13 year old wants to make club team! HOW?

Question
Hi,
I'm 13 and I really want to make the club team one of my P.E. coaches has
outside of school. However, a lot of the girls who are trying out are better
than I am, and the team only accepts 12 girls, so I really need to get a whole
lot better. The try-outs start November 13, so I don't really have a lot of time,
but I can practice at least an hour everyday, and I have a beach volleyball and
a squash court. Can you give me any suggestions on how to improve my
playing skills overall?  

Answer
Good evening Elaine, and welcome to www.allexperts!  It's great to hear from you.

First, a few obvious facts:
a) if you are athletic, you have a better chance to make the team!
b) if you are tall, you have a little better chance!

But regardless:  Here's my advice on what to do in the weeks before tryouts!

1) Get as much time on that squash court as you can with older and/or more experienced girls who have been coached so you can learn the game;
2) Get as much time with any coaches who can teach you the game.  
3) Can you find & afford a few private lessons?  That'll be GREAT!!!

What skills you need to work on to impress your coach:
1) Can you overhand serve?  If not, WORK ON THAT every day.  If so, can you serve a floater?  :)
2) Do you know a 3-step spike approach?  If not, find someone to teach you.  If so, practice spiking a ball while doing your spike approach.  
3) Can you set?  If so, can you back set?  If so, you could be VERY valuable to the team.  Why my stepdaughter was getting ready for her first every school tryout, I taught her how to set.  She made the team, started, they went 2-11 haha, and it was the last time she set!  :)  
4) You will be expected to bump & dig on the team.  But that is really hard to learn to do quickly unless you have a coach/trainer to stand there and help you.  I wouldn't spend ANY time on this, unless you have someone there who knows what they're doing.  

On tryout days:

5) Arrive early, smile, help set up the nets, smile
6) Encourage your teammates throughout all drills.  Back in December, a girl who the coaching staff didn't even now made my team over other girls we knew, not only b/c she was really good, but b/c my assistant noticed that she was always encouraging her teammates during drills.
7) Hustle, hustle, hustle.  Coaches know that if you don't hustle during TRYOUTS, that you certainly won't hustle at normal practices.  

Then trust that the coaches to keep the best players!  
And if you don't make the team, try out again next season!!

I hope that you have time to visit www.coachhouser.com.  I think you'll really like all the smiling faces!!

Chat later!
Coach Houser