Photo by: R. Dean Hendrickson
Bobcat Associate Head Coach Advocates Youth Development Via USA Volleyball Pipeline
7/1/2019 4:01:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
Hinrichs, who will begin her third season with the Bobcats, will use her expertise this summer to help grow the game as head coach of the Evergreen Region High-Performance squad that will compete at the 2019 USA International High-Performance Championships in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., in mid-July.
BOZEMAN, Mont. – Montana State Associate Head Coach Katie Hinrichs has a passion for volleyball.
Hinrichs, who will begin her third season with the Bobcats, will use her expertise this summer to help grow the game as head coach of the Evergreen Region High-Performance squad that will compete at the 2019 USA International High-Performance Championships in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., in mid-July.
The Pullman, Wash., product has been involved in the Evergreen Region as a player or coach for the past 12 years, but this is just the second time the team will play at the international level. The team is made up mostly of high school freshmen and sophomores representing Montana, Eastern Washington, Northern Idaho and Eastern Oregon.
"We are already done with the training camp so now we're into a practice block," Hinrichs said. "What's unique about this group is that we practice two to three times before we head out. It's kind of like an all-star approach- everyone is doing their own high school schedule and their own club schedule- then we get together and fly out to Fort Lauderdale on July 16 for the championships."
Based out of Spokane, the two high-performance selection camps featured three days of skill and play. Hinrichs, along with coaches from Washington State and Eastern Washington, hand-picked this year's participants and six collegiate area coaches participated in training sessions.
"Currently, in our region we're in the baby stages, while in other regions it's the biggest thing you can make," Hinrichs commented.
The high-performance program is an introduction for most players with USA Volleyball. The USA volleyball squad and program are under the direction of former Olympic standout and gold medalist Karch Kiraly. MSU junior setter Allie Lynch and incoming freshman Kira Thomsen both have been part of high-performance, while Kelsie White and Allyssa Rizzo entered the pipeline representing Montana State at the US Women's National Team Open tryouts last March in Colorado Springs, Colo.
"These high-performance teams are used to get invites to a high-performance training camp at the Olympic Training Center," Hinrichs said. "It's a major pipeline for kids to understand USA volleyball; to support USA volleyball; and then to possibly become part of USA volleyball. Coach Kilray is a big advocate for high-performance and getting to know the system."
While Hinrich's main goal is advocating for youth development, her involvement will also pay big dividends for the Bobcats this fall and for years to come.
"Anytime that our coaching staff is involved with Team USA, we're learning, we're growing and we're taking what we learned and putting it into our own gym," Hinrichs said. "USA Volleyball does a fabulous job at researching and putting together high-performing teams and we can take some things from them and be able to train at a very high level. We're going to see great results."
All three Montana State coaches have been involved in some aspect of USA Volleyball. Head Coach Daniel Jones has served as an assistant coach in the A2 program, which worked with the top collegiate players, while assistant coach Cole Aiazzi was a court coach for the 2019 US Women's National Team open tryouts.
"I know from my experiences with USAV High Performance that Katie is going to return better for the experience," Jones said. "She is going to be exposed to some of the best age group athletes in the country, and will come home with a unique perspective to share with all of us."
Hinrichs, who will begin her third season with the Bobcats, will use her expertise this summer to help grow the game as head coach of the Evergreen Region High-Performance squad that will compete at the 2019 USA International High-Performance Championships in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., in mid-July.
The Pullman, Wash., product has been involved in the Evergreen Region as a player or coach for the past 12 years, but this is just the second time the team will play at the international level. The team is made up mostly of high school freshmen and sophomores representing Montana, Eastern Washington, Northern Idaho and Eastern Oregon.
"We are already done with the training camp so now we're into a practice block," Hinrichs said. "What's unique about this group is that we practice two to three times before we head out. It's kind of like an all-star approach- everyone is doing their own high school schedule and their own club schedule- then we get together and fly out to Fort Lauderdale on July 16 for the championships."
Based out of Spokane, the two high-performance selection camps featured three days of skill and play. Hinrichs, along with coaches from Washington State and Eastern Washington, hand-picked this year's participants and six collegiate area coaches participated in training sessions.
"Currently, in our region we're in the baby stages, while in other regions it's the biggest thing you can make," Hinrichs commented.
The high-performance program is an introduction for most players with USA Volleyball. The USA volleyball squad and program are under the direction of former Olympic standout and gold medalist Karch Kiraly. MSU junior setter Allie Lynch and incoming freshman Kira Thomsen both have been part of high-performance, while Kelsie White and Allyssa Rizzo entered the pipeline representing Montana State at the US Women's National Team Open tryouts last March in Colorado Springs, Colo.
"These high-performance teams are used to get invites to a high-performance training camp at the Olympic Training Center," Hinrichs said. "It's a major pipeline for kids to understand USA volleyball; to support USA volleyball; and then to possibly become part of USA volleyball. Coach Kilray is a big advocate for high-performance and getting to know the system."
While Hinrich's main goal is advocating for youth development, her involvement will also pay big dividends for the Bobcats this fall and for years to come.
"Anytime that our coaching staff is involved with Team USA, we're learning, we're growing and we're taking what we learned and putting it into our own gym," Hinrichs said. "USA Volleyball does a fabulous job at researching and putting together high-performing teams and we can take some things from them and be able to train at a very high level. We're going to see great results."
All three Montana State coaches have been involved in some aspect of USA Volleyball. Head Coach Daniel Jones has served as an assistant coach in the A2 program, which worked with the top collegiate players, while assistant coach Cole Aiazzi was a court coach for the 2019 US Women's National Team open tryouts.
"I know from my experiences with USAV High Performance that Katie is going to return better for the experience," Jones said. "She is going to be exposed to some of the best age group athletes in the country, and will come home with a unique perspective to share with all of us."
Players Mentioned
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