Tryouts, Offers, and Practice Parameters

To best serve our members, the Oklahoma Region has in place the following parameters for the annual tryout process for juniors players and OKRVA-member clubs.  Also included is the Club Season Intermission policy parameters as well, which includes practice restrictions during the OSSAA HS girls volleyball season.

If anyone has any questions, please contact the Region Commissioner, or the Region Office by completing the Contact Us information.

Tryouts

Info for everyone – including players/parents

  • All players wishing to try out in the Oklahoma region MUST have an current USAV membership to participate in any sanctioned tryouts.  If you do NOT have a current player membership, you may register with OKRVA/USAV here.
  • Clubs, independent of the region’s USAV membership fee, set any tryout fee.
  • The Oklahoma Region intends for players to be able to try out for more than one club.  It is the Region’s intent that players are not pressured into a verbal commitment due to a coach/club establishing an unreasonable date/time for a decision.
  • When a player receives an offer to commit, she/he needs to decide within a reasonable amount of time. Delaying a decision affects many other players who are also waiting for an offer to commit.
  • Players/Parents should understand that teams/clubs need to know a player’s decision in a timely manner to move on to the next player.
  • No player/parent should be asked to sign a contract before the region-approved signing dates.
  • If a player feels pressured into a decision before they have gone to other clubs’ tryouts, she/he should contact the Region Commissioner, or the Region Office by completing the Contact Us information.

Additional info for club administrators/coaches/staff

  • Tryouts are not required to create a team.  However, no offers can be made or implied to athletes before the earliest tryout date for the appropriate age group (i.e., offers for a girls 16s team may not be made/implied before the first date of the girls 16s tryout window).  This includes clubs NOT participating in the tryout process.
  • All non-players (coaches, directors, chaperones, etc.) MUST have a current and eligible membership to be a participating staff member at ALL events.  (i.e., completion of required background check, training, etc.)
  • NO advertising or publishing of tryout dates is allowed until clubs are notified by the Region Office when their tryouts are approved.
  • Each club is allowed one pre-tryout event per age group prior to tryouts.  The sole purpose of this event is to allow players and parents to meet and experience the club’s environment and staff.  No evaluating activities should be started/performed at these events.
  • A decision to join a team/club is an individual decision that should be made by a parent/player alone free from club pressure. Gathering players together after a tryout, stating “this is their team” and asking for commitments should be considered pressuring.

Extra info for club administrators

  • The OKRVA Region tentatively schedules Tulsa-area and OKC-area tryout meetings every year in May.  This is the annual meeting, both for existing AND new clubs in the Oklahoma Region, to meet to schedule tryouts in their area to best minimize overlapping tryout dates so we may maximize opportunities for junior members to attend all the tryouts they wish to participate.  We ask for at least one club director, administrator, or designated representative to attend.  If your club director/administrator is unsure which of these meetings they are assigned to, please contact the Region Commissioner or complete the Contact Us information.
  • Clubs should have all sanction requests submitted at least 48 hours prior to any tryout date(s).  Submission of a sanction request does NOT guarantee approval of the request.
  • Clubs wishing to schedule additional tryout dates must be submitted and approved by the Region Office before posting.

 

OKRVA Club Season Intermission

Post-tryout practice restrictions – specific for 15’s – 18’s OKRVA Girls’ Teams

The OKRVA believes the high school volleyball season has value and supports players in representing their respective schools. The region also believes that club activities occurring during the HS season can create fatigue, injuries, and stress during a time when players are already committed to school activities.

As a result, OKRVA has instituted a “Club Season Intermission” to reduce the stress and anxiety of players during the fall HS season. In addition, the region does not want the 15’s-18’s club season to be extended year around by allowing team practices and activities during the fall.  To accomplish these goals, the OKRVA has approved the following rules:

  • Coaches may not practice with, coach, supervise, instruct, assist, or oversee their players – whether paid or unpaid- before November 1st. This restriction applies to private lessons, group sessions, open gyms, or any other activity the OKRVA Board deems to violate the Club Season Intermission policy.
  • This Club Season Intermission is in effect from the OKRVA signing date, for the respective age groups until November 1st.

Coaches, teams, or players who violate these rules will be subject to sanctions, and/or suspension up to a year, as determined by the OKRVA Board of Directors.

If anyone has any questions, please contact the Region Commissioner, or the Region Office by completing the Contact Us information.