Start'Em Young - CUERVO STYLE

As much as we admire the great players that South Florida has on the hard court and the sand. We are pleased to see that girls are coming into the sport at a younger age and that clubs have special programs to help develop these girls into future elite performers. We came across one of the many families that we see at tournaments, parks and events and sat down with the Cuervo family.

Here is an "early" glimpse of the future of two up an coming athletes from South Florida who were born to play the game of volleyball. We met up with sisters Michelle Cuervo (age 9) , Melanie Cuervo (age 8) and their parents to discuss the sport.

SFVR: Hello Girls ! When was the first time that you remember liking volleyball ?
Michelle: When I was around 5 years old and I used to go to the Sunset H.S. games and my dad would bump with me during warm ups...
Melanie: When my dad and mom would play with me and my sister...we would go to many games together...

SFVR: What do you both like most about volleyball ?
Michelle: I like the spiking...(big smile)
Melanie: I like the setting most of all...(big smile)

SFVR: In the future, how do you think volleyball will be a part of your life ?
Michelle: I would like to be an Olympic athlete and play volleyball...
Melanie: I want to play for my school...

SFVR: Who is your favorite volleyball player ?
Michelle: Kerri Walsh (Olympian) and Sabrina Gonzalez (former Sunset H.S. player and current F.I.U. star)
Melanie: Misty May (Olympian) and Kerri Walsh (Olympian)

SFVR: How do you feel when you are playing volleyball and people are looking at you ?
Michelle: Nervous and excited...
Melanie: It makes me want to play better...


SFVR: What are your favorite numbers ? and why ?
Michelle: # 17 , It is my lucky number...
Melanie: # 7 , It's my lucky number...

SFVR: Who are some of the coaches that have made an impact and helped you so far in your young volleyball development ?
Michelle and Melanie:
Coaches - Charlie (Ball Llovera) , Camilo (Gaitan), Adriana (Fundora) , Mauricio (Diaz) , Vannessa (Abaunza) , Katie (Newby) , Flo and Michelle...

SFVR: If you were coach for a day, what would you ask of your players ?
Michelle: Work on drills like passing, serving, bumping, setting, and spiking...
Melanie: I would have them practice my very favorite drill - setting ...

Parent Questions?

SFVR: I see that Michelle and Melanie have a great grasp of this fantastic sport and there are many years to come for them to develop into solid volleyball players, is there anything you would like to say ?
Dad: Yes, We are blessed to have two exceptionally gifted daughters and my wife and I are so proud of all of their accomplishments so far. They truly are hardworking young girls that are having a lot of fun right now and playing really good volleyball. They both are honor roll students and they always put school first. I would like to let other parents know that in order for any child to succeed at any sport and life in general they first have to have a lot of love and support from their family. Sports are fantastic and they should be introduced at a slow pace so that the children may learn the fundamentals and basics first hand. Then, as the child progresses, the encouragement should increase. Michelle and Melanie have the potential and ability to become solid volleyball players,there is no doubt about it, but this won't happen without them enjoying the sport and having fun playing !

SFVR: Did Dad or Mom play organized volleyball at some point ?
Mom: I played varsity Water Polo in High School and love to watch my daughters play volleyball now !
Dad : Me too ! I actually played on my 7th grade volleyball team that made it to "junior high" volleyball championships held at Miami Dade Community College...It was a great experience and I played for only one season before transferring schools and taking up basketball as a player and then later as a coach. This was so different from the volleyball that is played nowadays. In today's age the game has grown so much, the speed and abilities of players is so much faster.
It's exciting to see, its great !

SFVR: How did you build a passion for sports/volleyball in general?
Armando: My mother (Michelle and Melanie's grandmother) was a huge sports fan, she passed away at a very early age, but she instilled sports in me like you cannot imagine. She had me playing baseball, basketball,Karate/Judo...you name it, I played it. She was a fantastic woman. May God Bless her always !

SFVR: How did you decide to have Michelle and Melanie try volleyball ?
Mom: My girls were born to play volleyball ! (My husband and I have been taking the girls to volleyball matches ever since they were born)
Armando: That's right...The girls have been exposed to many great matches...They were going to gymnasiums even before they could walk. We have exposed them to the best players throughout Miami Dade County for many years now and they are picking up different techniques from different folks. We really have great athletes that come out of Miami Dade County, and as you (and others) well know I will be launching my website, hopefully in the near future...The talent in Miami Dade County is so unbelievable. I'm so excited !!!

SFVR: What are some of the training techniques that you use with Michelle and Melanie ?
Mom and Dad: Well we just make it fun...and we make the time in our busy schedules to play with them...Most of the techniques come from the real pros (the different coaching that they receive from so many different people) and we just copy most of the techniques that we learn from different players,coaches and friends...

SFVR: Could you give us some examples?
Mom and Dad: Yes,of course...We have the girls pepper a lot. They need to get the control of the volleyball before anything can happen in a game situation.When we can, we work with them on passing and setting...These are the types of fundamentals that are crucial for every volleyball player to grasp.

SFVR: What are some nutritional aspects that you provide for Michelle and Melanie?
Mom and Dad: We make sure that they have a good breakfast every morning. They have to eat healthy foods. We try to follow the food pyramid and provide them with different vitamins. Remember , "If the tank is empty, then they run out of gas. it's simple."

SFVR: Do you have any quotes or sayings of any sorts in your household ?
Dad: Yes. "First work, then play. " (Work hard and play harder , then your level of success on and off the court increases.)

Every day we are seeing more families like the Cuervos that are incorporating the sport of volleyball into their children's lives. Every parent has their reason for doing so. We are just happy to see that kids are staring to play at an early age. If they are good at the age of 8 and 9 can you imagine how good they will be by 13.
We look forward to speaking with more families from across South Florida and showcasing our future stars.