaments do the teams attend and how often?
Due to increase in teams, it is much more difficult to get
spaces in tournaments. We must wait to see if we get all our teams in.
This is out of our hands. We do attempt to get all our teams in
scheduled tournaments.

Tournament entry is based on available slots; we are not guaranteed that we will
get in each tournament that we register. We must notify both the coach 3
weeks prior if you can’t attend.

How do we determine what division a team is placed in tournaments?
Coaches and the director will jointly decide what division a
team is placed based on the level of play based on what the team is
capable of. There are up to 4 divisions in a tournament per age group.
Sometimes we have to accept what is available.

How is playing time at tournaments handled?
Most parents want or expect their child to play most, if not
all the time during tournament play. This is the number one problem of
clubs throughout the United States. We hope the following will resolve most concerns. All players should get equal PRACTICE time.

Atomic will have NO guarantee of playing time.

We will offer fair playing time to each team player. Fair is
not equal, we will play your daughter as much as possible taking into
consideration her position, practice time attended, skill level and
competition.

Do not approach a coach with concerns at a tournament. The
time to discuss playing time is after the tournament. For this year- you
must put IN WRITING any concerns and e-mail the coach and Coach Yack.

How it works when team has officiating duty at tourneys?
Teams are required in each tournament to work some matches as the officiating
team ( referee, line judge, and scorekeeping) Everyone on the team is
required to stay and work. No one leaves until team duty is finished. At
NO TIME is a parent allowed to yell at ANY officiating team. Teams are
fined and placed on probation should a parent do this.

                                                                                             MISC QUESTIONS
Will problems arise?
Yes! With years of experience and going through every possible problem that can arise, you
can be assured we will not satisfy EVERY player and parent in the club.
If you have concerns, we require you put them in writing. You cannot
approach a coach or Coach Yack during a tournament about a problem.
Please review the parent conduct document.

What is our basic commitment to you? Atomic! VBC promises the following:
            1. We will give athletes the best possible training.
            2. Practice times and locations will depend on team assignment.
            3. Each team will have a qualified head coach that should attend the majority of practices and tournaments.
            4. Tournament play for all players. An average team will participate in over 50 games!
            5. If you finish first or second in the Gold division at a regular season tournament, each player will receive a medal from Atomic! VBC.


How are we kept informed about club news or changes?
E-mail or web only! Email is our primary source – check it
daily! 95% of participants have email, if you don’t, it is your
responsibility to contact the coach for information. Information will be
posted on our web site. (www.atomicvbc.com) or sent via email.

                                                        CONCLUSION
         We desire EVERY player and parent to have a good experience with our club. That realistically will not happen. We have been doing
this for a number of years and have addressed your concerns in this FAQ and provided various options for players’ needs. Bottom line, we are here to train your daughter in the highest level possible. If she does her part, she WILL improve and receive the other benefits of playing club.