GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- Grand Rapids Rise head coach Cathy George will host the 2025 Rise Coaches Clinic on August 7.
She'll be joined by Associate Head Coach Mike Gawlik.
The clinic will run from 12:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. inside the M-S-A Fieldhouse in Cascade Township. The clinic for volleyball coaches will cover a wide range of training topics, tactical strategies, and in-game scenarios relevant across all levels of coaching.
Here is more information from a Grand Rapids Rise news release:
Grand Rapids Rise head coach and vice president of volleyball operations Cathy George, along with associate head coach Mike Gawlik, will host the 2025 Rise Coaches Clinic on Thursday, Aug. 7, at the Rise’s practice facility inside the MSA Fieldhouse in Cascade, Michigan. The clinic will run from 12:30 p.m. to 5 p.m., with check-in beginning at noon.
Designed specifically for volleyball coaches, the clinic will cover a wide range of training topics, tactical strategies, and in-game scenarios relevant across all levels of coaching. Coaches interested in attending need to complete this online registration form and submit any specific topics they would like covered. The event is not open to the general public. The cost is $50 per individual coach or $125 for a group of three.
George and Gawlik will be joined by Rise standouts Carli Snyder, Paige Briggs-Romine and Alyssa Jensen, who will assist with on-court demonstrations and share their professional insights from the 2025 Pro Volleyball Federation season.
Now entering her 37th season as a head coach, George led the Rise to the PVF championship match in the team’s inaugural 2024 campaign. The winningest coach in Michigan State volleyball history, she spent 17 seasons (2005–21) at MSU and totaled 35 years as a collegiate head coach, including 11 at Western Michigan. Her Division I coaching career began in 1989 at UT-Arlington, where she led the program to the NCAA Final Four in her debut season — the first female head coach to do so. George began her collegiate head coaching career at Division II North Dakota State and went on to accumulate 667 wins at the collegiate level across all divisions.
Gawlik joined the Rise coaching staff ahead of the 2025 season, following nine campaigns as the head coach at Central Michigan and 11 previous seasons as George’s assistant at Michigan State (2005–15). During his time with the Spartans, he played a key role in nine NCAA Tournament appearances and served as defensive coordinator, recruiting coordinator, and position coach for defensive specialists and blockers.
Snyder, a native of Macomb, Michigan, was a key contributor for the Rise in 2025, earning All-League Second Team honors and a selection to the PVF All-Star Match. The 6-foot-1 outside hitter set a single-match team record with six aces and led the Rise in both kills and digs in 2025. Before joining Grand Rapids, Snyder spent six professional seasons in France, where she was twice named the best outside hitter in the country’s top division. At Dakota High School and with Michigan Elite club, she earned four All-Michigan First Team selections, was a two-time Michigan Gatorade Player of the Year (2012-13, 2013-14), and was named the 2013 Miss Michigan Volleyball.
Briggs-Romine, a native of Ortonville, Michigan, played in nearly every match for the Rise during the 2025 season and earned PVF Player of the Week honors in April. She won the 2024 PVF championship as a rookie with the Omaha Supernovas. Before turning professional, Briggs-Romine was a three-time AVCA All-American and the 2023 Conference USA Alyssa Cavanaugh Player of the Year at Western Kentucky, where she helped lead the Hilltoppers to multiple conference titles.
Jensen (nee Garvelink), a native of Holland, Michigan, played four seasons at Michigan State under George from 2014 to 2017, finishing her collegiate career with 1,002 kills and 521 blocks. As a senior, she was named AVCA Second Team All-America and First Team All-Big Ten. She made her professional debut with the Rise on March 4, 2024, and has since totaled 113 kills and 83 blocks across 35 matches. Her career-best outing came in a win over San Diego on March 9, 2025, when she had 12 points with six blocks. In high school, she was a Michigan Miss Volleyball finalist and a two-time All-State selection at Holland Christian.
To see the latest list of summer volleyball camps the Rise are hosting or taking part in, click here for more details and registration info.
ABOUT PRO VOLLEYBALL FEDERATION
Pro Volleyball Federation is the leading professional volleyball league in the United States. PVF sets the standard for the sport, offering the largest number of franchises, unmatched attendance, extensive broadcast coverage and substantial championship prize money. It combines top-tier talent, including NCAA stars and international athletes, with cutting-edge production and technology to provide fans with an unmatched viewing experience. As a vital link between collegiate volleyball and the professional stage, PVF is dedicated to shaping the future of the sport and increasing visibility for its athletes. For more information, visit ProVolleyball.com.
ABOUT THE GRAND RAPIDS RISE
Founded in December 2022 as the first Pro Volleyball Federation franchise, the Grand Rapids Rise made their debut at Van Andel Arena on Jan. 25, 2024. Led by longtime Michigan State and Western Michigan head coach Cathy George, the Rise reached the championship match during their inaugural season. The team is operated by DP Fox Sports & Entertainment and owned by Dan DeVos, who is also majority owner and CEO of the American Hockey League’s Grand Rapids Griffins and minority owner of West Michigan Soccer, which will begin play in MLS NEXT Pro in 2027. Visit grrise.com for more information.