Category Archives: Game Official

Vincent Buehler

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Vincent began his lifelong association with volleyball at the age of 16 when he started playing with the American Turners in New York City. At age 18 he became the player/coach for the Turners, a position he held for the next 15 years.  During that time, his team competed in many USA Volleyball National Championships.

In 1970, Vincent became a regional referee in the Garden Empire in New York City for USA Volleyball. Two years later he earned his national rating for USAV. He was selected to referee at Madison Square Garden for the US National Team at an exhibition match.

Vincent moved to Connecticut in 1970 where he began his 28-year officiating career refereeing girls’ high school games. He contributed as a referee assignor for the Fairfield county area assigning 43 high schools. He also held the position as rules interpreter for that district.

He started the Fairfield County USA Jr. Olympic girls’ volleyball program and set up volleyball camps in Fairfield county for high school girls.

Vincent also game of his time as a volunteer for the Special Olympics World Games in New Haven and he served as the co-coordinator for the 3rd Annual Easter Seals Volleyball Marathon.

Vincent received awards from the town of Stratford for his time and donations to the sports programs in the schools. Most recently he was honored by the FCIAC when they named their league MVP aware after Vincent A. Buehler.

During his 42 years of participation in the sport of volleyball, it is believed that he played and officiated somewhere between 35,000 to 40,000 games.

Volleyball was his number one passion.

Fran Vandermeer

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Fran graduated from Bulkeley High School in Hartford and from Southern Connecticut State University, where she captained the Owls’ volleyball team. Formerly the head volleyball coach at Lewis Mills High School, Connecticut College and St. Joseph College, she is presently the head coach of the volleyball and softball teams at Trinity College.

Fran is well-known in Connecticut for her 23 years of volleyball officiating. She has officiated the CIAC girls’ and boys’ state championships in all divisions. On the college level, she has been officiating NCAA games including as a referee in the Women’s Division II final game in 1996 and 1997 and at the Men’s Division I Final Four as a line judge in 1995. Her other notable refereeing experience include the 1998 Nike World Master’s games in Portland, Oregon.

She has been a member of the A.B.O.  National Rating Team (NRT) which rates candidates going for a national rating as well as the ABO National Training Team. working to train volleyball officials. Fran has worked as a high school and collegiate assigner for schools in Connecticut. Her other assigning duties have been as the America East assignor in 1996 and the 1995 Spacial Olympics World Games deputy commissioner for volleyball officials.