Cliff Robinson - Cliff has played USAV adult Volleyball and coached junior Olympic and developmental teams for 13 years. Cliff’s teams have qualified and participated in USAV Junior National Championships three times in the last six years and have earned a handful of top ten finishes at National Qualifier events. He is the former Commissioner of the Blue Springs Youth Volleyball League and is the current DIRECTOR of the Invasion VBC.
Mark Ethridge - 2010-11 saw Mark's 16 BLACK team win an OPEN qualifier and finish 6th in the country. In 09-10 he guided 15 BLACK to 2 Open National Qualifier victories and the USA Volleyball 15 OPEN National Championship in Reno. This victory marked only the 2nd OPEN championship ever in the HOA region. In 08-09 he lead our INVASION 14 BLACK to 3 Open National Qualifier victories and ended the year with a runner-up finish in the 14 OPEN Division of the USAV Nationals in Miami. In 07-08 his 13's team won a National Qualifier and finished 5th in the country. In November of 2008 Mark guided a team to the NCHAA National Championship for homeschooled athletes. He played AA/Open volleyball in the HOA Region for over 17 years, winning 6 regional championships and playing in 3 USAV championships. He has 11 years juniors coaching experience and has taken teams to USAV Junior Nationals 7 straight years. He has achieved a CAP II coaching certification, an elite distinction. Mark also runs many outdoor events at the "Ethridge Volleyball Ranch" during the summer months. For 2011-12 Mark will coach our 17-BLACK team with asst. Joe Maloney and will continue in the roll of Assistant Director.
Amanda (Amy) Benne - 2011-2012 will be Amy's fourth year with Invasion. Her prior coaching experience includes four years with MAVS, two years at Blue Springs High School and two years at Blue Springs South High School. Amy has been very successful at coaching younger teams and places much emphasis on strong fundamentals. Last season, Amy's 12-Black team won the first ever KC President's Day Tournament, had three Top 5 finishes at National Qualifiers and a 10th place finish at Nationals in Atlanta! She has achieved a CAP I coaching certification through USA Volleyball. Amy also runs many camps and clinics throughout the year for the younger players in the area. For 2011-2012 Amy will coach our 13-BLACK and 11-BLACK teams. She is also taking on the role of Assistant Director for Invasion.
Paula Benson - Paula Benson returns to INVASION this year with over 21 years of playing and coaching experience. She began her coaching career as the Varsity Coach at Lone Jack High School. After transferring to the Blue Springs School District, she took on the role as Head Freshman Coach for several years at Blue Springs South High School. Paula then wanted the opportunity to help develop younger players so she took the job as the Head Coach for Sunny Vale Middle School where she currently is coaching. She has coached in the BSYVL for two years as well as other youth programs. She has had the opportunity to coach some successful past and current Invasion players over the years in the school setting. For 2011-12 Paula will be coaching the 13 BLUE team. She will also help with INVADERS! in 2011-12.
Craig Berg – Craig has been with INVASION since 2005. He has been a vital part of 7 National Qualifier victories. Craig reached the ultimate goal during the 09-10 season winning the USA Volleyball 15 OPEN National Championship with INVASION 15 BLACK. Craig will coach 15-BLACK during the 2011-12 season. He will also assist Amy Benne on the 13-BLACK team. He has 18 years playing expericence both indoor and outdoor at the AA/Open level. He has played in 7 USAV Championships, most recently placing 2nd in 2005 and placing 1st in 2006. He was also named to the Mens AA All Tournament Team in 2006.
Kelly Crawford – Kelly makes her coaching debut this season with Invasion, her first step in her chosen career field. She has played volleyball for 7 years and hopes to continue to play at a four year school next season. She received three varsity letters at William Chrisman High School as libero, and was captain of the Club and High School teams she played on 5 of the 7 years. In high school she made second team all conference and all district and received many DS awards. She currently plays for Longview Community College as a sophomore. She was awarded the "Most Improved Player of the 2010 Season" by her coaches Rob Kaleikau and Marnie Winters, and is eager to learn from Marnie and the girls this year to improve as a coach. Kelly will be assistant coaching with Marnie Winters on the 17-Blue team this 11-12 season.
Marvin Forbes - Marvin, along with Don Harris, coached 16 BLACK to the USA Volleyball 16 American Championship in 09-10 and took 17 BLACK to a 3rd place finish in 2010-11 in the 17 OPEN division. He played Middle and Outside Hitter at Columbia College including one National Championship team and one National Champion runner-up. Marvin is a former Assistant Coach at Central Methodist College and assisted in running several summer camps for High School players. Marvin spends tireless hours outside his club coaching time working with players on technique and fundamentals. He has coached Girls’ Junior volleyball for 9 years and will be coaching our 18-BLACK team in 2011-12 with Don Harris. In 06-07 Marvin's 17-SWAT team qualified in the Open Division of the USAV Junior Olympic Volleyball Championships and finished 11th overall in the country. His 18-SWAT team finished 5th in the country during the 2007-2008 season.
Bridget Gronniger- Bridget will lead our INVADERS! skill sessions in 2011-12 She played High School volleyball at St. Mary's High School and went on to play at Longview Community College and St. Mary's University. She continues to play USAV Women's volleyball today. She has coached Juniors for 10 years including leading Invasion's boys team in their inaugural year. She was a volunteer assistant coach at Blue Springs H.S. for two years before accepting the head coach position at Brittany Hill Middle School for one year, posting an undefeated 20-0 record. After that season she returned to work with the Blue Springs H.S. team.
Jeff Gronniger - Jeff will work with the INVADERS! with Bridget Gronniger in 2011-12.
Don Harris - Don, along with Marvin Forbes, claimed a 3rd place finish in the 17 OPEN division to culminate the 2010-11 season. In 09-10 Don guided 16 BLACK to the USA Volleyball 16 American National Championship. He has 36 years playing experience and played collegiately at Loyola Marymount University in California. He played on numerous AA HOA Regional Champion teams and played in 12 USAV National Championship tournaments. Don coached the 1980 Boys Junior Olympic National Champion team. He's coached Girls Junior Olympic volleyball for 10 years, including 6 trips to the USAV Junior National Championships in the last 7 years. Don's team during the 2006-2007 season qualified to play in the Open Division at Nationals and finished 3rd in the country. His teams were Powerleague Champs 4 straight years from 2005-2008. Don will be coaching our 18-BLACK team this 2011-12 season with Marvin Forbes.
Virginia Hogan - Virginia returns to Coaching after a couple years off. She will be coaching the 12-Blue squad in 2011-12. Her Bio will follow soon.
Scott Jenkins - Scott started his volleyball career in 1990, playing for Raytown South boys’ varsity team. In 1992, he was a part of a 2nd place finish in the state finals. Scott was the undergrad assistant to the University of Missouri – Kansas City Div. 1 girls’ team in 1994-1996 under Coach Dawn Bunting. He has been a member of the USAV since 1992 in the Heart of American Region, playing on several A/BB men’s teams and earning regional titles over the years. In outdoor, he has many first place and top finishes in both men’s and coed doubles. Scott has 6 years of head-coaching experience at the junior club level.
Danny Kaleikau - Danny returns to Invasion after taking a year off. He will be coaching the 16-BLUE squad in 2011-12. His Bio will follow soon.
Mel Krerowicz - Mel Krerowicz started coaching USAV Club volleyball in 2002 – this will be her 10th season. She has coached age groups ranging from 11 through 17’s. Her teams have played at Denver Crossroads, Minneapolis Northern Lights and St. Louis Mid-East National Qualifiers. During the USAV Club “off” season, Coach Mel volunteers for the Blue Springs Youth Volleyball League (BSYVL) coaching girls 4th through the 8th grade. In conjunction with her volunteer work, Mel spends numerous hours working with players on technique and fundamentals. Coach Mel is known for her ability to teach solid fundamentals in a positive, motivational team environment and instills a strong work ethic in every player through repetition and discipline. Coach Mel will be head coach of our 12-BLACK team for the 2011-12 season.
Joe Maloney - Joe has been a fixture in the volleyball community in the Midwest for over thirty years. He has 20 years experience as a National Referee and as a Big 8/Big 12 NCAA Division I official. He has 10 years combined experience as the Head Volleyball Coach at Rockhurst University and Penn Valley Community College that includes winning seasons every year, District Coach of the Year recognition and a 5th place finish in the NJCAA National Tournament. He started, directed and coached the successful Kansas City Juniors Volleyball Club for boys and girls from 1981 to 1996. With his recent OPEN Championship in Reno with INVASION 15 BLACK, Joe has now coached six teams to National Championships, three to 2nd place finishes and four to 3rd place finishes. He served for five years as the Associate Commissioner of the Heart of America Region and has served as the Head Volleyball Coach at Raytown H.S. and Raytown South H.S. for a combined 9 years. Joe will assist Mark Ethridge on INVASION 17 BLACK in 2011-12.
Kerri McNett - Keri played volleyball in the Parochial league, USVBA league, and was also the starting setter at O'Hara High School while growing up. In college at the University of Missouri - Rolla, she was involved in intramurals as a player and coach. Since college, Kerri has played in various adult leagues and has coached in the Parochial League the past 6 seasons. Kerri will be coaching with her sister, Kelly Williams, on the 14-BLUE squad in 11-12.
Kally Metzler - Kally returns to Invasion this year with a wealth of playing and coaching experience. Kally played volleyball in the Parochial School league growing up and played at O'Hara High School where she was part of a State Champion team and earned all-district and all-conference honors. She played juniors volleyball, including two years with Invasion before moving on to play volleyball at Rockhurst University. She has coached in the Parochial School League for 4 years and Juniors volleyball for 6 years.
Julie Ohlms - Julie joins Invasion this year for her first year coaching Club Volleyball after a lengthy playing career. Julie grew up in the St. Louis area and started playing volleyball when she was just 9 years old and has been playing ever since. She played in H.S. and for St. Charles Xplosion during the club season before moving on to play college ball first at State Fair Community College in Sedalia before finishing up last year at Avila University. Julie will be coaching our 11-BLACK squad in 2011-12 with Amy Benne.
Caitlin Robinson – Caitlin began playing Club Volleyball at age 9 and has been playing ever since. She was a part of some of the most successful Invasion teams during her playing career. This is her first year in a formal coaching role where she’ll be working with Cliff Robinson and Tim Robinson on the 14-BLACK team.
Eddie Robinson - Eddie has played USAV adult volleyball and coached developmental teams for 11 years and this is his 5th year coaching with Invasion. He is the current Commissioner of the Blue Springs Youth Volleyball League. Eddie will be Head Coaching our 16-BLACK team in 2011-12.
Tim Robinson – While Tim has limited formal Volleyball Experience, he’s been around the game since he was 5. He played two years on Invasion’s Boys teams, has played sand ball and leagues and looks forward to the season to learn more about the game and, at the same time, share his time and energy with the team. Tim will be working with Cliff Robinson and Caitlin Robinson on the 14-BLACK team.
Shauna Tuiono-Horn - Shauna joins Invasion this year with a wealth of Volleyball experience. She was an All-Conference, All-Metro and All-State selection as a player at Fort Osage H.S. and went on to play college ball at Eastern Arizona University and the University of Arizona. She has coached the last few years at many levels and will be coaching our 15-BLUE squad for the 2011-12 season.
Kelly Williams - As a player Kelly played High School volleyball at O'Hara High School, college volleyball at Benedictine College and was on USVBA club teams throughout High School and College. After college she played on both women's and coed volleyball USVBA teams and has coached many girls and boys club teams over the past 23 years. Kelly continues to play when she can and greatly enjoys helping young volleyball athletes learn and play the game. Kelly will be coaching our 14-BLUE team with her sister, Kerri McNett, in 11-12.
Marnie Winters - At 5'-5", Marnie was a middle hitter for KC Lutheran High School, Christ College in Irvine, CA and Park College through 1990. She played MH/OH/DS for USAV womens' A and AA teams for many years after college. Marnie has coached three years of Gold Level club volleyball for Titan Jrs and Invasion, has coached girls basketball and softball and has trained soccer players in conditioning. Marnie is currently coaching women's volleyball at MCC-Longview College and will be coaching our 17-BLUE team with Kelly Crawford this season.