12/12/2024
Congratulations Coach Joey Alfonso, our 2024 Brian Snitker Award : : APIVEO Youth Coach of the Year! sponsored by Akins Ford Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram!! There is no doubt Coach Alfonso is a competitor through and through, however, his commitment to developing his players, both on and off the court, is what sets him apart and makes us proud to honor him as a great coach and a great man.
A little about Coach Alfonso:
A native of nearby Bishop in Oconee County, Alfonso graduated from Oconee County High School where he played baseball and football. He later attended and played baseball at Georgia College in Milledgeville before transferring to UGA. After having not played the sport for a few years, he walked on the Bulldog football squad in 1988. In Vince Dooley’s final campaign as head coach, Alfonso was named Georgia’s scout team player of the week for each week of the season. At 139 pounds, it was discovered he was the lightest player to have ever played under Dooley. As the Bulldogs’ starting second baseman in 1989 and 1990, Alfonso led the team in stolen bases both seasons and still holds the school record for putouts at the position for a season and career. As a senior on Georgia’s 1990 national championship team, he was the recipient of the program’s Jim Umbricht Award as the squad’s most competitive player.
Joey graduated from UGA’s business school, He received his degree in risk management and insurance but wanted to coach. He eventually got a coaching position at Athens Academy when he was also getting his Master’s in education at UGA. Joey was at Athens Academy for nine years before teaching and coaching at Oconee County High School for a couple of years. He started at Apalachee High School in 2002 and has been here for 20 plus years. Joey currently teaches PE and is the head volleyball coach. Also, He became an ordained minister in 2007 and, since then, he’s been preaching out at a small campground in Greensboro, Georgia.
As the head volleyball coach at Apalachee High School for over 10 years now he has led the program to several region championships, multiple state playoff runs including an Elite 8 finish and has been named region coach of the year multiple times. But the awards are not what set Coach Alfonso apart – it is his desire to touch each child’s life that comes into his path.
A few candid comments from a coaching colleague, Ashley Long :
"I had the pleasure of coaching side by side with Joey Alfonso for 5 years (2016-2021) and have since then kept in touch with the program. I was referred to talk to him about coaching from a previous coach I had in my life and while I was very nervous about embarking on a journey with the unknown it truly was one of the biggest blessings that happened in my life. As I was “interviewed” on the practice field one day during one of his PE classes I remember him telling me that while the volleyball aspect was important his goal was to build this program around family and that at the end of the day if we can have each girl that comes through the program leave a better person then we have succeeded. Through the years of coaching alongside Joey Alfonso it was his competitiveness that really brought the fire to the court but it was the FAMILY aspect that he talked about on day 1 and that was the foundation of the entire volleyball program. From late night coaches’ meetings talking about struggling players to summer retreats to the mountains to help pour into the girls lives and any hard situations they may have been going through; while winning and bringing home a title was super important, the wellbeing of each girl was the start and end of every season.
Through my years of working with the program there were several hardships that hit the program from sickness, car crashes, death, and more but each time this program rallied around and gave support to whoever needed it at the time. But this year on September 4, 2024 when the unimaginable happened Joey Alfonso once again gathered up his Volleyball Family and rallied strong to fight for every single person. The Friday after he called together a gathering of the program, current and former coaches, nearby coaches, referees showed up as well. During this time Coach stood up and this was a quote from his speech, “This is our community, you are our people and I want you to fight for that, I want you to fight for the right to live, I want you to honor those that we lost, and I want you to reengage with a smile on your face the best you can.”"
Coach Alfonso has selected Becks Helping Hands as the recipient of the $5,000 donation provided by our sponsor, Akins Ford.
Congratulations Coach Alfonso, you Always Play IV Each Other in everything you do!
