Word Power (Print and Save?)

Test taking is an inexorable fact. Having a greater command of words helps your reading comprehension and sometimes expression.

Good writers look words that fit. They may seek nuance in meaning, alliteration, or a word that fits a situation.  

For example, the words preordination and predestination have some theological roots, while destiny, fate, and kismet are more often used. However, kismet often occurs in the context of relationships. 

Here's an "SAT" word list...many of which do not often show up in daily conversation. 

And as a bonus a couple of other "word treats"

"I" before "E" except after "C" or when sounded like "A" as in "neighbor" or "weigh." Here's an exception sentence (doesn't include every example):

Neither foreign financier seized either species of weird leisure.

Lagniappe. Reminder. Many sports take advantage of angles in contacting or passing the ball. Ball, meet platform.  

Ten Lessons Learned About Volleyball in 24 Years

Every sport informs its peculiar lessons. As Yogi Berra said, “You can observe a lot just by watching.” Some things stay the same. Here are ten claims:

1. Win more points. You won’t beat top teams by waiting for their mistakes.

2. The best teams have “closers,” players that win points with the game on the line. A last season MVB review showed that about 30 percent of sets were decided by 2-3 points. Closers finish the job. 

3. As a momentum game, volleyball demands that you stop runs. Find ways to maintain momentum on offense and defuse it on defense. Continual mistakes lead to "death by a thousand cuts."

4. Positive points accrue via serve, attacks, and block kills. That doesn’t negate defense; excellent defense limits opponent aces, attacks, and blocks. 

5. Volleyball is a thinking person’s game. A lot happens in little time. Experience grows instinct. 

6. You can become “solid” without being an exceptional athlete but you won’t become elite. Reward yourself more athleticism. Have a plan, follow it, and track it. 

7. Because many teams have improved with the growth of the sport, winning takes more. All four legs of the stool need stability- skill, strategy, physicality, and resilience.

8. Infrastructure - starting young with the extraordinary commitment of families makes a world of difference. Chase perfection and catch excellence. 

9. Top teams have no weak links. You can’t hide a core weakness - attacking, blocking, or serve receive. If you can’t control your side defensively, opponents capitalize on that weakness. Remember, a Sun Tzu message from The Art of War, "Utilize strengths; attack weaknesses."

10. To advance deep in the postseason in basketball or volleyball you need three “hitters,” the players who "put the ball down." Offensive balance guarantees nothing but it doesn’t hurt. There’s still only one MVB team with three attackers with 200 or more kills in the same season - the 2005 State Finals team. 

This is the best example - the 2012 team had no weaknesses and three dynamic scorers - Sarah McGowan, Jen Cain, and Rachel Johnson. 

Lagniappe. Develop your finish. 

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Principles from Dr. Fergus Connolly

14 Principles

Dr. Fergus Connolly has worked with top organizations across business,  military special forces, and sport. 

Read his PRINCIPLES carefully and consider how to use them. These three resonated for me: 

1. "Protect your attention ruthlessly. Not every distraction deserves a response." (The ability to focus is a superpower. It works in the classroom and on the court.) It's a vital element of coaching and coachability. 

2. "Win through better reasoning, not louder voices." There's an old saying that "an empty barrel makes the loudest noise." Others have said it well, like Shakespeare:

Macbeth, Act 5, Scene 5, “It is a tale, Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing.” 

Learn what to embrace and what to ignore, separating signal from noise. 

3. "How you speak to yourself determines your capacity to lead."

The voice we hear most often is our own. Our attitude, choices, and effort flow from our ability to filter and apply from that firehose of information. Nobody can drink from a firehose. Sorting allows us to transform thoughts into action. "I should work out today" becomes "I'm working out when others are not." 

Lagniappe. "As a grandfather, I consider it my right and responsibility to dispense hard-earned wisdom, whether it’s requested or not." - General Stanley McChrystal in "Character"

Lagniappe 2. Make it happen. 

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Personal Growth

Mark Few has taken Gonzaga to the NCAA Tournament 26 straight years.

Every Monday, he runs "Personal Growth Mondays" - but coaches aren't allowed in the room.

It's just the players and their mental development coach.

Here's how it works:
(📌Bookmark this) pic.twitter.com/92Hv7e51jY

— Coach AJ 🎯 Mental Fitness (@coachajkings) April 29, 2026

Over time, own your personal growth. Realistically, nobody will provide a "personal growth coach" for each of you. What can you do? 

1. Build better habits

2. Pick, stick, and check them. 

3. Lean on each other to grow together. 

4. Build resilience with training of body and mind (mindfulness). 

5. Take inventory of your growth...ask how you are a better leader, a better teammate, a better thinker (what ideas have you changed after study and reflection?)

Superstitions

Players and coaches are superstitious. We can't help ourselves.

In 1973, players wore jackets and ties on game day. It represented pride and maybe a hint of status. Coach Ellis Lane forgot his coat on game day and borrowed my brown corduroy coat for the game. We won. He asked me to bring it to the next game. Another win. That coat "won" thirteen straight games, including three upset wins in the "Tech Tourney" including the Sectionals in Boston Garden. Before "it's the shoes," it was the coat. Eventually it found its way to Goodwill. 

• Wade Boggs ate chicken before every game.
• Jim Palmer got the nickname "Cakes" for eating pancakes before his starts. He never gave up a grand slam in his Hall of Fame career.
• LeBron James throws chalk before every game.
• Michael Jordan wore UNC shorts under his Bulls shorts
• Karch Kiraly wore a pink hat during volleyball tournaments 
• Serena Williams is renowned for her extensive superstitions, including using the same shower, bringing her shower sandals to the court, tying her shoelaces in a specific way, bouncing the ball five times before her first serve and twice before her second.
• Olympic champion US golfer Nelly Korda always keeps three tees in her hair, replacing them only when they break.

I had/have a lot of superstitions, chewing "Big Red" gum during games, wearing wrist bands, not wearing pro team gear on game day, playing the same song (Livin' on a Prayer) before our daughters' playoff games. Superstitious people know superstitions are a waste of time, but why tempt fate? 

Superstitions find their way into your routine - what you wear, what you eat, how many times you brush your hair, or how you bounce or twirl the ball before serving. 

Whatever works. 

Lagniappe. Bringing great energy is infectious. 

Winning Is Hard

Joe Mazzulla is insane

He had the WINNERS of the drills run 🫣

“You’re getting rewarded by running. He was like, ‘We gotta change our mindset that winning is the reward. Running is our reward.’”

That man is wild

pic.twitter.com/NQI1q74V58

— Hoop Herald (@TheHoopHerald) April 28, 2026

"The wind blows hardest at the top of the mountain."

MVB was at the top of the ML for a long time. That's history. So is last season. 

Joe Mazzulla shares enduring lessons in a unique way. 

1. Compete. The same as the "Fourth Agreement," Always do your best. 

2. Winning is hard. It's not a legacy or entitlement. Fight for it every day. 

3. Complacency is the enemy. Pat Riley discussed, "The Disease of Me."

Riley writes, "The most difficult thing for individuals to do when they’re part of the team is to sacrifice.  It’s so easy to become selfish in a team environment… Willing sacrifice is the great paradox.  You must give up something in the immediate present – comfort, ease, recognition, quick rewards – to attract something even better in the future; a full heart and sense that you did something which counted.  Without sacrifice, you’ll never know your team’s potential, or your own.”

Breaking Down Exceptional - Gia Vlajkovic

New assistant Coach Gia Vlajkovic was a pleasure to watch at the intersection of:

• Skill
• Strategy (VB IQ)
• Physicality (Athleticism)
• Psychology (Mental toughness)

What do you want? How do you get that? What investment are you prepared to make? Is that a price you can pay?

Let's examine some highlights from the State Semifinals loss to King Philip. Gia had 18 kills and was immense in defeat. It was one of the best performances from an MVB player in a loss since Hannah Brickley in a playoff loss to Central Catholic. 

Outside Attack 

Gia transitions from defense at the net into a "long runway" as she is at least six feet behind the net. She's probably a little "late" but her athleticism allows her to adjust and attack down the line. The "pin hitter" needs a quiver with multiple arrows - down the line, cross court, cut shots, tips, roll shots, and more. 

If you watch the match on YouTube, you can adjust the speed for more detail. 

Pass, Set, Hit

"Win more 'positive' points." Gia attacks the double block and "tools the block" off the outside defender's outside hand. These attacks can be smashes or pushes off the hand, the latter more likely close to the net. 

"Great Is the Enemy of Good"

Sadie Jaggers said that Gia taught her to focus on 'good' not 'great' passes. Gia played all-around and is in position one where she makes a "good" pass leading to a successful attack. 

Attacking Off the Net

Gia didn't need "perfect sets" to attack because of her skill, aggressiveness, and mental toughness. Here she attacks from about the ten foot line with both power and precision. 

Hand-Eye Coordination

In this "choppy" clip, Gia makes an extraordinary save to "keep the ball up." While falling backwards, she makes a one-armed "chicken wing" dig, initially to rescue the point...later won by KP.

 

Attack from the Back 

Here Gia serves and then plays from the back. Her attack creates advantage and ultimately a future star, Sadie Jaggers, finishes the point.

 

Enduring lessons: 

• Skill, there is no substitute. 
• Versatility pays big dividends. 
• Exceptional performance requires excellence in athleticism. Gia wasn't overly tall but she was a great athlete. 

Teamwork, Work, Leadership

Great Mind Candy!! pic.twitter.com/8ANbtDBI4e

— Don Showalter (@dshow23) April 27, 2026

Simplicity. Clarity. Persistence. 

Decide your identity, your brand that shows up every day. 

1. Be a great teammate. Enjoy being around your teammates.

2. Produce great work. Outwork the competition.

3. Lead. "Come with me" is the message to your teammates.  

Non-Negotiable

Asked Jaylen Brown about the Celtics’ identity of playing hard, no matter what else:

“It just started from before the season — we just set a precedent, just set a tone for what we want Celtics basketball to be. And it wasn't an excuse for none of our guys, not me, or for anyone… pic.twitter.com/3OkgMrfzrJ

— Noa Dalzell 🏀 (@NoaDalzell) January 24, 2026

How does one write over 5,000 entries about a high school volleyball program? (Beyond obsession, of course)...Find topics that resonate. Jaylen Brown says the quiet part out loud, that perhaps 70 percent of the battle is competing hard. Here are realities:

1) There is no "on-off" switch. 

Few MVB squads have been good enough to show up and overwhelm the stronger teams with talent alone. What you want to become is the team with the talent to succeed and the drive to show up and do it. 

2) The only way to compete in games is to compete in practice. 

I've watched enough MVB practices to know that to get on the court for MVB 26, you need to be a "dirt dog." Compete when "you cross the red line" onto the court.

3) There's nothing but "Blank Space" on the dance card. 

Jobs are there to be earned. Competition reflects the saying that "a rising tide lifts all boats." 

4) "Play hard, play smart, play together."

Play the right way (how your coaches want it done), right now, every day. The only way that happens is hard work to drive your physical and mental conditioning and being coachable. 

5. Play with joy. 

Exceptional teams radiate joy. They enjoy playing the sport and they enjoy being around each other. Be a light bulb. Here's an old quote from Pete Carril that resonates:

"Light bulbs, that's what I call them. Light bulbs. There's an intangible feeling a coach and a player have that you can delight in. When Armond Hill was at Princeton and he'd go up and down the court in warmups, that's excited me. Frank Sowinski walked onto the court in practice. I could be dead tired: I saw him, I felt good. Billy Omeltchenko. Craig Robinson. I call them light bulbs. They walk on the floor, the light goes on." - February 6, 1991.

Playing "the right way" has to be your identity. You have to own it, live it, and believe in it. When everyone is on board with both talent and that philosophy, you can become special. 

Lagniappe. On defense... 

pic.twitter.com/SzY6sgO1aF

— Tyler Leighton (@CoachTyL8n) January 22, 2026

One Reason Is not the Answer - The Fallacy of the Single Cause

Arm yourself with mental models and understanding of cognitive biases to make better decisions.

In Rolf Dobelli's "The Art of Thinking Clearly" he includes the fallacy of the single cause. Assigning success or failure to a single cause is faulty during complexity. Ask why success succeeds. 

MVB 25 Features

A youth movement arrives (includes five frosh and five sophs)        Record setting performance by senior Sabine Wenzel                      Growth of the quarterback - sophomore Sadie Smith  

 MVB 25 Bugs

"Experience is what you get when you don't get what you want"          Struggle to close out games (e.g. Newburyport, Burlington)                Need to improve blocking at the pins (point prevention) 

The Future

Connection - move from good to excellent                                    Attention to detail - champions win more points                               Finishing kick - capacity to close out sets and matches

Connect. Watch programs like America's Got Talent. Note how the best 'acts' connect with the audience. UCONN Coach Geno Auriemma says that during recruiting, dominant players stand out from the beginning. Excellence is evident.  

Lagniappe. Consistency is a superpower. 

The most successful people are not the most talented or extraordinary. They just do the ordinary things with extraordinary consistency.

— Allistair McCaw (@AllistairMcCaw) April 24, 2026

 Lagniappe 2. What spurs learning? Follow the thread. 

A researcher analyzed studies involving 300 million students to answer one question:

What actually improves learning?

The findings apply to coaching more than you might think.

Here are 7 ideas from John Hattie that every COACH should know:

[THREAD] 🧵

— Greg Berge (@GregBerge) April 23, 2026

                                       

 

MVB Offseason Continues

MVB was well represented via Avidity Volleyball at the Mohegan Sun volleyball tournament. 

The Onyx 15s came away with a tournament win. 

Sportsmanship

Competitiveness doesn't exclude compassion. Learning sportsmanship is part of development.

Win with humility and lose with grace.  

The lie sports culture keeps telling:

You can’t compete against your opponent and still have compassion for them.

You can be the hardest worker,
the fiercest competitor,
the one nobody wants to line up against
and still be humble, respectful,
and compassionate.… pic.twitter.com/hv3eehOexR

— The Winning Difference (@thewinningdiff1) April 22, 2026

Optimism and Belief

Major cheat code for life: Believe that things will work out for you. Not blindly, but through effort. When you expect good things and pair it with action, you start noticing opportunities others miss. Optimism paired with effort is a powerful force.

— Blake Burge (@blakeaburge) April 25, 2026

"Nobody ever earned a positive life with a negative attitude."

Believe in yourself because of your commitment and work. 

Coach John Wooden said, "Things work out best for those who make the best of how things work out.”

 

JVG Shares Valuable Advice

You know the word, MUDITA. It derives from the Sanskrit meaning, "Your joy is my joy."  

“Those people who can celebrate others’ success live a more stress free, less anxious life” - Jeff Van Gundy

(Via @usabjnt 🎥)

pic.twitter.com/KCeqXqQQSe

— Hoop Herald (@TheHoopHerald) March 2, 2026

Want to make the team. Want to contribute. Want to be in the regular rotation. It's okay to want to be a "star" player, understanding that means assuming more responsibility. 

You know the Golden Rule, "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." You should know Nassim Taleb's Silver Rule, "Do not do treat others as you would have them not treat you." 

When you hear that a classmate did well on a test, "Celebrate with them and for them."

When you hear that a classmate got into the school or the job that they wanted, "Celebrate with them and for them."

When you see a teammate performing well, regardless of your situation, "Celebrate with them and for them." 

Being happy for others' success isn't alway easy. But it improves our lives. 

Lagniappe. A vital question... 

Here is one of the best questions a leader can ask: What do you need from me to perform at your best?

— Alan Stein, Jr. (@AlanSteinJr) March 2, 2026

Lagniappe 2. Have a key word to stay present. "Now." 

Next Play is simple:

Stop worrying about what just happened.
Focus on what’s happening now.

The past and future only exist in your mind.

The present is the only place you can perform.

Stay there. pic.twitter.com/aReVXTuc7E

— Alan Stein, Jr. (@AlanSteinJr) February 22, 2026

Playing with Force - Jane and Tarzan

Play with force. 

Developing our four-legged stool (skill, strategy, physicality, psychology) gives a young athlete a chance to "play with force."

One of Coach Scott Celli's strengths is the ability to project players - figuratively to "see into the future." Former NFL Coach Bill Parcells had a saying, "If they don't bite when they're puppies, they won't bite when they're grown." 

I asked Coach when he knew a former player would become a player. He answered, "Five minutes after I saw her." 

Exceptional athletes don't "hide in plain sight." When we had basketball tryouts, we ran players through drills to get an idea of their athleticism and adaptability to the unfamiliar. Then we separated them into quartiles - top, middle two, and bottom. 

For team selection, I focused on the middle group. The top and bottom six players quickly separate themselves. The challenge is finding the diamonds in the rough. 

You may know the saying, "looks like Tarzan, plays like Jane." Sometimes you find a player who "looks like Jane and plays like Tarzan." 

And there's the unforgettable Payton Tolle quote, "Play like you're the third monkey trying to get on the ark and it's starting to rain."