This past weekend marked the official opening to the SCVA travel season for the U12-U14 teams. Santa Barbara Volleyball Club sent 4 teams to compete across Saturday and Sunday – 12 Blue, 13 Blue, 14 Blue and 14 Navy. They finished a combined 9-3 on the weekend, and more importantly, each team improved over the course of the day and gained valuable tournament experiences. Here is a brief recap from each team:

12 Blue

The 12 Blue team showed a bit of nerves as they warmed up for their first-ever day of competition as a travel team; for all the girls, this is their first time playing at this level. Those nerves quickly faded away behind strong serving as they posted a win in their first match against Mizuno LB City 12-Mizuno (25-5, 25-10). After a break in the schedule, the team came back to continued their strong play with back to back wins over LAVA-South 12-B Sage (25-21, 25-10), and Ignite VBCF 12 Black (25-5, 25-10), finishing 3-0 on the tournament.

The team was overjoyed to experience their first day of travel volleyball competition, and we are excited as a club to see what the rest of the season has in store for them!

13 Blue

The 13 Blue opened their season with a strong showing, finishing the day undefeated! The team posted wins against Seal Beach 13 Stacy (25-20, 25-20), SG Elite 13 Storm (25-18, 25-10) and Coast VBC 13 Meghan (25-14, 25-23).

Coach Ed Gover said his team, “did a great job in the serving and receiving department and played some excellent defense. The setters this year are Natali Flint and Ava Cole. The middles are Riley Green, Katarina Erickson and Emma Zuffelato. Outside hitters are Erin Cole, Lily Singhass, and Ella Jones. Liberos are Mary Johnson and Charlotte Caesar.  

14 Blue

The 14 Blue team finished their first day of competition with a 1-2 record overall, moving up from the 4th seed to finish 3rd in their pool. In their first match against Saddleback Volleyball Club the team showed a bit of nerves; and despite late-game charges in both sets, they fell (23-25, 23-25). In a quick turnaround, they had to next immediately play against top-ranked SG Elite-RoShamBo, a very strong 14 and Under team this season. This match was a more one-sided, as SBVC fell (13-25, 12-25). SG Elite was a powerful team with very consistent ball control. In the last match of the day, the team ended on a positive note, upsetting the #3 team in the pool in a 2-set win over Culver City (25-17, 25-20).

Elise Guerrard-Hermes led all attackers with steady offense at the net, and kept the back court in check. Riley Borchardt did an excellent job running the offense, and served tough from the service line with several aces. Coach Dillan Bennett said of the team’s performance, “When we played well, we were serving tough and taking strong swings at the net. When we played poorly, our passing was the issue. Fortunately, we have a few weeks before our next tournament, and we will get to address those skills. At the end of the day, our team played well in spurts against a few very good teams today, considering we play an unconventional game without middle attackers. Our ball control, serving and athleticism will take us as far as we want to go this season.”

14 Navy

The 14 Navy team finished 2-1 for a 2nd place finish in their first day of competition. The team started off the day hot with a strong win over LAVA-North 14 Red (25-7, 25-13). Next up was a tough battle versus the eventual winner of the pool – Zuma Bay 14-Purple. After dropping the first set (23-25), they battle back to win the second set (25-20), only to falter in the third set to drop the match (8-15). That third set experience proved valuable however, as the team was pushed to three sets in their final match of the day against Starlings COLA 14-2’s. This time, the team battled to a (25-22, 20-25, 16-14) victory! It was a great way to end the day!

Alyse Gilliam had a standout day, displaying strength and consistency from both the service line and attacking in the front row, while Libero Frances Carlson was a calming force in the back row, passing everything that came her way. Coach Mike Maas really emphasized to his team that the goal of everyday is improving yourself and striving to get better. From the start of the day with nerves and confusion of rotations, to the finish where they were battling in an overtime match and making big plays, the team showed they got better on Sunday!