The Santa Barbara Volleyball Club?s 16-Blue team earned a region bid for the USA Volleyball Junior National Championships in Dallas at the end of June.
?We are proud of the girls for working so hard to reach their goal!? said coach Paige Craine.
The team came close to earning an Open bid at the SCVA Junior National Qualifier in Las Vegas back in March, falling short with a 5-3 record after barely losing a battle on the second day to tournament champion Woodlands Wave (25-21, 23-25, 15-13).
Santa Barbara Volleyball Club’s McKenna Goss slides outside for a spike during recent SCVA Tournament.
With that ever-present in mind, the team worked hard in its region to find another way in. With a 20-8 record and an overall 5th-place ranking in the Southern California Volleyball Association, the team received a bid in the National Division from its So Cal region.
Over the past weekend, the 16s teams played in their final SCVA final rounds. The 16-Blue finished with a 2-1 record, beating Long Beach 16-Rockstar and Goldenwest 16-Asics> Its sole loss was to Mavericks 900 16-Black, 27-25, 28-26.
The 16-White team also had a successful day despite being down both defensive specialists. The team rallied to a 2-1 record for second in its pool. After losing a nail-biter match against Nfinity, 25-22, 17-25, 16-14, the team came back to beat LAVA South 16-Andre and Arroyo Elite 16s.
?(That) shows the fight and teamwork of the 16-White,? said Coach Kat Niksto. ?Everyone contributed, but especially Tatum Vedder stepping into the role of libero for the day, and Paige Mascari setting a balanced attack all around. Hannah Seabury and Siena Goggia also both took some big swings from the right side.?
The 16-Red team lost to Coast 16-Brett and Starlings 15s and beat Fresh Start 16s and finished third for the day.
