Used with permission from Megan Poretsky.

After school, on the weekends, and in tournaments across the country, high school students at CESJDS improve their volleyball skills by playing on club teams. Club volleyball occurs outside of the high school season, and gives players more opportunities to develop their abilities and play in more games.

Freshman Megan Poretsky began playing volleyball on the JDS middle school girls volleyball team in seventh grade and started playing club volleyball this school year. 

“I really wanted to take my volleyball knowledge to the next level, and for me, that step was club,” Poretsky said. “Club was something that I had been thinking about doing for a while, and I finally decided to pursue [it].”

Poretsky plays for Platform Volleyball Club in Montgomery County, Maryland, on their 16 Purple Team, primarily as a libero, which means she is in charge of defense on the court. Poretsky enjoys hanging out with her team at tournaments and clipping, or giving motivational messages written on clothespins to fellow players at tournaments.

Club volleyball and school volleyball have different ways of playing and different seasons. The club volleyball season begins with tryouts in the middle of November after school volleyball has ended in early November. The games start in December and end in early July. In school volleyball, teams play best of three sets, while in club volleyball, teams compete for the best of five sets.

Juniors Rachel and Leah Fagin began playing volleyball in the summer before eighth grade and began playing on their club teams that year. Leah plays on Maryland Exclusive Volleyball Club’s 17 Summit team in Montgomery County as a front-row hitter. Rachel plays on the Academy Volleyball Club D.C. Academy 17 Travel team in Washington D.C., as a defensive specialist or libero. Both have played in the fall on the school’s girls varsity team since freshman year.

A fond memory Leah has from her time playing club volleyball was when she won her first tournament in eighth grade, when she was playing on Maryland Exclusive’s 14-1 Pride team. This season, her last tournament is the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) Nationals in Orlando, Florida, in June. Leah appreciated how her team stepped up when many players were missing in a tournament this season.

“Basically, a lot of our core front row players were out for the weekend, and it really forced the team to come together, and it was a good bonding experience,” Leah said. “And I say we did pretty well in that tournament, considering the fact that we were down a few players. That was when things started to really click together.”

This season, Rachel has traveled to Orlando, Florida, for a tournament and will be traveling to Texas for a tournament this summer. For Rachel, playing club volleyball is time-consuming and makes balancing schoolwork with volleyball difficult. 

“We have practices around three to four days a week, so it just takes up a lot of your after-school time to get work done,” Rachel said. “And I don’t usually miss school for it, but last tournament was the first time I ever missed school for a tournament.”

Club volleyball is more rigorous and stressful, but has brought these players new experiences and friendships that they otherwise would not have gained. They have traveled around the country with their teams and dedicate a lot of free time to their club volleyball team.

In the beginning, Poretsky was nervous to be in an environment outside of the Jewish bubble of her school and neighborhood but being on a club volleyball team has taught her important skills in life.

“It’s definitely helped me become more of a well-rounded person and get to know people of different races, different religions and different levels of observance, which has definitely helped me, not just with volleyball, but as a person,” Poretsky said.