Located in tampa, florida
International
Volleyball Company
Coach Vanja
Owner of IVC- U16 & U14 Head Coach
Coach Vanja was born in Former Yugoslavia, lived in Germany, and has been in the United States since 1999. He fell in love with the game of volleyball in high school. He graduated with his Master's Degree from Drake University and is employed in the private sector.
During his extensive volleyball career, he had the opportunity to play and coach a great variety of athletes including athletes who went and played for their country's national teams, college athletes including multiple Divison I athletes, and former players who are now also coaches.
Coach Vanja is CAP II certified through USAV and is a graduate of Gold Medal Squared Program. His previous club successes include top 20 finishes in the nation (4166 teams), multiple qualifications for bids at Junior Olympics, (Open, USA, and American levels), and a 33 game unbeaten streak at U14. Coach Vanja won multiple qualifying tournaments including Big South and Disney.
During his four years at Plant High School, Coach Vanja won 3 Regional Championships, 4 District Championships, and a finish as the 2018 State Runner Up. Coach Vanja was voted Western Conference Coach of the Year in 2017, 2018, and 2020 by his peers. His current high school record is 94-25.
Specialties
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Training athletes to get to the next level
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Hitting (adding 2-3 inches to a hitters contact point)
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Serving (specifically jump float)
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Blocking (swing blocking)
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Setting (jump setting, dumps, consistency)
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Tactical (placements and advanced skills)
Coach Kiana
U17 & U15 Head Coach
Coach Kiana was born in Stuart, FL where she comes from a family of college athletes. Her father was a Division I two-sport athlete, her mother was Division II two-sport athlete, her older brother a Division I football player for USF, her younger brother is currently a Division I football player at FAU, and her younger sister will attend NCA&T in the fall for volleyball.
Coach Kiana followed in her family’s footsteps by continuing the legacy of becoming a college athlete. She was an All-Area and All-State right-side hitter in high school, winning 2 state championships in 2012 and 2015 with a runner-up in 2013 and final 4 appearances in 2014 while also participating in weightlifting, track and flag football throughout high school. She played indoor volleyball at Southeastern University from 2016-2018 while earning her B.S in Kinesiology. After graduation, Coach Kiana played beach volleyball at the University of Tampa where they won their first AVCA Small College National Championship in 2019. During this time, she earned her Master’s Degree in Exercise and Nutrition Sciences.
Coach Kiana is currently a Sports Performance Coach at Saddlebrook Resort in Tampa where she specializes in elite training dedicated to the overall athletic development of junior and professional athletes. She evaluates each athlete and creates an individualized strength, speed, conditioning, agility, and flexibility program to address the target improvements to take their game to the next level. Coach Kiana has assisted multiple University of Tampa volleyball camps (skills and team camps) and was an assistant coach for a previous volleyball club. With her vast array of knowledge in movement and nutrition, she will take our IVC athletes to the next level by providing the extra foundational building blocks that separates great athletes from good athletes.
Specialties
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Jumping (training to increase your vertical in approach, block, and serve)
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Offense (hitting and blocking, offensive tactics)
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Quick and Explosive movements
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Defense (reading hitters, working with blockers)
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Left-Handed Hitters
Coach Hannah
U16 Asst. Coach
Coach Hannah is a proud product of Charleston, West Virginia, and became a Tampa transplant in 2020. She began training as a middle blocker in the 8th grade and continued to play that position throughout her college career. In high school, she earned 1st Team All-State honors twice and was the West Virginia Gatorade Player of the Year as a senior in 2012 - the same year her team won the Class AAA State Championship. Additionally, her father became an assistant coach at the high school in 2009 and remains there today (helping the school win two more state championships so far).
At the college level, Coach Hannah competed in the Big 12 Conference for West Virginia University where she earned several Big 12 Conference and WVU honors for her performance on and off the court. Additionally, as a senior, Coach Hannah led the team as a co-captain. She graduated summa cum laude in 2016 and finished her Master's Degree in 2017 in accounting. Throughout her college career, she assisted with a variety of camps and private lessons for younger players.
Currently, Coach Hannah works for an assurance practice within a Top 20 Accounting firm (she is a licensed CPA in two states). Her love of volleyball led her back to coaching in her spare time to help grow the game and develop the next generation of competitors.
Specialties
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Movements for tall players (in all skills)
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Attacking (approach, speed, and placement)
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Blocking (reading, alignment, and timing)
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Court Awareness (detail orientation, communication, and strategy)
Coach Brent
U13 Head Coach
Coach Brent started playing sand volleyball in Tucson, AZ during college and loved the sport and the volleyball community, as well. He carried this love with him to Upstate New York after college, where he competed in both Men's Indoor Club as well as the Summer Beach Volleyball circuit in NY and NJ. Highlights include winning bids to compete in the Men's Nationals (indoors) and winning Doubles Beach tournaments in both NY and NJ.
After his first daughter was born (Hello, Coach Rachel!) his priorities shifted and he just played in local leagues, until Rachel became interested in playing volleyball and then he started coaching. He coached both of his daughters Club teams (12U - 14U) for 6+ years, plus coached 3 years at a local Middle School, as well as running some Club Enhancement sessions between seasons.
As a Coach, his goals are to develop self confident players who understand the game, the importance of teamwork and can appreciate and share his love and enjoyment of the sport and the volleyball community
Specialties
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Fundamental training
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Serving techniques
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Technical and Tactical Approach to Volleyball
Coach Chloe
U13 Asst. Coach
Coach Chloe was born in New Orleans, LA, where she and her sister grew up playing sports at a very young age. Her father initially started coaching her in tennis and began playing for a small club volleyball team at 10 years old. In 7th grade, Chloe and her family moved to Tampa, FL where she continued her love of playing volleyball. Attending Freedom High School, she played all four years as a setter and right-back/defensive specialist for the Patriots as well as competed in USTA tournaments. As one of the leading servers for her varsity career, the consistent training in volleyball and tennis effectively strengthened her serving and defensive movement on both courts. Upon her freshman year of college, Coach Chloe decided to pursue a tennis scholarship where she played singles and doubles for the Saint Leo University (Sunshine State Conference) women’s tennis team.
She then transferred and graduated from the University of South Florida in 2013 with her Bachelor’s in Psychology. Currently, Coach Chloe works in recruiting, and she is seeking to pursue her master’s degree in Sports Psychology and become a Certified Mental Performance Consultant.
As a first-year volleyball coach, she hopes to bring her love of the volleyball game, along with pushing the players to the best of their ability, and the understanding of mental toughness athletes need to be successful; to all of the players at IVC.
Specialties:
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Defensive & Strategic Player Movement
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Setting
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Court awareness & Athlete Mental Perfomance
Coach Kaitlyn
U15 Asst. Coach
Coach Kaitlyn Bio is pending
Coach Rachel
U14 Asst. Coach
Coach Rachel grew up in Vestal, NY. She was first introduced to volleyball at a very young age going to her father's indoor and beach volleyball tournaments. She began playing with her dad and years later, her dad would become on of her club coaches. During her club and high school years, she transitioned from being an outside hitter to a setter.
After finishing her club and high school volleyball career, Coach Rachel went on to play at SUNY Broome. She currently holds the record for Digs/Set averaging 6.05 digs. During her college career, her team also won the MSAC tournament and took 3rd at the regional tournament.
In 2019, Coach Rachel decided to continue her education at the University of South Florida. To continue her love for the game, Coach Rachel joined the USF Club Volleyball team and acted as the Treasurer and the Vice President. She then graduated from the University of South Florida in 2021 with her Bachelors in Health Science. She is currently studying for the Medical School Admissions Test in hopes to pursue a medical degree in the near future.
This will be Coach Rachel's first year coaching volleyball, however, she has previous coaching experience in the sport of gymnastics. Coach Rachel is excited to bring her knack for technical and precise movement to IVC and follow in her father's footsteps as a volleyball coach.
Specialties:
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Setting (training new and experienced setters, working on a quicker release, footwork, jump setting, dumping, etc.)
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Defense (body position, reading, and form)
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Offense (faster tempo sets to run a quicker tempo offense)
