Sports
The Hub Volleyball Club Promotes Teamwork Among Teenage Girls
The free volleyball club came to an end on Wednesday night after an indoor winter session. The next session will begin in July.
On Wednesday night at the New Brunswick Middle School, about 30 middle school and high school aged girls were volleying, spiking and generally having a good time.
Wednesday was the final night of the winter session of The Hub Volleyball Club, a free program run by New Brunswick recreation for girls in grades six through 12.
Held in the evening on Wednesdays, the club entailed clinics on volleyball basics and then set the girls on the court to play each other for a few hours.
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Mike Blackwell, Superintendent of New Brunswick Recreation said the idea behind the club was not just to win. The club promotes teamwork and gives everyone a chance to play, he said.
All participants were given a t-shirt with the name of the club on it, and were fed pizza and bottled water while they played. Enrollment in the club is totally free to the teens, Blackwell said.
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The summer session of the club, also open to girls in grades six through 12 in New Brunswick, is set to be played outdoors in July and August at the Sonny Werblin Recreation Center on Rutgers's Busch Campus in Piscataway. Blackwell said that sand courts are also slated to be installed at Buccleuch Park, and will be used when they go in.
Registration for the summer session will open in June, Blackwell said.
A few of the girls in the club said they played because older siblings were also involved in volleyball, or because they played for their school team.
"It's fun, it relieves stress," said Gina Sirmons, 17.
Sirmons said that stress could easily be put "into a spike."
For the second half of the evening, adult players were invited to come in and round out the teams. The program was free to them as well.
While several teams played, Blackwell said his main concern is promoting physical activity and fun among the kids.
"This is a dream come true, seeing the kids enjoying themselves," he said.
For more information on New Brunswick Recreation's volleyball club, visit their website at http://www.nbrec.com/volleyball.html
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