Hi everyone! My name is Larissa Byckalo. I have been a part of the volleyball scene for the last 20 years, and I am in my 9th year of coaching. I coach at Mountain Volleyball Club in Hamilton. I have coached from 14U-18U girls, and my last 18U team finished 4th in the country at Nationals Division 1 Tier 1 - it was an unforgettable experience. I am currently coaching MVC's 15U Vesuvius team, and they are such a hard-working, caring, eager group that I love to work with.

I have had the chance to coach for Team Ontario for 4 summers, including being a part of the 2017 Canada Games cycle, where we finished 4th at the Canada Games - overall an incredible experience. The summer of 2020 was my first summer as a Head Coach for Team Ontario, acting as one of the Head Coaches of Team Ontario Red (16U). The online delivery of a high performance program was fun and challenging, and kept me motivated in this difficult time.

Outside of volleyball, I am a teacher, teaching Physical Education, Mathematics, Social Science, and Special Education at the High School level. I've been an avid coach at the high schools I have been at, coaching both boys and girls volleyball, badminton, and girls soccer. One of my favourite highlights was going to OFSAA AA with my Senior Boys team and finishing 9th in the province - a huge feat for a team with only 2 club players on it. 

As a player, I spent most of my club career as a passing middle. At 5'9", I certainly wasn't one of the tallest middles, but my speed made up for that. In my 17U and 18U seasons I spent some time on the left side as well, before going on to play as a leftside at McMaster University to play under the guidance of Tim Louks. I had a fantastic university experience, going to the OUA finals 4 out of my 5 years of playing, and winning the OUA Championship once during my time there - the first OUA Championship for the Women's Volleyball team at McMaster. In my last 2 years, I was named an OUA West First Team All-Star twice, and in my final year was awarded the Dr. Edna Guest Award awarded to a graduating female student athlete at McMaster who "exemplifies the Spirit of McMaster". While at McMaster I studied Kinesiology, getting minors in both Anthropology and Religious Studies.

Since graduating, I've delved into playing both as a setter and libero, and so have some experience in basically every position on the court. I spend my summers at OELC (Ontario Educational Leadership Centre) helping students to build their leadership skills. 

As a coach, my coaching philosophy centres around hard-work, a desire to learn and improve, commitment, good sports-woman-ship, and fun. I've got a strong passion for team culture and developing the whole player, and will gladly chat team bonding or mental training for hours.