Any Given Day at the USAV Girls' Junior National Championships

Erin Campbell
Intern, Media Relations and Publications
Phone: (719) 228-6864
E-Mail: erin.campbell@usav.org

RENO, Nev. (June 26, 2010) – Sports are one of the most universal interests among everyone in the world. People watch because they want to root on their favorite team or they want to just simply enjoy the thrill of competition. But sometimes people watch because there is always that off chance that maybe, just maybe, the underdog will reign supreme; and that’s what happened on day three at the USA Volleyball Girls’ Junior National Championships being held the Reno-Sparks Convention Center in Reno, Nev.

As the under-15 girls’ divisions opened play on June 26, Wave 15J Spalding was the top seed in 15 Open. They were the team to watch out for. They started play against the 32nd-ranked Iowa Rockets 15. It was supposed to be a given win, the top seed facing the last seed, but the Rockets were not intimidated by the team on the other side of the net.

“When you’re ranked 32^nd and you win a match, you still do better than people expect you to,” Rockets libero Marissa Stark said. “We knew we had nothing to lose.”

The team came out loud and strong and maintained the momentum throughout the first set and topped the Wave 25-21. But Wave, being the experienced team that they are, came back guns blazing in the second set and won 25-20.

“We knew we had to come out louder and tougher in the third set than we did in the second,” Rockets player Katherine Wietjen said. “It was our goal to get the momentum back.”

And getting the momentum back is what they did as they took the first few points of the third set and led at the switch, 8-7. The set was point-for-point and both teams didn’t commit a single error in the last few points of the match. The Rockets took down the top seed in the final set, 16-14.

When asked their reaction to the win, all of the Iowa Rockets 15 players replied, “Shocked”.

“They practice a ton,” Rockets setter Erin Muir said. “We come from a small town and practice, maybe, two days a week. Volleyball is what they do 24-7, and us, we all play different sports.”

The Rockets qualified after taking fifth at the Show Me Qualifier in Kansas City, Miss., April 26. The top three teams had already received their bid to the 15 Open Division. The squad is hoping this win sends a message to all of those who put a lot of emphasis on ranking systems.  

“We just want to show everyone that we shouldn’t be ranked last,” Muir said. “Everyone is gunning for us now.”

 

 Click here for the complete Schedule:

All Girls’ 12 Divisions: June 27-30


All Girls’ 13 Divisions: June 25-28


All Girls’ 14 Divisions: June 24-27


All Girls’ 15 Divisions: June 26-29


All Girls’ 16 Divisions: June 30- July 3


All Girls’ 17 Divisions: June 28- July 1


All Girls’ 18 Divisions: June 29- July 2

For more information on the USA Volleyball Girls' Junior National Championships, click here.