West Allis Lightning, Vaqueros Win 16s Titles at USAV Boys’ JNC

Bill Kauffman
Manager, Media Relations and Publications
Phone: 719-228-6800
E-Mail: bill.kauffman@usav.org

AUSTIN, Texas (July 6, 2010) – West Allis Lightning B16 (Badger Region) and Vaqueros 16-1 (Puerto Rico) captured the 16 Open and 16 Club Division titles, respectively, Tuesday afternoon at the 31st Annual USA Volleyball Boys’ Junior National Championships held at the Austin Convention Center in Texas.

West Allis Lightning scored a 25-17, 25-13 victory over Ultimate B16 Gold (Great Lakes Region) in the 16 Open Division gold-medal match. In the first set, West Allis broke a 3-all tie with five unanswered points to gain an 8-3 advantage. It stretched the lead to 10-4 before Ultimate B16 Gold closed the gap to three points at 12-9 with five of the next seven points. West Allis answered with a 9-2 spurt to pocket a 21-11 advantage before closing out the set 25-17.

West Allis Lightning built an early 8-4 cushion in the second set, then pushed it to 11-4 before Ultimate B16 Gold stopped the scoring run. West Allis Lightning jumped its lead to 11 points at 17-6 and never looked back as it finished out the set with a 25-13 victory.

West Allis Lightning reached the title match following a 25-19, 22-25, 15-10 victory over Halcones de Torrimar (Puerto Rico) in the quarterfinals and a 22-25, 25-23, 15-12 victory over Balboa Bay 16 Quiksilver (Southern California) in the semifinals. Ultimate B16 Gold topped Pitirres 16 (Puerto Rico) 15-25, 25-15, 17-15 in the quarterfinals and SCVC 16 Quiksilver (Southern California) 22-25, 25-21, 15-9 in the semifinals to reach the gold-medal match.

Balboa Bay 16 Quiksilver bounced back to dominate SCVC 16 Quiksilver 25-8, 25-22 in the bronze-medal match.

West Allis Lightning B-16’s Trevor Novotny was named the 16 Open Division most valuable player. Joining him on the all-tournament were Kyle Bailey (Balboa Bay 16 Quiksilver), Parker Brown (Balboa Bay 16 Quiksilver), Scott Fifer (Ultimate B-16 Gold), Peter Hutz (West Allis Lightning B-16), Michael Mullahey (SCVC 16 Quiksilver), Nicholas Olson (West Allis Lightning B-16), Christofer Orenic (SCVC 16 Quiksilver), Angel Perez (Halcones de Torrimar), Diego Rodriguez (Piterres 16), Kevin Rodriguez (Naranjito ENVOL), Marty Ross (Ultimate B-16 Gold), Michael Schneck (West Allis B-16), Alex Slaught (Manhattan Beach Surf 16s) and Robert Walsh (Ultimate B-16 Gold).

Vaqueros 16-1 won a tight two-set match over San Gabriel 16 Black (Southern California) with scores of 27-25, 25-23. Leading 7-6 in the opening set, Vaqueros built its lead to 16-11 with a 9-5 scoring run. However, San Gabriel 16 Black closed the gap to 17-16 with five of the next six points. Vaqueros answered with the next three points to regain a four-point cushion at 20-16. San Gabriel 16 Black charged back with four of the next five point to move within one at 21-20, then tied the set at 23-all. Vaqueros never allowed the lead to switch hands as it finished the set off at 27-25 on its third set-point opportunity.

The second set was a see-saw affair with four lead changes. San Gabriel 16 Black grabbed an early two-point cushion at 6-4 and pushed its advantage to 10-7. Vaqueros fired back to take the lead at 14-13 with seven of the next 10 points. However, San Gabriel 16 Black regained the lead at 16-15 and stretched the advantage to 17-15. Vaqueros responded with three of the next four points to tie the set at 18-all and took the lead back at 22-21. It increased its edge to 23-21, but San Gabriel 16 Black again knotted the score at 23-all. Vaqueros would not allow its opponent to score the rest of set for a 25-23 victory.

To reach the gold-medal match, Vaqueros 16-1 slipped past Gigantes Carolina (Puerto Rico) 25-16, 25-19 in the semifinals after a 25-17, 25-23 victory over Balboa Bay16 White (Southern California) in the quarterfinals. San Gabriel 16 Black advanced to the title match by rallying to defeat SMBC 16-Black (Southern California) 15-25, 25-22, 15-11 in the quarterfinal and LIVC 16 National (Garden Empire) 22-25, 25-23, 15-7 in the semifinals.

Andres Talavera of Vaqueros 16-1 was named the most valuable player of the 16 Club Division. He was joined on the all-tournament team by Thomas Adamson (San Gabriel 16 Black), Michael Bacall (San Gabriel 16 Black), Gabriel de Jesus (Gigantes), Orlando Delgado (Vaqueros 16-1), Austin Hillemann (Balboa Bay 16 White), Christopher Husmann (LIVBC 16 National), Jason Mascoe (LIVBC 16 National), Luis Pacheco (Gigantes), John Rumer (SMBC 16-1), Michael Saeta (San Gabriel 16 Black), Francisco Santiago (Vaqueros 16-1), Karch Smith (949 VB 16 Black) and Jack Wilson (RVC 16-1).

To view teams competing in the event, schedules, brackets or results, click here.

USA Volleyball, in partnership with the United States Olympic Committee (USOC), will video stream three days worth of championship matches during the event. The broadcast schedule includes gold medal matches for Open and Club Divisions in 18s (July 5), 16s (July 6) and 15s (July 7) age groups. The streaming video can be accessed at usavolleyball.org/live.

For more information on the USA Volleyball Boys’ Junior National Championships, visit usavolleyball.org/events/2403.

2010 USA Volleyball Boys’ Junior National Championships Schedule
12 Club (July 2-4): Gold – Narajinto Envol (Puerto Rico); Silver – Vaqueros 12-1 (Puerto Rico); Bronze – Torrimar 12-2 (Puerto Rico)
13 Club: Cancelled due to limited team registrations
14 Club: July 5-8
14 Open: July 5-8
15 Club: July 4-7
15 Open: July 4-7
16 Club (July 3-6): Gold – Vaqueros 16-1 (Puerto Rico); Silver – San Gabriel 16 Black (Southern California); Bronze – Gigantes Carolina (Puerto Rico)
16 Open (July 3-6): Gold – West Allis Lightning B16 (Badger); Silver – Ultimate B16 Gold (Great Lakes); Bronze – Balboa Bay 16 Quiksilver (Southern California)
17 Club: July 6-9
17 Open: July 6-9
18 Club (July 2-5): Gold – High Line Volleyball Club 2009-2010 18B (Southern California); Silver – Seaside 18-Mikasa (Southern California); Bronze – Spectrum 18s (Southern California)
18 Open (July 2-5): Gold – Manhattan Beach Surf 18s; Silver – Outrigger 18 (Aloha); Bronze – Orange County Volleyball Club 18-1 (Southern California)

Tags: USA Volleyball Boys' Junior National Championships