Mike Lingenfelter: Compete Every Day - Building Relentless Competitors in Practice & Matches

with Mike Lingenfelter;
Co-Director of the Asics Munciana Volleyball Club and Munciana Samurai Head Coach;
2024 Triple Crown Volleyball "Heart of Sport" Award;
2021 AVCA Club Coach of the Year;
2023 AAU Open Champions (18s);
2022 AAU Open Champions (18s);
2021 AAU Open Champions (18s);
2017 AAU Open Champions (18s);
2011 AAU Open Champions (18s);
2009 AAU Open and JVA National Champions (18s);
Former Wapahani HS (IN) Head Coach;
3x Indiana State High School Champions;
3x Indiana State Coach of the Year;
Former Cincinnati Head Coach;
Former Memphis Head Coach;
Played collegiately at Ball State University

Seven-time National Champion coach and 2021 AVCA Club Coach of the Year Mike Lingenfelter delivers a powerful look at how coaches can build relentless competitors by transforming the way practices are designed, taught, and evaluated.

In this comprehensive volleyball coaching video, Coach Lingenfelter shares the philosophies, standards, and competitive training methods that have helped him build championship-level teams and mentally tough athletes for decades. Through detailed classroom instruction and extensive on-court demonstrations, you will learn how to create practices that demand focus, accountability, resilience, and competitive intensity every single day.

Lingenfelter begins by breaking down the mindset behind building true competitors. He explains why competition must be intentionally taught in practice and how coaches can create environments that prepare athletes to handle pressure, adversity, and momentum swings during matches.

You will gain valuable insight into establishing standards and non-negotiables, motivating today's athletes, developing accountability, and creating a culture where players embrace challenges instead of avoiding them. Lingenfelter also discusses concepts such as failing forward through mistakes, trusting training under pressure, and developing athletes who compete against themselves as much as their opponents.

Moving onto the court, Coach Lingenfelter demonstrates how to create energetic and demanding practice environments through competitive drills and purposeful scoring systems. He explains the difference between cooperative and combative drills and shows how both are essential for developing communication, skill, and competitive toughness.

Throughout the video, you will see more than 15 drills and competitive training concepts designed to replicate match pressure and force players to compete in uncomfortable situations. These drills train pressure serving, finishing sets with a lead, recovering from mistakes, covering tips, responding to free balls, and maintaining focus during critical moments.

Featured drills and concepts include:

• Brazilian Warmup for communication, movement, and competitive focus
• Tip Cover Drill to improve positioning and reactions during unpredictable situations
• Pressure-based scoring drills that reinforce accountability and competitive execution
• Competitive finishing drills that teach players how to close out sets without losing focus
• Training strategies that simulate stressful match situations and force players to compete through adversity

Coach Lingenfelter also shares practical methods for evaluating practice intensity, tracking performance through scoring systems, and identifying which athletes consistently rise to competitive challenges.

This video is packed with championship-level insight for coaches who want to build tougher teams, create more competitive practices, and develop athletes who thrive under pressure when matches are on the line.

Customer Reviews: 5 Out of 5 Stars!
"I love hearing his philosophy and then seeing him put it into practice. He gave a lot of examples of how to create competition in practice in order to get more energy and effort from the players."

"Lingenfelter is so inspirational!"

118 minutes. 2026.