Before they can change the volleyball culture, they have the set the foundation and that’s what the Columbia Basin Elite Volleyball Club in Moses Lake hopes to do.

The non-profit volleyball club will be holding tryouts for four separate teams on Nov. 5 and Nov. 12 at Big Bend Community College. The 12-and-under and U14 tryouts are from 2 to 4 p.m. on Nov. 5 and the U16 and U18 tryouts are the following Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m. on Nov. 12.

“We are trying promote volleyball in Moses Lake in stages. Kids from our U18 team will feed into the program at Big Bend Community College,” Columbia Basin Elite director Jennifer De Hoog said. “It should strengthen the high school program, it should strengthen the middle school program. We’re trying to increase the various levels of volleyball in Moses Lake and the surrounding areas by expanding the volleyball knowledge to a broader area.”

The Columbia Basin Elite Volleyball Club is in its third season. The U16 and U18 teams seasons begin in November and the two younger programs will start their seasons in January. They will play in the Evergreen Region Volleyball Association, which is governed under the guidelines of USA volleyball regulations. The league includes teams from Wenatchee, Spokane, Tri-Cities, Yakima and Moses Lake and the surrounding area around eastern Washington.

The under-18 team will be coached by Big Bend Community College coach Mike De Hoog, and the 16 and 14 teams will benefit by information from several players from the current Viking roster.

“We’re still setting up the assistant staff. Since each head coach has to be 21, we’ll use the Big Bend players for the 14 and 16s,” Jennifer De Hoog said. “We’re still talking to them, but right now it looks like Laurissa Kisler (Warden), Savannah Bass (The Dalles, Ore.), JoAndra Wilson (Lapwai, Idaho), and Madison Powers (Boulder, Mont.). So the younger players can benefit from college players experience.”

Columbia Basin Elite also runs programs for 7- 10-year-olds, beginning in January, which includes both boys and girls.

The tournament traveling teams schedule is from November to March for ages 10-through-18. We have teams at the U-12, U-14, U-16 and U-18 levels. Our tryouts will be coming up soon (Nov. 5 and Nov 12 at BBCC).

Previous seasons have involved participants from Coulee City to Othello and Quincy to Harrison to make it a truly Columbia Basin organization. For more information log onto the club website at www.cbelitevolleyball.com or contact DeHoog jendehoog@hotmail.com.