WHY CLUB CACTUS JUNIORS...
SOUTHERN ARIZONA'S LONGEST RUNNING VOLLEYBALL CLUB
The Club Cactus Juniors Volleyball Club was formed in 1992 and has developed into one of the top junior volleyball clubs in Southern Arizona. CCJ is the second longest-running clubs in the Arizona Region. One of of the most important factors for this long-standing success is the teaching. In the beginning, all of our coaches were teachers and former volleyball players.
To this day, teaching continues to be a driving force behind our success. Our approach to training, the process, organization, and a tradition of excellence gives CCJ a proven track record for developing and training young female athletes at all levels both on and off the court.
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CCJ is truly a community club that strives to meet the needs of our unique volleyball community in Southern Arizona. The club works with all players: players that want to learn the game and have fun; players that wish to become better for their high school team; and players that want to play at the next level in college.
THE TRAINING
TEAM PRACTICES with a coaching staff that this passionate, dedicated, qualified, knowledgeable, and experienced. Our coaches are some of the most respected and successful coaches in Southern Arizona. Our Regional Teams practice three times a week for a total of 9 hours a week; and the National Teams practice three times a week for a total of 10 hours.
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CCJ uses a Master-Coach plan with organized Training Cycles for each age group designed to promote consistent and progressive training for each athlete. Each age group has skill benchmarks for each player to master - giving each CCJ player a blueprint for the entire process from 10U all the way to 18U.
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POSITIONAL TRAINING is led by our National team coaches to help give players an additional 5 to 6 hours a month in the gym focusing on their position or skill. The extra reps help lead to improved execution in competitions.
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ATHLETIC TRAINING is available to help develop our players' speed, jump, agility, flexibility, strength and balance with our in-house Athletic Trainers. Our CCJ Strength Coaches all have current certification for athletic performance.
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TECHNOLOGY is used by our coaching staff to help enhance the training of our National teams. CCJ utilizes stat software, video analysis, and jump tracking devices to provide cutting-edge technology used at the collegiate level for development of athletes.
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THE PROCESS
PREPARE with a coaching staff that knows what it takes to be successful with a proven track record in the sport.
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Kellin Lovegren (Club Cactus Juniors Co-Founder, former University of Arizona Assistant Coach)
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David Rubio (University of Arizona Head Coach - 2001 Final Four)
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Melissa Walker (Long Beach State - 1998 NCAA National Championship)
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Bill Lang (Ironwood Ridge High School - Southern Arizona's winningest coach; 9 State Final Fours, 2 State Runner-Ups)
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Tim Nordensson (CCJ National Team Coach and Lead Coach, CCJ Alumni, former University of Arizona Assistant Coach)
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Ashleigh Houlton (CCJ National Team Coach and Lead Coach, former Pacific Lutheran University Graduate Coach)
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RECRUITING INFORMATION SESSIONS: We guide our athletes through the recruiting process with informational sessions and recruiting consultations. While most of the recruiting process (letters, emails, videos, etc) is up to the athlete, we have the resources and staff to help families navigate through the process. Our National Team Program includes a SportsRecruits profile, giving our athletes a powerful platform to engage in the recruiting process.
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​OVER 175 ATHLETES IN 30 YEARS CONTINUED AT THE COLLEGIATE LEVEL. Club Cactus Juniors is one of the top clubs in Southern Arizona for preparing student-athletes to play a the next level.
THE TRADITION
As one of the first clubs in Arizona, CCJ has a proven track record for developing and training young athletes at all levels both on and off the court. This has been our tradition for 30 years.
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FAMILY CULTURE: Our directors are active coaches that help to develop a family culture with a focus of "One-Club-One-Family." Our coaches work with all players (regardless of team) and allow players to train with other teams if desired. The Lead Coaches know the players of each team and work with all players (regardless of team) in our positional practices. Our players help volunteer in our Youth Academy, helping develop the future players of the community.
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SISTER PROGRAM: National and Region teams participate in individual and team Big/Little Sister Programs. This means secret sisters at the Cactus Classic and during National tournaments.
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CACTUS CLASSIC INVITATIONAL: Club Cactus Juniors hosts the Arizona Region's only club-run convention center tournament every year during the Martin Luther King weekend in January. This tournament has become Southern Arizona's premier volleyball tournament, with over 160 teams and 1725 athletes and coaches participating in the three-day event. The tournament allows local players the opportunity to play teams from Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, and Texas without traveling!
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THE ORGANIZATION
We take pride in our administration being organized and transparent. Every effort is taken to publish Season Information early and being as accurate as possible. Our Director and coaches are approachable and will help any player or family with honest and thoughtful information.
ORGANIZATION: CCJ makes it easy on families by having a stable and structured system that is extremely efficient. Team Travel is arranged by CCJ's Director of Operations.
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TUITION CREDIT OPPORTUNITIES : Club Volleyball cannot offer scholarships due to NCAA and AIA regulations, however CCJ has programs to assist in making the tuition affordable for all families - these opportunities range from Cactus Classic Sponsorship Program, Tournament Committee, and the Director's Committee.
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COMMUNICATION: Communication from administration and coaches is clear and timely. Our website is up to date with team and individual photos, schedules, and coaches contact information.
THE CACTUS COMMITMENT PROGRAM
We believe in our process and system - so much that we offer our Cactus Commitment Credit. This program offers any senior athlete that plays five consecutive years with CCJ a tuition credit during their senior year. The credit includes all team fees (not including travel) for the last year (senior year) of club - we want all players "to finish what they started" and because we believe in our system, we'll help the player do that.