Sporting Albany offers travel teams for both boys and girls between the ages of 10 and 18. Travel teams receive an average of 60-75 practice hours per season as well as 7 to 13 tournament days (depending on age level). 

Sporting Albany operates as a member of USA Volleyball. USAV is the National Governing Body for the sport of volleyball in the United States and within this organization are “Regional Volleyball Associations”. Clubs that operate in upstate New York and the Capital District are a part of the Excelsior Empire Regional Volleyball Association (XLRVA) Region. To play for a club under USAV, every athlete must have a USAV membership.

SportsEngine is an all-in-one membership management system used by USAV. Anyone looking to participate in USAV sanctioned events must have a SportsEngine account. This account will allow you to attend tryouts, accept team assignments and be put onto team rosters. 

At Sporting Albany, we budget as close to full cost as possible to include all known expenses up front. Our largest costs include practice gym rentals and tournament entry fees, but also include factors like equipment cost and coach payments.  SAVB was founded on the principle of being a “more affordable volleyball program”; something that we still try to uphold. As the years go by, gym costs and tournament fees only go up, so club fees may increase year-to-year. 

USAV memberships are required to participate in any events sanctioned by USA Volleyball (tryouts, practices, tournaments, camps, clinics, etc.). A variety of memberships are available. To tryout for a club, a “single-event” membership will suffice. If a player then makes a team, they are able to upgrade their membership to the “full-year” membership for a discounted price. 

USAV memberships can be purchased via this LINK. Memberships are purchased without affiliating with a specific club.

Club payments are accepted by cash/check or VENMO. Checks should be made out to “Sporting Albany Volleyball”, and all VENMO payments must go to Club Director Zack Kuhn (@SportingZK)

Yes and no. By accepting your position on a team, you are giving us your commitment to our full practice and play schedule. If a conflict arises, and you cannot attend a tournament, you must notify your coach at least 2 weeks in advance. If a substitute can be found to replace you at the tournament, this substitute will be charged your portion of the tournament entry fee and you will receive your refund. If no substitute can be found, then no refund will be provided.

If a team loses out on a tournament that is canceled by the host club, we will do everything we can to replace it with another tournament because SAVB will not be charged for the canceled tournament. If a replacement cannot be found, the team will receive a refund for the lost tournament days. If a team must drop out of a tournament because not enough players can attend, our club will most likely not be refunded by the tournament, and therefore the players will not be refunded for the lost tournament days. 

Tournaments will range from 1-day to 3-day events. As a result, we do not schedule our teams by number of tournaments, but instead number of tournament days (TDs). All of our teams ages 15 and up will generally be scheduled for about 14-16 TDs, while our teams ages 14 and below will be scheduled for 10-12 TDs.

We try to balance each team’s tournament schedule with both “local” and “travel” tournaments, but like to keep everything within reasonable driving distance. Local tournaments are anything within the XLRVA region ranging from Queensbury to Syracuse. Local tournaments are meant to not require hotel stays. Travel tournaments will always require at least one night in a hotel and can range anywhere from Rochester to Boston to Washington, D.C.

NO! It is club policy that all team members must remain at a tournament until all team responsibilities have been fulfilled. At a tournament, unless you have just won the championship match, you will almost always have to work the match after the one you just lost. That’s simply the way volleyball tournaments work. PLEASE DO NOT pressure your coaches into letting you leave early or try to get out of working. If a player leaves a tournament, without the consent of the head coach, before all team responsibilities are completed, this player’s position with the team may be terminated.

Most tournaments that require hotel stays also require visiting clubs to book rooms through their specific hotel provider in order to be accepted into the tournament. SAVB will acquire room blocks when necessary, and it will then be up to parents/players to book reservations via our block of rooms. SAVB does NOT pay for athlete hotel rooms, though we do our best to find the most reasonable prices at available hotels. 

At Sporting Albany, we recognize that families invest in our program with the expectation of skill development and meaningful participation. While the primary focus of player development occurs during practices, tournament participation is also an important part of each athlete’s experience.

Playing time at tournaments is determined at the discretion of the coaching staff and may vary based on a range of factors, including effort, performance, team needs, and game situations. While equal playing time cannot be guaranteed, it is a core value of our club that all athletes receive beneficial court time during tournaments.

No athlete should sit out an entire day at a tournament. Coaches are expected to manage rosters and rotations to ensure all participating players contribute on the court in a meaningful way.

Please note that playoff or elimination rounds may involve more strategic lineup decisions with less variation, as these games typically carry higher competitive stakes. However, the expectation for inclusive and developmental play remains a guiding principle throughout the tournament weekend.

This policy supports our commitment to both competitive integrity and the holistic development of every athlete in our program.

At tournaments all teams will be required to supply a “work team” at least once. These work teams require a certified referee and a certified scorekeeper (as well as a handful of other positions). We strongly encourage that ALL PLAYERS receive certifications in both fields. Teams can be fined for not having certified refs/scorekeepers on their rosters. Parents can also receive certifications if they do so desire. No one wants to be the player who is stuck having to work every single match because their teammates do not hold up their share of the responsibility. Certification classes are offered both online and in person. For the most part they are FREE. Dates for these certification classes will be posted online.