VOLLEYBALL IS BACK! That's right, real, live, professional sports are back on the schedule! VLA Director of Player Relations Tim Falknor rejoins the show to talk a few quick details about the event now on the calendar: July 3-5 at the Ball Sports Academy in Angola, IN. Stay tuned to the VLA social media platforms for many more details!

Rob (@rstclaire1) goes solo again this episode to break down the play and commentary of a match from last year's FIVB World Cup between the US and Brazil. You'll definitely want to watch the video for this one on the VLA YouTube channel!

Chicago Icemen outside hitter Mark Jones (@mjoneo11) joins the show to break down his volleyball career in detail, from hilariously humble beginnings to a stellar college career at George Mason where he shared EIVA co-player of the year honors with some guy named Aaron Russell. He breaks down the differences between outside hitter and opposite in detail, plus the mindset shifts from beach to indoor at a very high level. We also get into several aspects of how awesome the volleyball...

Team Pineapple outside hitter Tomás Goldsmith (@tomas.goldsmith) joins the show to talk about his unique volleyball career. He gets into the transition from playing division 1 libero to absolute all star college club outside hitter, how he's continued to level up his game since college, how his jump serve is so crazy good, and how his indoor game translates onto the grass. After the extremely intense quick fire questions Tomás compares playing volleyball to being a professional musician...

Your familiar host and VLA play by play guy Rob St. Claire (@rstclaire1) goes solo for this show to talk about volleyball broadcasting. Just about everyone in the volleyball community knows what it's like to be frustrated by bad uneducated commentators while watching a match...Rob gets into why it's such a common problem, what it takes to be a better volleyball broadcaster, who are the best in the world, and more. He also breaks down an old USA men's national team match highlight video,...

SoCal Rising Tide head coach and occasional libero Ryan Windisch (@tropicalwindy) joins the show to talk about playing, coaching, and everything in between. He has a unique perspective on collegiate volleyball having played at the junior college level, the NCAA division 1 level, and now as the head coach for the Irvine Valley College men's program. We get into how playing libero influences coaching ability, how the Rising Tide roster is shaping up for this season, and what it takes to build...

Ukrainian volleyball rock star Andrey Diachkov (@volleyball.advice) joins the show to talk in depth about his stellar international volleyball career that spans 15 years and several countries. He tells a few incredible stories about 5 set wins, crazy home-and-home CEV matches, playing so well against teams that they have no choice but to sign him to contracts, and what it was like to be the veteran after all his years. After surviving the gauntlet of quick fire questions unscathed, Andrey...

The legendary Eric Martin (@mremartin5) of Team LVC joins the show to somehow attempt to condense his 30-ish years of volleyball down to one single podcast. We cover all the changes in how the game is played that E has played through, the journey to the VLA level for a 5'6" utility guy, and the similarities between being a musician and a volleyball player. E also designed the VLA logo and several of our new uniforms, so we get into what makes a great sports logo and try to pick some of our...

New York Legion middle blocker Mike Marshman (@mikemarshman) joins the show to talk about his crazy last second recruitment to Saint Francis, the amazing progression of his team from his freshman to senior year in college, the differences between playing in France and Finland, and a nice crash course in how to read block in the middle. Mike also gets thrown into the fire with a new quick hitting interview segment, you'll want to see how he hangs in there! Also don't miss his insane story...

Team Pineapple outside hitter/opposite Bruno Amorim (@brunera16) joins the show after finally getting home to Indiana after an insane stretch of travel disappointments when his Saudi Arabian professional season was cut short. We also cover his amazing volleyball exposure story, try to list every country he's played professionally in, dive into the differences between positions, sand vs. indoor, and playing vs. coaching, and describe what hitting off of Lloy Ball is like. Bruno is an...

SoCal Rising Tide (@risingtidevb) founder/general manager and VLA Director of Marketing Daniel Davidson joins the show, and we go all over the place talking volleyball. We cover the dangers of the NCAA reducing sports, how Dan consulted the FIVB on how American sports work, the Rising Tide origin story, and breaking into the American professional sports landscape, plus more. Kinda scattered but really interesting interview, looking forward to having Dan on the show again.

Chicago Icemen middle blocker Dave Hancock (@dave_hancock_) joins the show to talk about his late blooming volleyball career, all the way from his college club days at Purdue to professional volleyball in Germany and in the VLA. He has some great stories and lessons from his volleyball career and continues to be a monster in the middle at every level he plays at. Don't miss this one.

VLA Director of Business Development Will Foley ([email protected]) joins the show to bring a unique and detailed perspective on what it takes to build a professional volleyball league in today's American sports culture and landscape. We talk about how to put "butts in seats" at matches, how to get the sport in front of the most people, and how to tap into the existing incredible volleyball community. Also don't miss Will's story on what got him into volleyball in the first place. ...

Official VLA Event Photographer Todd Jay (@theetoddjay) joins the show to talk about how ridiculously many photos he's taken in his life, what makes a great volleyball photo, and some of his favorite memories from capturing the sport. The VLA is so lucky to have such a talented guy on board to help capture some incredible moments! Give Todd a follow on social media and check out his website, ToddJayPhotography.com.

New York Legion middle blocker Blake Leeson (@blake_leeson) joins the show to talk about his humble volleyball beginnings, his quick growth into a starting role on back-to-back NCAA championship teams at Ohio State, and the transition into professional volleyball, plus his connection story to Team LVC and an incredible coincidence about flamingoes. Don't miss this one.

New York Legion (@teamlvc_vla) captain/team rep and VLA director of league development Chris Hosley (@c_hosley) joins the show to talk about three-peating collegiate national championships back in the day, Team LVC's origins, the birth of their iconic flamingo symbolism, and a lot more about the history and culture of the volleyball scene. Great chat with an awesome league figure.

Phoenix Ascension opposite Bryan Lewis (@bryan_lewisvb3) joins the show to talk hitting, serving, and high level volleyball mindset, plus his career and experiences from the college club level all the way to the VLA. Awesome interview.

VLA Director of Business and Event Operations Coley Pawlikowski (@coleypaw) joins the show to give crucial updates on the VLA schedule amidst the worldwide postponements/cancellations due to the coronavirus. We also chat about her Danish coaching experience, the VLA board's goals for this season and beyond, and why having a volleyball league run by volleyball people is such a great thing. Great episode at a critical time, don't miss it.

Chicago Icemen outside hitter Dan Starkey (@starkeyvolleyball) joins the show to talk about his unique journey to the professional volleyball level, including his path through college, time spent in the UK playing volleyball and getting a graduate degree, and his last second call to fly to Denmark to join a professional team this season. A really cool look into a rising star for the league.

Phoenix Ascension outside hitter/setter Joe Kauliakamoa (@joekauliakamoa) joins the show to talk about his unique and fascinating volleyball career. He's played with and against some big names, has a crazy setting resume, and decided to be a top caliber outside hitter in the VLA just for fun. Make sure to check out this look into one of the more interesting players in the league. Also, go check out our instagram @vlavolleyball to see how you can get involved in the #VLAQuarantineChallenge!

SoCal Rising Tide middle blocker Matt August (@mattaugust_) joins the show amidst the worldwide coronavirus cancellations to talk about his volleyball career, his first professional season in the Czech Republic, his time with the US National Team, his nasty float serve, and more. Don't miss this great chat with a rising VLA star.

Chicago Icemen (@chicago_icemen_vla) captain/team rep and VLA Director of Player Relations Tim Falknor joins the show to chat about his unique volleyball background, what it takes to play at a high level, the Chicago volleyball scene, his Icemen squad and its origins, and much more. Don't miss this one.

Team Pineapple setter Pasquale Fiduccia (@squalefiduccia) joins the show to talk about joining a brand new collegiate program, his growth as a setter, learning under Lloy Ball, and much more. Great interview with a guy with a ton of personality.

Phoenix Ascension captain/team rep and VLA director of digital operations Vince Zanzucchi (@vzanzucchi10) joins the show from his Hawaiian vacation to talk about his team, our new Mikasa volleyball, preseason scrimmages, live streaming, and the league's digital strategy. Awesome interview.

Chicago Icemen opposite Griffin Shields (@griffin_shields) joins the show to talk about his college career, switching positions, recovering from injury, and wearing a very interesting set of jerseys while playing in Germany!