Power Squad Volleyball

The end to the 2023-2024 club volleyball season followed the Iowa Junior Regional Championship in Des Moines this weekend. Power Squad finished 3rd place in the Bronze bracket of 12U Silver. It was an intense weekend filled with volleyball at the largest tournament in the state, cheering on the Iowa Hawkeyes women in the NCAA Final Four, and enjoying time together as a team and friends. The biggest achievement was the growth in skill level of every player.

Last night the Power Squad finished their final practice for the 2024 season and are heading to the Iowa Junior Regionals Championships!

I can’t wait to see these hard working girls show case their growth and do what they do on the court. The camaraderie, support, love, and friendship between these players is something to watch. There has literally been blood, sweat, injuries, and even tears this season as they went from a team knowing nothing about rotations and positions to working a rotation beautifully, becoming experts at their position, and now making kills and executing blocks. Every player has grown, both with skill and mentally which was my primary goal for the season. I couldn’t be more proud of them as a coach, mom, and fan. They are more than a team, they are a family!

[3-24-24] Spent today with my favorite group of hard working girls. Your growth over the last 5 months has been amazing and I am so proud of the progress you have made. My goals for the season have been crushed by you and we are moving on to more advanced skills. The bond, camaraderie, and support between players is my favorite part of being your coach. You respect each other and are there to lift each other up when needed. Thank you for being awesome!

The Power Squad is celebrating their successes with 2 players out for illness and injury. They placed 1st in the Silver bracket at the Iowa Select Tournament this past weekend! Despite missing these two starters, everything came together with our defense and they played some great volleyball. Being proud of small achievements is as important as celebrating the big wins. We are back in the gym working towards our long term goals with our growth mindset.

This past weekend the girls played hard against higher level competition teams and took 1st in their bracket and 4th overall in the tournament. For me, watching them fight point for point against West Liberty and successfully pass hard jump serves, cover tips and angles, and execute their first real block against a team of skillful hitters was my absolute proud moment as a coach. The score and final placement was irrelevant, while the growth witnessed was to this next level was amazing and our goal for the season. Way to go Power Squad! We will keep working to perfect these new skills as there are upper level teams with skills that years ago would be typical at 14U. The days of making points off errors are gone, and we welcome it. This is our growth mindset.

The Power Squad girls took on some high level competition at the Platform TBK tournament and placed 3rd in the 12U Silver bracket! Their only losses were to the two Platform Elite teams, which is the club program in the Quad Cities that sponsored the tournament. Power Squad placed 2nd in their pool and when we played Platform had to work for every point they earned. There were long volleys and no opportunity to make points off errors because of their skill level. While frustrating, these are the teams you want to play to grow your skill level as a player and team. We made mistakes that were learning moments and is part of having a growth mentality. Now to get back in the gym and work hard to bring our skills to that high level of competition.

A big thank you to our sub Braylee Petitgout for stepping in at the last minute due to an injured player and playing your heart out for our team. You were so focused on learning your position in a short time and did amazing. A Power Squad clap and shout out to our little but mighty Avery Oberhoeffer for stepping up to play Outside Hitter and always willing to be flexible and versatile. You were smart at the net and had some amazing kills!

“Do not fear losing, because losing is learning” Coach Ayilah Carter

The Power Squad girls have done it again! They placed 3rd this past weekend at the Galena Spikers Classic Tournament! Despite a difficult game with an injury and learning that volleyball is a 75% mental game, they pushed through with heart and ended the day looking like the Power Squad. A wise woman, Coach Aliyah Carter, once told the girls, “Don’t fear losing, because losing is learning.”

Powersquad is undefeated in their games! On to the Championship bracket! Stay tuned for results!!!!

First tournament of the season about to get underway. Go Powersquad!

THE Aliyah Carter! Such an inspiration to us all! Check out her killing that ball!