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THE HISTORY OF DAYTON JUNIORS
Gem City and North Coast Volleyball (formerly known as Miami Valley Juniors) programs began discussions in 1998 on what would be the best for Dayton area volleyball. Recognizing that the dispersion of players and the lack of concerted and unified coaching resources in the Dayton area were not serving the best interest of volleyball in the area, Howard Garcia and the Directors of Gem City (Elaine Viney & Cheryl Treadway) and North Coast Volleyball (Phil Anders) decided to start having informal meetings on the subject. Both organizations brought proposals on how to best serve the volleyball interests of the greater Dayton area. At the end of the meeting, all parties agreed on a proposal to form an Elite Club named Dayton Juniors Volleyball, which is to be supported by both organizations. The name was selected so people around the volleyball community within and outside Ohio could easily identify these unique athletes. Therefore, a slogan was created in honor of the two founding organizations: “The Gem of the Miami Valley."
The initial proposal was to just have one team per age group with the best players from both organizations. The clubs provided coaches within their own organizations for the respective age groups (13s to 18s) and their facilities to support practice and training sessions. The teams were formed specifically with the sole intent of qualifying for the USAV Junior National Championship, i.e. teams in certain ages were intentionally not fielded. Many were skeptical, including some players, but the Dayton Juniors organization was able to field two 14s, one 16s, one 17s and one 18s team. Several players from some nearby organizations jumped aboard the program along with some players from the founding clubs. As a result, all the first year teams were rewarded with rankings in the top 10 of the OVR. Therefore, the program was able to continue as planned and several of the players were able to receive college recognition.
For the second season more players tried out and the number of teams increased to six; we now had one team in each age group except for 16s. All teams again contended for the National Championship with our 13s, 14s, 15s and 18s qualifying for Nationals; with the 15s team qualifying Open at the Northern Light Qualifier and finishing 9th at Nationals. While all this was happening Gem City and North Coast players were getting better and challenging these "Elite" Teams. The momentum was building and it became evident that the inevitable was going to happen: a merger between Gem City and North Coast Volleyball. Despite the doubts and complexity of merging two very established and thriving clubs, the Dayton Juniors program was getting a lot of local press and national recognition.
The 2001 season became the defining moment for the entity known as Dayton Juniors. Many players from all around Dayton and the neighboring areas wanted to be on a Dayton Juniors team. The club fielded teams in all age groups and all did very well regionally and nationally. The club was recognized as one of the top three programs in the OVR despite having only one team per age group. The 13s, 15s, 16s and 18s qualified for Nationals. The 16s team won Open division at the North East Qualifier in Baltimore for the second year in a row. All our teams were ranked in the top six of the OVR. We were also able to host our first Presidents’ Cup Tournament in the Dayton Convention Center attracting more than 100 teams from within and outside the region.
In 2002, Gem City and North Coast Volleyball decided to merge their teams in the younger age groups: all teams 14s and under would now be a part of the Dayton Juniors umbrella. The tryouts that season set a record for the program in its fourth year. Over 300 players tried out while identifying Dayton Juniors as their first choice. The program increased the number of teams to a total of 13. The outcome was that our 13s, 16s and 17s qualified for Nationals and it was the first time in the program’s history that we had more than two teams contending for Open positions. Our 17s qualified at the Open Tampa event, our 16s were two wins away from getting an Open at-large bid, while the 14s were one game away from getting an Open at-large bid. To cap off the successful season, our 17s finished 3rd at the National Championship providing the program with its first national medal. The 16s also had an outstanding appearance at Nationals, and by the end of the season the college coaches were taking firm notice of the well trained and disciplined players in the Dayton Juniors program.
During the 2003 season Gem City and North Coast Volleyball clubs completed the metamorphosis and merged into one big family: Dayton Juniors. As the club grew, the opportunity to serve the players and teams increased as well. The club has responded to the growth by establishing opportunities for players to fund raise, creating positions for parent representation within the club, streamlining the administration of the burgeoning roster of teams, and ensuring the quality of the volleyball training. We now had a program in place that could service all the different needs of our athletes. By the 2006 USAV JO season, many players had gone on to play in college. We had numerous teams qualify for Nationals as we continued to set new trends in the Ohio Valley Region.
As the 2012 season arrives, we are as excited as ever for the new season. The facility has been renamed the Dayton Juniors Training Facility, the lobby area has been completely revamped to give the place a new brightness and vitality, the sport court in the gym is brand new, and we are ready for a new and brighter than ever chapter in Dayton Juniors history. Our coaching staff consists of 48 coaches, two Master Coaches and a Director of Volleyball Operations serving a minimum of 23 teams this season. This is quite an achievement considering the first edition of Dayton Juniors had 13 teams. The Presidents’ Cup Tournament has grown to 300 teams from many surrounding states and Canada, forcing us to split the tournament into two locations: Dayton and Columbus. The Presidents’ Day Cup Tournament now also has an autonomous committee separate from the daily operations of the club whose full time mission is to run and serve the tournament.
It has been a hard and arduous road towards growth. A plethora of clubs have come and gone, but Dayton Juniors has not only survived, but has thrived in the competition. We hope that you can join the adventure and be part of the dream to improve the outreach of the sport of volleyball in the Dayton area. We invite you to be a part of the “Gem of the Miami Valley." Our doors are open and our club is ready to help you as we continue the legacy of “Training to Succeed."
