Thousands of girls spiking and blocking at Richmond volleyball tournament

The Richmond Convention Center has been one of the nerve centers of girl's club volleyball on the East Coast this weekend.

The eighth Monument City Classic tournament attracted 280 teams of girls age 12-18 from Virginia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Delaware and Ohio for the tournament that began Saturday and wraps up today.

The tournament has grown wildly since 2004 when the Richmond Volleyball Club started it with 62 teams.

"This was what we envisioned," said Skip Weston, RVC's director of operations. "We advertised in national magazines and sent information to different regions. We maxed out for the first time last year and we had to turn away 110 teams this year."

Last year, the Richmond Metropolitan Convention & Visitors Bureau estimated the event had an $1.6 million economic impact on the region. Between coaches, parents, players and spectators, more than 7,000 people were to be part of the event this year. Only 20 of the teams this year are from the Richmond area, meaning most of the participants are staying at area hotels and eating in restaurants.

"Most volleyball teams are 12-14 players, and we conservatively figure on one parent per player," Weston said.

One of the out-of-town clubs that Weston credits with increasing the profile of the tournament is the Triangle Volleyball Club from Raleigh, N.C.

Triangle executive director Sherri Fadool said her club has been very pleased with its participation on the Monument City Classic.

"There are a lot of tournaments that take place this weekend and it shows what a good job Skip and the Richmond Volleyball Club does that they get so many teams here and have to turn so many away," Fadool said. "We run a tournament and I know it takes a lot of labor and volunteer work to set it up and break it down. This is a very well run, organized event."

Fadool's club brought 182 people to Richmond this year.

"We've been treated very well here," Fadool said. "We roll up to the hotel and we have a banquet waiting for us. That is important. This is the kickoff event for our season. This event is perfect for team building. Our club culture is very important, and a road trip like this helps build that."

When this tournament began it was a two-day event that took place on different weekends in late January depending on the availability of the convention center. The decision to lock it in on the Martin Luther King Day weekend was a great move, Fadool said.

"I wanted to have it that weekend, but it was a bit of an accident that it was moved to this weekend," Weston said. "One year we were scheduled to have our event the same weekend as a Democratic convention. Because we had proven that we can bring a lot of people in, we traded that weekend for the Martin Luther King day weekend."

One of the other benefits is the interest generated from college volleyball coaches. The National Collegiate Athletic Association mandates quiet periods for coaches, certain times where they can't make any contact with potential high school recruits. The most recent quiet period ended Saturday. Weston said anywhere from 80-100 college coaches were expected at the convention center this weekend.

"I've been coming to this event for a couple of years," William and Mary assistant coach Monica Marlowe said. "These holiday weekend tournaments are important for us. It's a good mix of clubs that come here and the talent level is really growing in this region."

Fadool pointed out that even in difficult economic times, youth sports continue to grow.

"We've seen 10-15 percent growth in the East Coast," Fadool said. "It's becoming very competitive and more and more tournaments are coming into play and still filling up all their slots."