Instinct Tigers, Orange Co. and Austin Jrs. Capture 17 Gold

Candice Kasischke
Intern, Media Relations and Publications
Phone: (719) 228-6800
E-Mail: candice.kasischke@usav.org

ATLANTA (July 2, 2011) – The 17 Open, 17 National and 17 American Divisions at the 2011 USA Volleyball Girls’ Junior National Championships concluded play with medal matches in their respective gold-medal divisions on Saturday at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta.

Earning titles on the fifth day of gold-medal play were Austin Juniors Volleyball 17 Mizuno (Lone Star) in the 17 Open Division, Orange County 17Blue (Southern California) in the 17 National Division and Instinct 17 Tigers N (North Texas) in the 17 American Division.

The USA Volleyball Girls’ Junior National Championships continues through July 4. Championships will be conducted for 18 Open, National and American Divisions on July 3 and 16 Open National and American Divisions on July 4.

The 17 American Division battle for the gold-medal was between No. 2-seed Instinct 17 Tigers N and No. 24 NorthShore Wood (Ohio Valley). The first set was a close fight with both teams taking turns leading in the beginning. With Instinct leading 15-14, NorthShore took control of the set with a 6-0 run giving it a 20-15 advantage. NorthShore propelled its momentum to finish out a 25-21 victory.

In the second set, Instinct raced to an early 8-2 lead and carried through to a 15-8 margin. At this point, NorthShore charged a 7-0 streak to tie the set 15-all. Despite North Shore’s efforts, Instinct pulled through with a 25-22 victory.

In the third set, Instinct took the first three points, but NorthShore roared back to establish a 9-8 lead. Instinct responded with five consecutive points tallying a 13-9 advantage and going on to win 15-11.

Instinct 17 Tigers N reached the gold-medal match after defeating No. 3 seed Alamo 17 Kaepa (Lone Star) 25-19, 21-25, 15-10 in the semifinal. Instinct’s only loss was to Kansas Jets 17-1 (Heart of America) in its fourth match.

NorthShore Wood reached the gold-medal match after defeating No. 33 seed Nebraska Elite 17 Edge (Great Plains) 25-23, 25-27, 15-11 in the semifinal. NorthShore’s only other loss was to Santa Barbara 17Smack (Southern California) in its second match in round two.

No. 9 seed Orange County 17Blue and No. 16 seed Northern Lights 17-2 (Northern) competed for the title in the 17 National Division. In the first set, Orange County exploded at the whistle to gain a 6-1 lead and carried it through to a 13-4 margin. At this point, Northern Lights reversed the momentum and fought back to within two points of Orange County at 17-15. However, Orange County scored eight of the last 11 points to seal a 25-18 victory.

The second set was a battle between the two teams. Northern Lights responded after its first set loss to take a 9-6 lead in the early going, then stretched its lead to 15-9. A five-point run by Orange County narrowed the gap to 15-14. The two teams battled to a 21-all score, but Orange County finished on top after earning four of the last five points for a 25-22 victory.

Orange County 17 Blue, which went undefeated in their conquest to the gold-medal match with only three set losses along the way, rallied to defeat No. 5 seed Alliance 17 Mizuno (Southern) 24-26, 25-14, 18-16 in the semifinal. Northern Lights 17-2, which lost to Triangle 17 Black (Carolina) in its only one match prior to the gold-medal contest, made its way to the gold-medal match by defeating No. 31 seed Iowa Rockets 17R (Iowa) 23-25, 25-23, 22-20 in the semifinal.

The 17 Open Division conquest for the gold-medal was between No. 4 Austin Juniors Volleyball 17 Mizuno and No. 3 A5 Mizuno 171 Heidi (Southern). In the first set, Austin Juniors took a 10-6 advantage. The lead then seesawed between Austin Juniors and A5 until 21-all, which was the eighth tie of the set. A5 raced to a 24-21 lead and closed the set with a 25-23 victory.

In the second set, Austin Juniors rebounded from its first set loss to take an early 11-4 lead. A5’s spirited play minimized the gap to 13-10 before Austin Juniors regained momentum and charged to an 18-12 advantage. A5 mounted a furious comeback bringing the score to within 24-22, but Austin pulled through to a 25-22 win.

The third set began with a closely contested battle with no more than a two-point differential to the point of an 11-all tie. Austin staged a four-point closing run to win the set 15-11. 

Austin Juniors 17 Mizuno, which lost its only match to Sunshine 17-Westside (Lone Star) in pool play, reached the gold-medal match after defeating No. 9 seed Club Red 17 Mizuno (Arizona) 25-23, 25-16 in the semifinal. A5 Mizuno 171 Heidi reached the gold-medal match after defeating No. 10 seed Invasion 17-Black (Heart of America) 25-20, 25-20 in the semifinal. A5 Mizuno 171’s only other loss was against MiElite 3rd Degree 17-1 (Lakeshore) in its second match of the tournament.

For USA Volleyball Girls' Junior National Championships results, click here. For more information on the tournament, visit http://usavolleyball.org/events/4873.

All USA Volleyball Girls’ Junior National Championships gold-medal matches will be video streamed live at http://usavolleyball.org/live. All USA Volleyball Boys’ Junior National Championships medal matches except 13 Club will be streamed and accessed through the same URL.

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USA Volleyball Girls’ Junior National Championships Results

12 National: Gold- Borinquen Coqui 12-1F; Silver- ASICS MAVS 12 Blue; Bronze- Wave 12 Casey (Southern California) and MadFrog 12s Lewellen (North Texas)
12 American: Gold - Starlings-Monrovia 12 (Southern California); Silver – Victory 12 Elite (North Texas); Bronze – Alamo 12 Kaepa (Lone Star) and Laguna Beach 12 Gaido (Southern California)
13 National: Gold - Borinquen Coquir 13-1F (Puerto Rico); Silver - ASICS MAVS 13 Blue (Heart of America); Bronze - Madfrog 13s NAT STEF (North Texas) and Nebraska Elite 13 Thunder (Great Plains)
13 American: Gold - Club West 13- National (Southern California); Silver - Xtreme 13 Black (Lone Star); Bronze – Seal Beach 13-Tony (Southern California) and Premier 13 Gold (Great Plains)
14 Open: Gold – Cleveland Volleyball Company 14 Black (Ohio Valley); Silver – Mizuno Long Beach 14 Rockstar (Southern California); Bronze – OVA 14 Asics (Florida) and Nebraska Elite 14 Mayhem (Great Plains)
14 National: Gold – Team Piko 14 Ho’omau (Aloha); Silver – Coast 14-1 Luis (Southern California); Bronze – Iowa Rockets (Iowa) and Backswamp 14 Orwig (Ohio Valley)
14 American: Gold – Texas Image 14 Mizuno (North Texas); Silver – Sunshine 14 South Bay (Southern California); Bronze – Pinellas Heat 14 Elite (Florida) and Woodlands Wave 14UA (Lone Star)
15 Open: Gold - Northern Lights 15-1 (North Country); Silver - TAV 15 VB Rags Black (North Texas); Bronze – City Beach 15 Black (Northern California) and Woodlands Wave 15UA (Lone Star)
15 National: Gold – Blackswamp 15 Oberst (Ohio Valley); Silver - Miami Elite Blue 15 (Florida); Bronze- Ultimate G15 Gold (Great Lakes) and ASICS MAVS 15 Molten (Heart of America)
15 American: Gold – AZ Sky 15 Magic (Arizona); Silver – Iowa Rockets 15R (Iowa); Bronze - Cincy Classics 15 Red (Ohio Valley) and River City Juniors 151 (Great Plains)
16 Open: Finals on July 4
16 National: Finals on July 4
16 American: Finals on July 4
17 Open: Gold- Austin Junior Volleyball 17 Mizuno (Lonestar); Silver- A5 Mizuno 171 Heidi (Southern); Bronze- Club Red 17 Mizuno (Arizona) and Invasion 17-Black (Heart of America)
17 National: Gold- Orange County 17Blue (Southern California); Silver- Northern Lights 17-2 (Northern); Bronze- Alliance 17 Mizuno (Southern) and Iowa Rockets 17R (Iowa)
17 American: Gold- Instinct 17 Tigers N (North Texas); Silver- NorthShore Wood (Ohio Valley); Bronze- Alamo 17 Kaepa (Lone Star) and Nebraska Elite 17 Edge (Great Plains)
18 Open: Finals on July 3
18 National: Finals on July 3
18 American: Finals on July 3

Tags: 2011 Girls' Junior National Championships, junior, Junior Nationals, Juniors, USA Volleyball Girls' Junior National Championships