COLUMBUS, Ohio (July 8, 2017) – In the 17 Open Division, the final day proved to be the toughest for 949 16 Black, which survived a quarterfinal challenge to stay alive and advance.
In the gold medal match 949 out of Southern California defeated Southern California’s The HBC 17 Black, 25-21, 25-16 on Saturday on the final day of the Boys Junior National Championships at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.
SASVBC Boys 17s out of the Aloha Region finished third along with Seaside 17-Black from Southern California.
To make it to the final, 949 had to get past a quarterfinal match against MVVC 17 Red, which did not make things easy. Despite being down 10-5 in the third set, 949 came back to win, 22-25, 25-19, 17-15.
“We had such a tough morning,” Head Coach Kari Pestolesi said. “We were ready for a battle (with The HBC). (949) did a good job. They were pretty efficient. It was fun to watch.
“Today was definitely the hardest day mentally and I think physically. Their bodies are pretty tired.”
Setter Patrick Paragas of 949 was named MVP.
“That was crazy,” Paragas said of being down 10-5 to MVVC in the quarterfinals. “Our team pulled back. We’ve been in situations like that before, but never that much.”
Paragas credited his teammates for his award.
“I did good, but my teammates are amazing around me,” he said. “My libero, my outsides passed perfectly most of the time. All my hitters can put balls away from wherever, even if I set them low and inside.”
In the 17 Club Division final, the Aloha Region’s Outrigger 17U defeated Pulse Athletics 17 Hurley out of Southern California, 25-23, 25-22.
Balboa Bay 17 White from Southern California and CTIV 17MKelvyn from Puerto Rico both finished third.
Finally, in the 13 Club Division, 352 Elite Boys Rox 13Lime out of Florida defeated MB Surf ASICS 13s from Southern California in the final, 25-9, 25-17.
Head Coach Edwin Montalvo credited said the team has been playing in the 14 open division most of the season.
“I think it helps the kids improve a little bit more all the time,” he said. “They play together all the time and they support each other.”
SASVBC Boys 13s from the Aloha Region and MVVC 13 Red from Northern California finished third.
A record 510 teams and more than 5,000 top boys’ junior players, ages 12-18, from the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico and Guam are participating in the Boys’ Junior National Championships this year.
Sport Court is the official athletic flooring for the USA Volleyball Boys’ Junior National Championships.
USA Volleyball Boys Junior National Championships Results
12 Club: Gold: Borinquen Coqui 12-1M (Puerto Rico); Silver: Bay to Bay 12-1 (Northern California); Bronze: MVVC 12 Red (Northern California) and Vaqueros 12-1 (Puerto Rico)
18 Open: Gold: Balboa Bay 18 Blue (Southern California); Silver: 949 18 Black B-KC (Southern California); Bronze: MB Surf ASICS 18s and Rise T.O 18-Adam
18 Club: Gold: Mizuno East Volleyball Club 18-Ryan (New England); Silver: Kaizen Boys 18s Black (Oklahoma); Bronze: Seaside 18-Black (Southern California) and VXS 18s Black (Southern California)
14 Open: Gold: 949 14 Black B-Jason (Southern California); Silver: Team Rockstar 14-1 (Southern California); Bronze: SCVC 14 Quicksilver (Southern California) and UVS 14UM Juan (Puerto Rico)
14 Club: Gold: San Clemente 14 Tim (Southern California); Silver: LBVC 14 Gold (Southern California); Bronze: MVVC 14 Black (Northern California) and SB Coast 14-1 (Southern California)
16 Open: Gold: Balboa Bay 16 Blue (Southern California); Silver: SPVB B16 Mizuno (Great Lakes); Bronze: MVVC; Bronze: MVVC 16 Red (Northern California) and MVC B16-Phil (Badger)
16 Club: Gold: Adversity 16 Purple (Great Lakes); Silver: NCVC ASICS 16-1 (Northern California); Bronze: KU’IKAHI 16R RoShamBo (Aloha Region) and Milwaukee Sting 16 Boys (Badger Region)
15 Open: Gold: SCVC 15Quicksilver (Southern California); Silver: Team Rockstar 15-1 (Southern California); Bronze: Balboa Bay 15Blue (Southern California) and 949 Black B-McKay (Southern California)
15 Club: Gold: SMBC 15 Adidas (Southern California); Silver: Legacy Boys 15 Elite (Southern California); Bronze: Balboa Bay 15 White (Southern California) and MVVC 15 Red (Northern California)17 Open: Gold: 949 16 Black (Southern California); Silver: The HBC 17 Black (Southern California); Bronze: SASVBC Boys 17s (Aloha) and Seaside 17-Black (Southern California)
17 Club: Gold: Outrigger 17U (Aloha); Silver: Pulse Athletics 17 Hurley (Southern California); Bronze: Balboa Bay 17 White (Southern California) and CTIV 17MKelvyn (Puerto Rico)
13 Club: Gold 352 Elite Boys Rox 13Lime (Florida); Silver: MB Surf ASICS 13s (Southern California); Bronze: SASVBC Boys 13s (Aloha) and MVVC 13 Red (Northern California)