Volleyball season begins in mid-August for area teams, but preparations have begun already. Teams use the summer months of June and July for conditioning, fundamentals, skill development and team building. Many volleyball programs are already scrimmaging to give their girls some experience before the season starts.

According to the Alabama High School Athletic Association, volleyball is the fastest growing girls sport in the state. Russellville, Tharptown and Belgreen have established programs; Red Bay started its program this past year; and Phil Campbell is starting a volleyball program this year.

Tharptown and Belgreen hosted scrimmages Thursday and Friday. Matches involving junior high through varsity level teams lasted from the early morning hours to late in the evening.

“I get the opportunity to see where we are as a team,” said second-year Tharptown Coach Kamri Fleming. “It helps me to see the small things we need to fix before the season gets here.”

Belgreen Coach Susie Tverberg said she sees the summer as a way to find areas for improvement.

“I have noticed how much we need to develop in specific skills or certain areas of play,” said Tverberg. “Most importantly, I see how much potential this group of girls have, and to me, as their coach, it is very exciting.”

Phil Campbell Coach Amy Moss said her summer focus with her fledgling squad has been “to learn the basics as quickly as possible.”

“The scrimmages have been very beneficial to us to get some game action before the season starts,” Moss said. “It is one thing to practice; it is another to face live action. I saw a lot of improvement from the first game we played Thursday morning to the last one Friday afternoon.”