Female participation in team sports is declining at an alarming rate. The top two reasons why girls stop playing sports is because 32% of them thought they were not good and 46% didn’t see a future for themselves in the sport.
Girls’ Inc. of Monroe County is working to keep young females involved in team sports for as long as possible. They’ve taken matters into their own hands by offering girls the chance to participate in various volleyball leagues throughout the year.
“The reason for this league is because if a lot of girls make a school team or a travel team and they’re not that good, they’ll sit on the bench more than anything,” said Girls Inc. Athletic Manager, Kelsey Endahl. “Our league is designed to where they can get in the games and get that game-like experience as well as learning.”
Other barriers that cause lack of female participation in sports include the male-dominated culture of sports, poor self-image, and the lack of parent and adult influence. To combat this, Girls Inc. focuses on building a community both on and off the court.
“Girls are people who are very important to society. Girls have so much to offer and being able to see other female role models as well in this space is such a great thing that the girls in Bloomington have,” said volunteer volleyball coach, Rachel Desmarais. “It’s a time where they can go and not only learn about themselves but learn about other things, like how to play a sport.”
“It’s not just about getting the skills of volleyball. [The girls] are becoming more comfortable being around other people as well,” said Endahl.
We sit down to chat with Girls Inc. volleyball coach, Rachel Desmarais.
Girls that are ages five to 14 years old can sign up to participate in the Girls Inc. volleyball leagues They have three sessions to choose from- winter/spring, summer, or fall, as well as volleyball clinics offered throughout the off-season.
The fall league starts in September and lasts about eight to nine weeks, while the winter/spring league lasts about ten weeks, starting in January. The summer league lasts from early June to late July.
Depending on how many girls participate, there are usually four teams within each age group . Teams participate in one game and one practice per week.
All volleyball matches are held in the Girls Inc. gymnasium, located on West 8th Street in Bloomington. Girls Inc. reaches out to local elementary schools to host practices during the school year.
Learn how the proper technique to set a volleyball with Girls Inc. volleyball coach, Zosia Piotrowski.
Rebekah Pendill, a parent of one of the volleyball participants, said her daughter playing in the volleyball league at Girls Inc. has become a family affair.
“[Our family] has been coming here for many years. [My daughter] has an older sister that has done it for many years so just watching her and seeing the program and she’s at that stage where she’s singling down sports and we just love it here.”
At the end of each season, an awards banquet is held where girls are given personalized awards, rather than just participation trophies.
“We’ve gone away with participation trophies for various reasons. Every girl on the team doesn’t just get a trophy for participating, but they get most improved, or offensive player of the year, or super setter,” said Endahl. “The girls see their teammates get these awards and they strive to want to get those as well. They want to improve within the program instead of just being there.”
A participant in the eight to ten year-old volleyball league this past year, Addison Trisler has been a volleyball player for three years.
“Basically what we do is play volleyball and it’s kind of competitive, because I’m the one who’s really competitive because I like to be,” she said. “I loved it at the first start. I got to make new friends and it’s really just about teamwork.”
Even though volleyball is a team sport, individuals may feel the positive effects the most.
“There’s this one girl who never smiles,” Endahl said. “Anytime, I’ve seen her, even out in public, she has a straight face. And I saw her smile for the first time this season. It’s things like that where [the girls] are stepping up and just being comfortable with who they are. I think being in this kind of program definitely helps them.”
The Girls Inc. website provides details about sports offered through their organization, as well as a calendar of seasonal events.
Pictures from past volleyball league seasons at Girls Inc.
