Lack of Resilience Is Never an Option

Train to be resilient. 

Cross-posted

All-Time Statistical Leaders

Statistics aren't everything, but they provide context to decision-making and history. 

Here are Melrose all-tme leaders

As more players start younger and come to high school more skilled, statistics are improving. But a few "old timers" are still on the list. 

Scoring also changed from time to time: 

2000-2001 - regular season 2 sets out of 3, 15 points,  tourney 3 of 5, 15 points 

2002-2004 - regular season 2 sets of 3, 30 points,  tourney 3 of 5, 30 points

2005 on - current system, 3 of 5, 25 points (except for fifth set, 15 points)

Success Comes in Many Forms

Most players in the volleyball program experience a lot of team success and winning. Since 2003, teams have won nine sectional championships and many top players have experienced that.

One of the fiercest, toughest, most skilled did not, but is one of the most successful, having been All-State and continuing to succeed in graduate school. 

Ask ourselves whether we are doing the right things to succeed. Success is about more than winning. 

 

Great Players Pay Attention to Detail

 I'm no expert on volleyball. But she is. 

Melrose Weekly Summary of Awards Night

 Melrose Weekly News summary of Awards Evening

"Never Read a Person by Their Book"

Coach Celli has the team read and study a book together. There's a principle called cognitive dissonance. That embodies being conflicted about a topic. 

Urban Meyer expresses that. He accomplished a lot in coaching, but has proven to have major shortcomings. 

But his book, "Above the Line" is exceptional. Here's a link to a pdf summary. 

Examples:

E + R = O   (Event + Response = Outcome)

10-80-10  (How players fall on a continuum)

"Escape velocity"

"Crossing the red line" 

Are You Mentally Prepared? Tips from an F1 Racing Champion

 

Better Defense Separates Elite Teams. Need Inspiration?

Keeping the ball up can win a few more points.  

Advice That Works Over Decades

"The magic is in the work." Durable coaching advice. 

Know Your Competition...Sometimes It's You

Steal shamelessly from every source. MasterClass gives me a world of ideas. 

Steve Martin: 

• "Love your rivals." We will always have them.
• "Feed off them." If we don't, they'll eat our lunch. 

Steph Curry: 

• "Competing with myself, not being complacent." 
• "My opponent will look small...compared with my expectations."

Serena Williams:

• Know your opponent...play their weakness.
• "Don't overhit to a weakness. Mix it up."
  
• "Hit the ball to where your opponent is not." 
• "Know your strengths." 

Garry Kasparov:

• "Playing chess was not just about winning and losing."
• "Make a difference...it's about coming up with new ideas, challenging your own excellence."
  
• "Making mistakes was like physical pain...I no longer had that appetite for new ideas." 

Thomas Keller: 

• It's the critical feedback that we learn from the most. 

Steve Martin:

• "There's always work to be done." 

 

More Banquet Snaps

Images courtesy of Jen Gentile. Click to enlarge.

Seniors Autumn Whelan, Ava Burns, Abby Hudson, and Elena Soukos move on.

Captains old and new... Sadie Jaggers, Gia Vlajkovic, Autumn Whelan, Abby Hudson, Elena Soukos, and Chloe Gentile 

 

Leadership Is a Shared Responsibility

Coach Scott Celli has a thorough and transparent process to select "official" team leadership. But everyone has leadership responsibility.

Jen Sinkler shares one of my favorite articles on coaching, about legendary Cal Rugby coach Jack Clark.

Here's an excerpt:

"5. EXPECT EVERYONE TO LEAD.

Jack Clark: We say that the definition of leadership is the ability to make those around you better and more productive. It’s a skill to us. Leadership isn’t a rank — it’s not only for the coach, it’s not only for the captain, it’s not only for the seniors. It’s a skill. Some guys develop big toolboxes with a lot of leadership skills very early on in their careers. Other guys, even when they’ve been here a while, might not have really comprehensive leadership skills. We’re all trying to get there. In our minds, just like there’s a glossary around the technical side of the game, there’s a glossary around the cultural side of the game. This builds commonalities of values that we all believe.

On this team, the leadership model is open to everybody. For instance, even if you’re a freshman, you have the ability to make those around you better and more productive: Don’t be a distraction, be on time, know your stuff, play hard and well when you’re called on.

I think when we really get it right — and we don’t every year — but when we really get it right, we have a lot of people on this team contributing to the leadership of the team. That gets pretty powerful. That’s magical, almost, to see a bunch of people trying to make each other better and more productive."

All the leadership in the world, by itself, won't produce excellence. Leadership complements athleticism, skill, effort, and resilience. In his book, "Above the Line," Urban Meyer proposes the 10-80-10 model, 10% of the team is at the top, most are in the middle, and 10% is at the bottom. He requires the top 10% to bring a partner to work out... to drag some of the "middle class" to the top. 

As an outsider, I see players who benefit from not only more experience but the formal strength and conditioning program available through the Athletic Department. Take advantage of the services to become your best version. 

Bear Hill Golf Club was a great venue for the annual breakup gathering. (Photo courtesy of Jen Gentile)

Growing as Coaches and Players

Here's a cross-post from my basketball blog. It applies whether we're players, coaches, or professionals in any field, especially the inspiring Gawande video. 

Excellence exacts a price...investing time, money, and thought about  how to improve. 

More Images from the Breakup Dinner

Images courtesy of Jen Gentile and Amanda Jaggers. Click to enlarge. 

Melrose Volleyball 2021 End of Season Banquet

That's a wrap of the 2021 volleyball season with a celebration of the journey. The Booster Club shared the beautiful Bear Hill Golf Club. Delicious dinner featured chicken fingers, Caesar salad, chicken broccoli ziti, and pasta with red sauce. 

2021 was a special season as the club won the Middlesex League and finished the season 21-3 with another Final Four appearance. 

The ML title was Melrose's fifteenth consecutive and the team reached the Final Four for the ninth time since 2003. 

Coaches Lydia Mays, Ryan Schmitt, and Scott Celli hosted the program and awarded certificates, letters, and special awards. 

Coach Celli announced that Elena Soukos was named a Boston Herald All-Scholastic today, earning her the coveted "Triple Crown" (All-State, Globe, and Herald All-Scholastic). She is in the conversation for inclusion among the top players in Melrose Volleyball history. 

Melrose Varsity Volleyball Awards

Top server - Abby Hudson (won points on about 68% of serves)

Top offensive - Gia Vlajkovic

Top defender - Chloe Gentile

Most improved - Ava Burns

Unsung hero - Sadie Jaggers

MVP - Elena Soukos (also  ML Freedom Division MVP)

Coach's Award - Autumn Whelan

Jen Gentile produced a Melrose Volleyball closing video. 

Players and coaches left touching remarks and roasting for Assistant Ryan Schmitt who is stepping down to be able to spend more time with family. Coach Scott Celli praised Schmitt as the best assistant he's had in thirty years of coaching. 

Finally, Coach Celli described the Captaincy selection process, from Application, to exit interview, team votes, and discussion with school administrators (Principal/AD). 

Incoming captains join Coach Celli with outgoing captains. Team captains for 2022 include future seniors Chloe Gentile and Gia Vlajkovic and rising junior Sadie Jaggers. 

As always, Coach Celli reminded players of future opportunity. All positions are open for competition. 

Many thanks to the boosters for including me in the celebration. 

End of Season Gathering Tonight

Melrose celebrates another inspiring season tonight with their team banquet. 

Coaches recap the season, hand out certificates and other awards, recognize special achievements, and announce the leadership for the coming season. 

"Tradition never graduates." 

Quantitative and Qualitative Modeling

 

Legendary basketball coach Don Meyer described three phases of coaching - blind enthusiasm, sophisticated complexity, and mature simplicity. Obviously, these aren't always mutually exclusive. 

Blind enthusiasm - "outhustle them, outwork them"

Sophisticated complexity - break the game down into an almost infinite amount of detail, teach it, and analyze what is working and isn't

Mature simplicity - Do what we do a lot well, better than our opponents. 

In Game Changer, sport scientist Fergus Connolly favors breaking the game into macro moments - offense, defense, and the transitions between, and micro moments, the "details of execution." 

As you face better competition, "absolute superiority" becomes less realistic. You can schedule it (so-called CUPCAKES) but that will hurt you in the postseason. So, smart teams focus on creating "relative superiority" and capitalizing on those moments. 

That includes overall player development with advantages in serving or blocking pairs. In other sports, like basketball, we might get advantage through pressure defense, transition, or mismatches via creating switches. 

For the individual, it often boils down to "what is your unique skill" that will get you on the court and keep you on the court? And some of that (e.g. serve percentage, aces, attack efficiency) is measurable. 

"The Magic Is in the Work"

Japanese libero training is famous. 

Kobata is among the best in the world. 

State Finals: Where Are You on Your Journey?

It's a long way to the top. Melrose made four trips to the finals and didn't win it all until the third in 2012. 

Winning is hard. That's what makes it valuable. 

The new State Tournament format eliminates the "easy bracket" pathway to the Final Four. Teams that survive and advance to the Final Eight will be worthy competitors. 

What are you doing today to be ready for your time? Focus on building skills. 

Cause and Effect

 "The magic is in the work." 

Elena Soukos skies for the attack.

Elena with Coach Scott Celli and her Massachusetts Volleyball Coaches Association All-State recognition plaque. Well-deserved! 

Happy Thanksgiving! How Are You Improving Today?

Happy Thanksgiving and congratulations on a great season.

Are you working on your game for 2022? Work on the "core skills" and your athleticism.

Core Skills (Offense)

• Hitting/Attacking
• Setting
• Serving

Core Skills (Defense)

• Blocking 
• Passing 
• Digging

Practicing jump serves has two benefits as it informs your attack but it also helps your defenders work on serve receive. This video might help:

What Drives Winning (and Losing)?

Bill Parcells had a saying, "you are what your record says you are." That's not always true but if not, explanations should be clear. 

You could also use mathematician Carl Jacobi's principle of "inversion" as in, "invert, always invert." 

If a team constantly fails, find the reason why and consider implementing the opposite. 

Cross posted...

What Are You Prepared to Sacrifice?

"Success is a choice." What are you prepared to sacrifice?

Cross-posted. 

Scheduling: A Key to Success

"Iron sharpens iron." Upgrading the schedule has long been a priority of Coach Scott Celli. Part of the solution emerged from the Middlesex League which continually improves.

Among the five Freedom Division opponents, Burlington and Wakefield guarantee four tough contests. In the Liberty Division, Winchester, Woburn, and Reading are always competitive and Arlington, Belmont, and Lexington are no pushovers. That equates to at least ten of sixteen ML competitive matches.  

That leaves four non-league contests. Normally, teams agree on a home and home series which also allows fans who don't travel to see good clubs. And it allows Melrose to learn to win on the road. Rarely, an opposing community doesn't follow through on the return visit to Melrose. 

Melrose has 'stable' relationships with Frontier, Newton North, and Central Catholic and had a solid contest with Peabody this season. The former two went to the state championship in their divisions. 

Preseason scrimmages afford another avenue to hone your game. Melrose faces strong teams in the preseason and some of the top teams in the state at the Medway Play Date. 

Players often ask, "how good are they?" Remember Coach Don Meyer's quote, "it matters how you play not whom you play."

Lagniappe (something extra). 

End of the Line, State Finals Hit Melrose Opponents Hard

Among other iconic performances, "Queen" is famous for "Another One Bites the Dust." Well, that wouldn't summarize what happened yesterday. Triple jeopardy as all three previous Melrose opponents hit the canvas Saturday.  

Newton North couldn't dethrone Needham in Division 1 at the Tigers succumbed in five sets. 

Melrose conqueror Westborough came into the finals having lost only three sets in twenty-two matches this season. Hopkinton handed them the same number of defeats yesterday, rallying from a 1-0 deficit to win 3-1. 

And Frontier, winner of double digit state titles, got upset 3-1 by upstart Paulo Freire.  

The Name of the Game

Sustainable competitive advantage is the name of the game. How do you get there? You see the same teams go deep in the playoffs, year after year. 

Melrose has been in the Final Four nine of the past eighteen years with playoffs. Twice they lost in the sectional finals to a Central Catholic team which was later moved to Division 1. 

What's the secret sauce? 

• Investment. Alabama coach Nick Saban asks, "are you investing your time or are you spending it?" What is your commitment level? Do you want to make the team, to become a contributor, or become a force?
• Sacrifice. Parents and players sacrifice time and money to play on competitive offseason teams. It's not just playing on any offseason team, but the right ones. You think Newton North is in the Finals by accident or that SMASH in their backyard helps? There's no pot of gold at the end of the rainbow for almost all players. Club stars from volleyball hotbeds (California, Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio) get the lions share of scholarships. Offseason volleyball is expensive, as are personal training, athletic club membership (for weight training, etc.), and medical care for injuries (ankle, back, hand, etc.).
• Development. "Every day is player development day." There are a finite number of skills, but elite performance requires elite training. A top US team went to Japan and got annihilated by Japanese collegians on a team that trained eight hours a day, 363 days a year. The Japanese coach suggested that Minnesota try high school competition in Japan... and they went 4-9. We can argue Malcolm Gladwell's '10,000 hours' thesis, but deliberate practice matters. 
• Coaching. I know little about coaching volleyball but it's easy to see the impact of coaching locally (Coach Scott Celli recently reached 500 career wins) and throughout the Middlesex League. Kayla Wyland is turning around Wakefield. John Fleming made Winchester a Middlesex League force. 
• Scheduling. "Iron sharpens iron." Unless teams are willing to travel and schedule strong teams, they will not advance far in the postseason. Especially with the new playoff format, you won't "luck into a weak bracket" and get to the Final Four. 
• Talent. You need talent and you need to "keep it home" with a 'legacy program' with top coaching and scheduling. So many sports lose athletes to prep, private, and charter schools who recruit them away with scholarships and promises. 

What's the secret sauce? It's no secret. 

Melrose Opponents Moving on to the Finals

Scheduling tough opponents is critical for success. Melrose opponents in the Massachusetts finals include:

Division 1 - Newton North

Division 2 - Westborough (via playoffs)

Division 5 - Frontier 

Maxpreps.com Mass Rankings

#	School	Ovr.	Rating	Str.	+/-
1	Westborough	21-0	37.0	15.5
2	Hopkinton	24-0	33.7	12.5
3	Franklin	19-1	27.5	8.4	+1
4	Newton North (Newtonville)	18-2	26.8	10.0	+8
5	Haverhill	19-3	26.7	12.7	-2
6	Needham	21-1	26.7	7.9	+2
7	Concord-Carlisle (Concord)	21-2	26.6	10.8	-1
8	King Philip Regional (Wrentham)	22-2	26.4	9.0	-3
9	Melrose	21-3	25.4	10.1	-2
10	Ipswich	20-1	25.4	6.6
11	Billerica Memorial (Billerica)	20-3	24.9	10.5	-2

"Will I" Do What It Takes?

Potential applications are legion. 

- Will I invest more time studying? 

- Will I exercise? 

- Will I follow a healthier diet? 

- Will I get enough sleep? 

- Will I develop the skills I need to become a bigger contributor? 

Interrogative self-talk is a possible solution. 

Opportunities on the Edges

Melrose made another deep playoff run with strong play from its four seniors who will leave big shoes to fill. 

Outside hitters Elena Soukos and Abby Hudson brought a lot of thump to the lineup, libero Autumn Whelan was an exceptional defender, and Ava Burns produced at both right side and serving. 

Melrose will return experience with Gia Vlajkovic who might engender thoughts of a "two setter" system because of her hitting prowess, strong middles in Chloe Gentile and Sadie Jaggers, and solid defenders in Ava McSorley and Emma Desmond. 

Big opportunities are out there for players to step up and fill the edges and for someone to earn the libero slot. 

Coach Celli reminds players each postseason gathering that all spots are open and the ascension of Burns in particular proved that correct. As Shakespeare wrote, "oh reason not the need" another alternative is to return Gia to the outside for her dynamic hitting.

Expect no tears from Middlesex League opponents. 

State Semifinals: Westborough 3 Melrose 0

Top-seeded Westborough derailed Melrose's planned trip to its fifth state final with a 25-19, 25-14, 28-26 defeat. 

To get to the championship game, you have to be on top of your game and Melrose didn't have its "A" game. The Rangers had a lot to do with that with superb defense, consistent serving, and enough offense to keep Melrose off balance. 

Melrose struggled to get into their offense as Westborough's pressure constantly kept Melrose on their heels. 

Westborough's star sophomore Quinn Anderson came at Melrose from everywhere serving, back row hits, and outside attacks. She was a load and then some. 

Melrose fought back in the third set, leading 6-4 and 11-9 and having the edge at 24-20 and set points at 25 and 26 but couldn't put Westborough away. 

The better team usually wins and tonight was no exception. 

Melrose closes out the season 21-3 including three postseason wins. 

Melrose Notes: As usual, Melrose traveled well with a large contingent of student and volleyball supporters. Watertown had enough seating to meet the fan requirements and the ceiling height was adequate. 

The team recognized Coach Celli's recent 500th career coaching win. (Photo courtesy of Jen Gentile) 

 

Stay Ready

Stay ready. Lineups are dynamic. Players get sick, injured, have an off day, break a shoelace. 

Just because you haven't been in the rotation doesn't mean you won't get a shot because of the changing fortunes of luck or performance. 

I've beaten the "broken shoelace" (2005) to death because Taylor Pearson came in cold and performed. 

In a state semifinal a player was having an off day and Coach Celli brought in a sophomore off the bench. 

In 2012, during the State Championship run, Sydney Doherty came in and contributed some key points. 

Bill Parcells said, "Coaches are the most selfish people. We play people who make us look good." 

You might be called upon to come in and serve, even if you've never played in a varsity game because you have a dynamic serve. You might have to switch positions because of injury. 

Stay ready. 

Just One Thing: Keep Running

Everyone falls. Not everyone gets up.

Sport celebrates creativity. One of the top plays of the postseason came early in the second set against North Quincy with a "foot dig". 

The mission tonight is to put Westborough to sleep. The best comparative? Melrose faced Arlington Catholic (22-0) in the D2 North Finals in 2003 with the Cougars having not lost a set. Melrose emerged with a 3-0 victory with Denise Applegate administering the coup de grace with a topspin smash from the outside. 

Melrose Weekly Summary of Billerica Match

 Summary via Twitter

Corrected TICKET LINK

Volleyball semifinal tickets 

There Is Always Somebody

"There's always somebody saying you can't do it, and those people have to be ignored."
-Bill Cartwright#MondayMotivation #GetBetterEveryDay

— Coach DeMarco, EdD (@Coach_DeMarco) November 15, 2021

 

TICKETS for TOMORROW'S SEMIFINAL ONLY AVAILABLE at GOFAN.COM

"Your money is no good here." Literally. Fans must buy tickets for tomorrow night (Watertown, Tuesday 7 P.M.) at https://gofan.co/app/school/MA14639. 

 

Not Their First Rodeo - Focus on Seniors

It's not the first rodeo for Melrose Volleyball. Melrose travels to Watertown Tuesday at 7 P.M. for their ninth trip to the Final Four since 2003. Four times they advanced to the State Championship - 2005, 2011, 2012, and 2017.

Here is the summary: 

15 consecutive league titles 
9 Final Four appearances (including 2021)
4 state finals berths
1 state championship 

0 excuses

Winning is hard, which makes it valuable. And senior leadership is a pivotal component to excellence. Here's a quick look at teams that went to the title game.

The 2005 team featured three senior hitters (Jen Cohane, Karen and Paula Sen), a senior setter (Amanda Hallett) and senior depth with Merry Hayward, Liz Sheerin, and designated server Michelle Foley. Each of the twins held Melrose records for kills at one time. 

2011 was remarkable as a pair of All-State selectees, setter Brooke Bell and middle Sarah McGowan, were juniors. Seniors Jill Slabacheski and Alyssa DiRaffaele were key starters and senior contributors included Rachel Wolley, Brittany Adelman, and Maggie Moriarty. 

The 2012 State Championship team returned a boatload of senior talent - Bell and McGowan, Jen Cain, Rachel Johnson, Kayla Wyland, Amanda Commito, and Sydney Doherty. They also had future stars like Jill MacInnes and Allie Nolan. McGowan had 341 kills in 27 games and Bell and McGowan repeat as All-staters.

2017 had an abundance of youth but four solid senior captains - Lily Fitzgerald an all-everything setter, with versatile Saoirse Connolly, Jill Mercer, and Lydia Lombardo. They came up one set short of a title. 

All of which brings us to 2021 with senior stars Elena Soukos, Autumn Whelan, Abby Hudson, and Ava Burns. 

Coach Scott Celli made it clear that Melrose Volleyball version 2021.2 had the most talent since the 2012 championship team. And the girls validated that assessment by punching their ticket to the Final Four. 

Elena Soukos is a likely "triple crown" winner...All-State and Boston Globe and Boston Herald All-Scholastic. She has 312 kills and counting and averages 4.2 kills/set. But she is also a dynamic server and solid defender. If we construct a mythical All-Time top six at Melrose, she is definitely on it. 

Autumn Whelan is one of the top liberos in program history. She's been a defensive human highlight reel and her service run to launch Melrose into the Final Four goes into the annals of Melrose volleyball. 

Abby Hudson is a hard-hitting strong side hitter whose best comp is Laura Irwin. Abby's season was cut short by injury yet her closeout winner against Billerica will live on like Athena Ziavras' Sectional Championship winner in 2010. 

Ava Burns is a human dynamo of energy with solid blocking and serves southpaw knuckleballs with deadly accuracy. She emerged as an important force on the right side. 

You got this.