FAQs

Q: How old does my daughter have to be to tryout for Northern Impact?

A: There is not a set age your daughter has to be. Our youngest players have been 9 year old. The youngest team designation we have is for a 12 and under team (12U) which means players were born on, or after, July 1, 2014.  If your daughter is age 9-12 she would, most likely, play on this team.

Q: How many teams will Northern Impact have for each age group?
A: We are planning on two teams for ages 13-17 and one team for 12s and 18s.

Q: Is Northern Impact limited to players in the Mounds View School District?
A: No. Northern Impact is not a "closed" club and welcomes players from all across the metro area. This past year we had representation from more than 12 different high school districts.

Q: How do I register?
A: You can pre-register for tryouts online. Day of registrations are also accepted but pre-registration really helps us plan ahead.

Q: How much does it cost to tryout?
A: 2026-2027 winter tryout fee is $50, if paid prior to the weekend of tryouts.  Late registration for tryouts is $60.

Q: What sort of a down payment is required if my daughter makes a team?
A: There will be a non-refundable down payment due the day of tryouts for $500 for U12 Players and $600 for Ages 13-and-up to secure your commitment to the club. You will have the option to pay for the rest of the season in full or set up automatic monthly payments.

Q: What do I need to bring to tryouts?
A: Your player needs to come ready for play with shorts, t-shirt, and court shoes. Knee pads and a water bottle are encouraged, but not required. Every player will get a tryout t-shirt to wear.

Q: Can I watch tryouts?
A: No.  We ask that parents stay in the lobby area during tryouts. There is some limited window space to see the players, but we ask that no parents are present in the gym during tryouts.  Parents may choose to stay and be present outside of the gym, if their child needs them, and we encourage that.

Q: How are players evaluated? How are teams formed?
A: There will be dedicated evaluators on each court for tryouts. The players will be evaluated in each of the primary skills of passing, setting, serving and hitting. There will also be a significant amount of playing time dedicated to seeing the players in game like situations where evaluators will be able to get a feel for their court sense, leadership, aggressiveness, and defensive capabilities. Teams will be chosen by the coaches at each age level based primarily upon the scoring done by the evaluators.  The club will attempt to release players who will not be placed on a team as soon as possible, in order to spend more time focused on specific team placements for selected players.  About 2-hours into the tryout session, players will take a break and the club will attempt to secure commitments from selected players, prior to releasing unselected players, in order to assure that we fill all of our teams on tryout day.  Once those commitments are secured, those selected players will return to the gym and continue playing until actual team assignments are announced.

Q: Can I request my child play up?
A: When you register we ask for your player’s birthdate, but allow parents to determine which tryout the player will attend.  We strongly encourage playing at their own age level, but there may be exceptions.  The coaching staff will make thorough evaluations of each player’s abilities and take into account the need at other age levels when they're making their evaluations. Any offer to advance a player to a higher age level is at the club's discretion and will only be made after consulting with The Director and player's parent(s).

Q: Is there an opportunity to practice or meet Northern Impact staff before tryouts?
A: Northern Impact will host multiple Open Gym and information sessions.  Our Club Director and/or coaches will be on-hand to assist, but these are true open gyms and will not include organized drills or games, unless staff are asked by players to assist.

Visit https://nivb.org/opengym for dates and times.

Q: My child plays other sports or participates in other activities. Is a practice schedule available?
A: Practice times will be made available as soon as possible and a link will be shared here before September 21, 2026. Each team will practice twice a week for at least 90 minutes and players will also be required to attend skills training for their position on a regular basis.  Practices are held Mon-Fri starting as early as 5:00 p.m. and finishing as late as 9:55 pm.  Typically, later times are assigned to older players and younger players will practice earlier.

Q: Where are practices held?

Practices are planned to be held at The New Brighton Community Center except in rare cases where that is unavailable.  The club will likely offer additional training locations in the course of the season and those locations will be announced as far in advance as possible.

Q: Where are games played?

Northern Impact plays most matches within a 1-hour drive of New Brighton, MN, but will travel to at least one multi-day event outside of that distance.  Rochester, MN and Duluth, MN are currently planned in 2027.  Travel as far as Rochester and St. Cloud are not uncommon for single day events but are not likely more than once or twice a season.

Q: What age group is my child in for the 2025-26 season?
A: Use this link to determine the proper age group classification: https://usavolleyball.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/USAV-2026-2027-Age-Definition-Chart.pdf

Q: My daughter won't be available on tryout day.  Can she tryout early somehow?
A: Yes, but this is complicated.  Due to the fact that almost all clubs in our area tryout at the same time, players who will not attend our tryout may tryout early at an open gym, or by special appointment, but they will be required to pay the entire tryout fee AND first payment deposit (up to $650) in order to be considered for a team.  This is necessary to prevent a situation where a player tries out early for us, and attempts to tryout elsewhere during our normal tryout time, hoping to weigh options after offers are made.  Players who tryout early and make a team are automatically added to that teams roster and the deposit collected.  If the player declines the roster position, the deposit is retained by the club to compensate for the player holding that roster position which could have been offered to a player in attendance at the tryout.  That's all a long way of saying that we will happily do it, but if your intention is to game the system by attending multiple club tryouts, we will keep your money if you go elsewhere.