Star City Sports, Inc., is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation (further classified as a public charity). Star City Sports does business as Star City Volleyball (SCV). As a nonprofit corporation we are not trying to make money from players. Our sole focus is to help players and teams achieve stardom and success.
SCV, as a formal volleyball club, was founded in 2016 by Jeffrey Lapin. SCV is based in Lincoln, Nebraska, although we have players from other Nebraska cities and towns. SCV started out with two teams and has seen tremendous growth every year since. SCV primarily primarily coaches Club volleyball. However, SCV does coach teams in YMCA Spirit volleyball.
SCV is a better choice for many players than other local clubs for many reasons including:
- Players only pay actual costs & expenses; they do not pay coaching or coaching fees. In addition, players may have their costs reduced if SCV receives money from sponsors or from hosting tournaments.
- There are no commitment or tryout fees.
- Players are allowed to participate in other sports and activities during the YMCA and Club volleyball seasons.
- Players get to select when they are available to play in tournaments providing a lot of flexibility.
- Players play actual club tournaments (USAV or JVA) and there is no set tournament limits.
SCV has five core principles:
- Youth volleyball should be affordable to everyone;
- Athletes should be allowed to participate in other sports and activities while playing club volleyball;
- Athletes do not all not start with the same abilities, but, they can grow and develop with the sport;
- Athletes need to learn and display good sportsmanship, leadership, and teamwork as these are not only important in volleyball but throughout life; and
- Volleyball should be fun!
GENERAL INFORMATION
Below is some general information about playing Club volleyball with Star City Volleyball:
Players start practicing in November. The Club tournament season runs from January to May. However, players do not need to play the entire tournament season.
Players are only required to attend one two-hour practice a week. They are permitted to attend a similar aged team's practice.
Players play in actual USAV and JVA tournaments. All tournaments are within driving distance to and from Lincoln in a single day.
Players are permitted to participate in other sports and activities during Club season. Parents get to choose when their daughter is available to play in a tournament so there is a lot of flexibility.
Tournaments for January and February will be selected shortly after the tournament schedule is posted. Additional tournaments are added as players have a better idea about their schedules as the club season progresses. There is no limit to the number of tournaments a player/team may play. The goal is to try get every player in at least 5 to 6 tournaments.
COSTS & EXPENSES
There is not one set total price for playing Club for SCV. Club players only pay actual costs and expenses; there are no administrative or coaching fees. The costs and expenses are United States Volleyball registration fee: a jersey; practice rental location fees; and tournament registrations.
Players must pay a $65.00 registration fee to USA Volleyball (USAV). Jerseys typically cost around $40.00. Practice location fees are split equally among all club players, which are typically around $15.00 a month. Tournaments usually are $15.00 per player.
For the 2022 Club season, total costs were about $255.00 for everything. However, everyone received credit from a tournament that SCV hosted, which reduced their costs. The average credit was $22.00 per player.
TRYOUTS
Tryouts are individually scheduled. They are free. Tryouts usually last around 5-88 minutes. Players only need to wear kneepads to try out; they do not need to bring a volleyball.
Many decisions about whether a player makes club are made relatively quickly after a tryout.
To schedule a try out, go to Club 2022-2023 Tryouts. Please do not fill out the Contact Us form to schedule a tryout. If there is not a date or time that works, please email us at starcityvball@gmail.com.
TRYOUT NOT NECESSARY
Any 15U (fifteen and older) player that started on their high school’s volleyball team will be automatically accepted, without a tryout, provided there is room on a SCV team.
Former SCV Club and Spirit players also do not have to try out.
GENERAL INFORMATION
Only players in 4th through 8th grade are allowed to play YMCA Spirit volleyball.
Players do not need to try out for Spirit volleyball. The only requirement I have is that players have played at least one season of recreational volleyball.
The YMCA Fall 2022 Spirit season starts on September 25th and ends on November 6th. There are 10 games, each played on Sundays.
Players only have to attend one practice a week, which will last between 1 to 2 hours depending on grade level. Locations and days will be determined although they are usually located at a LPS school near the middle of Lincoln.
COSTS
The only costs for YMCA Spirit Fall are:
YMCA Registration Fee ($65.00 or $65.00 if you have a YMCA family membership); and
Jersey, which costs between $12.00 to $15.00.
Jeff Lapin is SCV's Club Director and Head Coach. Why does he coach? Jeff is a lawyer that has been representing injured, disabled, and abused clients for almost 25 years. He has successfully operated his own law office for over 12 years, which has given him the opportunity to coach. Jeff had a bad coach when he first started playing youth soccer, which was the first sport he played as a child. This soccer coach was solely focused on winning at the expense of letting players try different positions and have fun. The coach solely relied on negative reinforcement. This experience shaped Jeff from an early age in terms of teams I wanted to play on and later how I was going to coach.
Jeff started coaching volleyball and started SCV as he recognized a need for good coaches and those who want to enrich their players, not themselves.
Jeff is passionate and dedicated to helping players develop, improve, and succeed, both in terms of volleyball in other life skills as well. He wants to instill in players integrity, ability to self-motivate, teamwork, sportsmanship, hustle, intelligence, understanding their role and what it means to succeed. Jeff's coaching philosophy is SMILES, which stands for: Smart, Maximum, Integrity, Learn, Empower, and Success. Some of Jeff's coaching principles include:
- Focusing on fundamentals: technical skills and tactics.
- Instill in players to always: put forth their best effort, play smart, and focus on the journey rather than the goal.
- Treat players with respect and make them feel important as individuals and as members of a team and club.
Jeff has coached volleyball, along with other sports, at Pound Middle School the past three years. This year, Jeff is the Reserve Coach for Raymond Central High School. During the volleyball off-season, Jeff likes to referee and umpire youth sports.
DONORS AND DONATIONS
Donations
As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation (public charity), SCV can receive donations and donors may be entitled to deduct the donation as a charitable contribution.
Donors/ Sponsor Levels
SCV offers different donor/sponsorship levels:
- Platinum: $1,000.00 or more
- Gold: $500.00 to $999.99
- Silver: $250.00 - $499.99
- Bronze: $100.00 - $249.99
- Friend: under $100.00
