Doc Vander Meer

Athletic Career

Doc was born into the world of volleyball, literally and figuratively speaking.  His parents, David & Michelle, met while playing in a coed beach tournament on the shores of West Michigan.  According to family lore, Doc’s been in the sand since infancy; his mother brought him to practice when she was just two months postpartum!  He even recalls childhood memories of Summers spent at the beach, corralled near a picnic bench with his four siblings while their parents competed on a court nearby.

When you’re around something for so long, it’s only a matter of time before personal interest sparks.  By age 10, Doc had played in many local beach tournaments and his formal indoor volleyball training began at Carpe Diem Volleyball Club (Grand Rapids, MI) under his parents’ tutelage.  In addition to participating in club volleyball through his teen years, he also made the USA Indoor Junior National Team (2007-2008) and the USA Beach Volleyball National Team (2010-2012).  

During senior year of high school, Doc signed a national letter of intent to play as a libero at Ball State University. This event is remarkable for many reasons - partially because of Doc’s ability to compete (and win) in a sport dominated by much taller peers and partially because of his aspirations to play beyond the club level in an environment that almost exclusively caters to female athletes.  Perhaps the most unique aspect of all is that Doc is believed to be the first athlete from the Grand Rapids area to accept an NCAA Division I scholarship for men’s volleyball.  Doc earned four Varsity letters at BSU, set school records for most digs in a four-set match (23), most 20+ dig matches in a season & in a career (three in 2014), and is eighth in program history for most digs in a season (308 in 2014).

After college, Doc decided to hang up his indoor volleyball shoes, instead opting for a professional career barefoot in the sand.  His first real attempt to break into the pro beach scene began in 2015 with a move to California and his participation in two AVP events, even winning a bid into his first Main Draw (Manhattan).  Between 2015-2022, he competed in nearly 30 events across four professional beach volleyball circuits: FIVB, AVP, p1440, and NVL.  Beyond tournaments, another element of Doc’s professional training involved a brief stint with the p1440 Elite Developmental Program, headed by three time Olympic Gold Medalist Kerri Walsh-Jennings (2019-2020).  Doc earned his best tournament finish in 2021, first battling through the qualifier and taking 5th place at the 2021 AVP Gold Series Atlanta Open as the 16th seed in the Main Draw - and only after beating Olympians Phil Dalhausser and Nick Lucena in a thrilling three-set match!  

Coaching Expertise

Doc has known from a young age that he wanted to help others reach their potential.  He was granted an assistant coaching position at Carpe Diem Volleyball Club at just 13 years old (2005-2017).  Over the years, he took on more responsibility, advancing beyond a head coach’s practice aid and venturing into the more obscure realm of recruitment, club promotion, tryout orchestration, and repetitious evaluation of athletes in different technical and tactical scenarios.  Outside of club coaching, Doc was hired on as an Assistant Coach for USA Beach Volleyball (Summer 2010), providing instruction on proper technique to 60 youth athletes and facilitated communication between players and parents to ensure a seamless experience.

In 2012, Doc became the Program Director of Beach Volleyball for Elite VBTC in Columbus, OH (2012-2016).  He lead a group of five coaches in the proper instruction of youth players, created practice plans for all age groups, and maintained knowledge of the established eligibility rules and regulations for all local high school and regional volleyball reigning bodies. The program started with 60 junior athletes and through Doc gradually grew to the point that it more than doubled in size the following year.  He cultivated strong relationships with parents and players, always reinforcing the value of keeping children involved in sports and using cross training as an avenue for success!

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Doc and his wife (Tiffany) traded one beach for another, moving from Southern California back to the Midwest and settling in Grand Haven, Michigan.  A few months later, Doc was hired on as the Head Coach for Davenport University’s Men’s Club Volleyball Team for the 2020-2021 season.  He relinquished his role after one year to resume professional beach volleyball training & competition.  It was during this time that Doc pondered where he wanted to take his coaching career next… and Vitae Volleyball was the seed that took root!