Make a difference for yourself and your team. The Minnesota Twins' manager expects attention to detail with the belief that will create a competitive team.
This is an awesome teaching point
— Hoop Herald (@TheHoopHerald) June 4, 2026
Have a “win every drill” mindset and everything else will be okay pic.twitter.com/TiIaDucZds
Lagniappe. Build flexibility and versatility.
All opinions expressed in the blog are solely my own. The blog is not an official publication of any City of Melrose organization.
Success in the future often follows an understanding of the changng fortunes of the past.
Winning requires not only talented people but superior tactics. Studying a famous battle illuminates how leveraging strengths and exploiting weaknesses can prevail, even with "inferior" forces.
Background:
Athens and the Persians in 490 BC. It is unclear why the Persians desired the expansion. Some hypothesized it was political. In any event, the Persians under Darius had an expansionist mindset.
The Setup:
Athens had smaller but heavily armored forces fighting in "phalanxes." They intentionally weakened the center and fortified the flanks (outsides). Athens attacked early as the aggressors, neutralizing the Persian archer capabilities (perimeter attack) and used classic "flanking" maneuvers, trapping the Persians in the center.
Superior armor and now legendary tactics carried the battle.
The lesson of Marathon is not that stronger edges always win. Victory belongs to teams that understand their strengths and structure the contest around them.
MVB 26 may not possess the interior firepower supplied by Sabine Wenzel in 2025. But volleyball is not won by replicating last year's roster. It is won by maximizing this year's.
Like the Athenians, Melrose must identify its advantages, neutralize opposing strengths, and concentrate force where it can create the greatest impact. If experienced defenders can limit long-range attacks and the pins can provide strength on both offense and defense, MVB may discover what Athens learned 2,500 years ago:
Superior tactics, disciplined execution, and teamwork can overcome apparent disadvantages.
Players define the lineups through their commitment, their work, and resultant development.
MOTIVE
What realistically do you want from your MVB experience? (Achieve this within the team framework.)
MEANS
What offers you the best chance to make that reality? Independence...mentoring...working with a teammate or group...
OPPORTUNITIES
What skill can you grow between now and tryouts? ("Badge up")
Do you have a written plan to follow? (Your blueprint)
How will you monitor your progress? (Self-feedback)
Own your answers.
Lagniappe. Learning allows us to encode key information that is unconsciously available. The more we 'know' the less we have to rely on "working memory." (Watch this when you have time to think about it.)
Most people try harder.
— Greg McKeown (@GregoryMcKeown) June 2, 2026
High performers build systems.
There's a difference between effort and infrastructure.
Effort depletes. Infrastructure compounds.
The question isn't: how do I try harder at this?
The question is: how do I make this happen without trying?
Build the… pic.twitter.com/hwkrjAB04r
What badges do you carry? Let's translate:
The idea is simple:
Instead of describing a player by position, describe them by transferable skills.
A badge is essentially:
A repeatable skill that creates value.
Let's examine by position:
Possible badges:
Possible badges:
Possible badges:
Competitive Character Badge
Shows:
This is the one most analytics miss as analytics don't measure 'heart'.
Leadership Badge
The badge framework advances the discussion from:
"Is she good?" -->
"What value does she create?"
That's a superior coaching question. And the badges are metaphorical "earning your stripes."
If I were building a Melrose Volleyball evaluation form, I might score:
than simply rank players by position.
Lagniappe. Here's a more granular (detailed) look at volleyball badges from Google Gemini.
Using basketball badges—specifically how NBA 2K uses them to represent hyper-specific traits that alter the flow of a game—is a brilliant mental model for volleyball.
In basketball, a player isn't just "good at shooting"; they have the Catch & Shoot badge or the Limitless Range badge. In volleyball, standard box scores (kills, blocks, digs) rarely capture the actual mechanics of value added. Two players can both hit .300, but one does it via brute force, while the other does it via elite court vision.
If we translate this concept to volleyball, badges capture those distinct, transferable skills that elevate a team’s floor or ceiling. Here is how we can map out a "Volleyball Badge System" across different facets of the game.
These are the badges that don't always show up as points, but they are the literal glue of a high-level program.
Floor General (Passive): Boosts the defensive positioning and reaction times of all teammates on the court. This belongs to the libero or vocal middle who organizes the block-defense scheme in real-time, ensuring nobody is standing in "no man's land."
Velcro Palms: Significantly reduces ball handling errors (double contacts) and allows for clean, hittable sets even when tracking a ball from deep off the net. The ultimate badge for an out-of-system setter or a non-setter making the second contact.
The Equalizer: Gives a massive boost to pass quality when receiving high-velocity, aggressive jump serves. Players with this badge don't get aced; they absorb the heat and keep the team in-system.
Volleyball offense is about manipulating time and space. These badges dictate how a player forces the opposing defense to react.
Tool Time (Hall of Fame Level): Increases the likelihood of scoring off an intentional wipe, tool, or high-hands swing against a closed double-block. This is for the savvy pin hitter who treats the block as an asset rather than an obstacle.
Seam Finder: Grants superior perimeter vision. Automatically identifies gaps in the deep corners or the "doughnut" hole in the middle of the defensive zone. Players with this badge excel at roll shots, tips, and deep corners when a hard swing isn't there.
Floor Spacer: Forces opposing middle blockers to honor the quick attack, opening up one-on-one situations for outside hitters. A middle blocker with a lightning-fast approach holds the defense captive just by jumping.
Blocking isn't just about height; it's about lateral speed, discipline, and timing.
Iron Wall: Reduces the "joust" lose-rate at the net and prevents balls from penetrating through the middle of a double block.
Shadow Stepper: Gives a speed boost when moving laterally along the net to close a block from pin to pin. Crucial for middles running a read-and-react defensive system.
Dime Dropper (Transition): Immediately after recording a dig or a block-touch, grants an accuracy boost to the subsequent transition set. This bridges the gap between great defense and an immediate counter-attack.
In 2K, badges like Microwave change the emotional momentum of a game. Volleyball is arguably more momentum-driven than any other sport.
The Fire Extinguisher: Immediately halts an opponent's scoring run. A player with this badge terminates a broken play or makes a spectacular layout dig right when the team is on the verge of spiraling.
Next Play Mentality: Negates any performance penalties following a service error, hitting error, or getting blocked. This represents elite emotional resilience.
Vibe Check: Provides a minor attribute boost to the entire six-pack on the floor immediately following a long, exhausting rally, regardless of who won the point. It’s the badge of the ultimate culture-setter.
When you look at a roster through a "badge" framework rather than a stat sheet, team building changes. You stop looking for a generic "Outside Hitter" and start looking for an outside who carries the The Equalizer and Tool Time badges because you know your team struggles with serve receive and out-of-system transitions.
Imagine your own that apply to you.
Lagniappe 2. Your backpack - from a former pro player.
Many of you will meet Gia Vlajkovic for the first time today. Gia is one of the great players in MVB history.
Find a way to be excited and connect with each other and the fans.
Involve the community first by playing exciting volleyball. The 2010 MVB team was young and talented. It featured a host of sophomores - Barbaro, Bell, Cain, Commito, Doherty, Johnson, McGowan, Wyland - the foundation of the 2011 Finalists and 2012 Champions.
Team - Fans - Energy - Community - Better Experience - More Fans
Communicate with Fans
An audience watches but a community participates.
These are only a few ideas. You can leverage your social media to inform:
The fundamentals aren’t flashy… but they’re what separate good from great.
— Alan Stein, Jr. (@AlanSteinJr) June 2, 2026
As Kobe said: “I never get bored with the basics.” Mastery is built by doing the simple things exceptionally well — over and over again. pic.twitter.com/afM04RLKyr
Lagniappe 2. Serving into the net?
All opinions expressed in the blog are solely my own. The blog is not an official publication of any City of Melrose organization.
"Corporate memory (also known as organizational or institutional memory) is the accumulated body of data, information, and knowledge created by an organization over time, which guides its decisions and operations." - Brave AI
My MVB 'observations' began in 2002 with little understanding of volleyball. How do players interact? What does each position do? Is the line in or out? More questions existed than answers.
After a sluggish 7-6 start, MVB 2002 went 13-7 in the regular season, won a memorable five set match, 38-36, and lost in the next round to a powerhouse AC team. MVB was young and our twins were the youngest players on the team.
The 2002 season was the springboard to the emergence of MVB with a threepeat of sectional championships and a 2005 3-2 defeat in the Finals.
Twenty win seasons became commonplace. Winning wasn't easy but was expected.
Success brought both team and individual recognition.
The 2004 team won the MIAA Sportsmanship Award.
Titles piled up, reaching ten trips to the Final Four, four trips to the Finals, and a State Championship with the exceptional 2012 team. League titles became features not exception. Twenty players earned All-State honors, many of whom also reaped Globe and/or Herald All-Scholastic honors. Coach Scott Celli earned Boston Globe Coach of the Year (2009) and MAVCA Hall-of-Fame honors. Six players won election to the Melrose High School Athletic Hall of Fame. More are 'teed up' to follow.
But it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows.
Disappointing injuries happen. Karen Sen missed almost half her senior season. Laura Irwin (twice) got injured in the postseason. Sofia Papatsoris had significant injuries during two seasons. Caroline Higonenq went down in the last game of the regular season. Leila Kiggundu missed all of her freshman season.
And four of the ten sectional titles turned into Finals appearances and one survived the gauntlet to win States.
Many teams produced indelible memories. Unfortunately, not all are preserved in video.
Bottom line? You write your narrative. Make it a great one.
Lagniappe. Talent is never enough. Standards, value, and cultures help transform excellent into extraordinary.
Bill Walsh built one of the greatest football dynasties ever.
— Coach AJ 🎯 Mental Fitness (@coachajkings) May 29, 2026
• He won 3 Super Bowls in 10 years.
• He had a 71% winning percentage in the playoffs.
• He built a culture and dynasty that lasted beyond him.
Here are 6 of Bill Walsh's Culture Guidelines that any team can use: pic.twitter.com/HxN5O11hW8
Lagniappe 2. Jump setting tips.
Against hard attacks, don't try to do too much. The video advises how to absorb hard spikes.
Simplify. Put the ball down or keep the ball up.
NEX
The Patriots hung color photographs from each current season and removed them afterwards. Super Bowl or slump, they exiled the past to history.
"Leave the jersey in a better place," wrote James Kerr in "Legacy." Smashes and shanks, excellence and errors, all disappear into history's dustbin.
Which is where players come in. To leave a mark, make a series of marks.
Consistency, aggression, and tactics leave marks. In baseball, analysts track whiffs (swing and misses) by pitch type and batter characteristics. Imagine the following for a volleyball attacker:
I read this every week for 3 years and had it pasted on my dorm room's wall.
— Hardeep (@hardeep_gambhir) May 30, 2026
Best writing is not literary or PhD-esque.
It is persuasive. It is simple. It's humorous. It has short sentences.
That is more valuable, than any other type of writing. pic.twitter.com/7y5V8j26ci
What does an AI 'coach' (ChatGPT Plus) advise for tryout preparation? Here's the prompt and response (hallucination).
The goal is to become the kind of player that teams want to keep.
There's a saying in "pickup" games, "be the guy everyone wants on their side."
