Tournament Recap – NEQ 2014

NEQ lived up to its reputation for being the toughest tournament of our season.  CHVBC squared off against national competition from California, Arizona, Georgia, Indiana, Ohio and many others.  We responded with some of our best play of the season and our first NEQ Gold Bracket in club history!  Here is a recap of all of our teams:

18 BLACK
18 Black posted 3 match wins and finished 51st overall in the American Division.  Coach Ori described the last 3 matches as “the best volleyball the team played all season.”  The 18s went 2-1 in those matches with big wins over Legacy and Team EVO.  Several players have announced their college plans since the Capitol Classic: Nicole Taylor (Immaculata), Brenna Bobrove (Farleigh Dickinson), Alyssa Bayley (Rowan) and Emily Sheehan (Holy Family). Congratulations!

17 STORM
Storm finished 9th overall in the Gold Bracket!  Their finish was the best in club history at the NEQ tournament.  After sweeping their Day 1 pool as the 16th overall seed, the team continued their success on Day 2 with a 2-1 record.  These wins earned them a spot in the Gold Bracket where they played the overall #1 seed, Circle City.  Storm lost in two sets, but earned a 9th place finish for the tournament in the American Division.

17 NITRO
Nitro rebounded from a tough Day 1 pool to record a 2-1 record on Day 2.  The two wins set them up for a South Jersey match-up against East Coast Crush on the final day.  After splitting the first two sets, Nitro came out hot in the 3rd set and cruised to a 15-7 victory and at 2-1 match win!  The team finished 51st overall in the American Division.

16 VIPERS
Lead by Coach Bernie, the Vipers accepted the challenge of playing in the USA Division and the stiff competition that accompanies it.  They recorded a match win on Day 2 against West End with a 2-0 sweep!  The Vipers extended 4 other matches to a 3rd set, falling just short in those contests.  They finished 53rd overall, winning 6 sets over the course of the weekend.

16 RAMPAGE
Rampage faced some adversity at NEQ, missing both a starting middle hitter and a starting outside hitter.  Coach Jeff was forced to integrate two new players on short notice as they found themselves in a pool featuring teams from Arizona, Virginia and Pittsburgh. By the end of Day 2, they were competing at a high level again and pushed Rival to a 3rd set on Day 3.  They finished 61st in the USA Division, but displayed the type of grit and resilience that will serve them well as they get their full roster back!

15 AVALANCHE
Playing in the Select Division, Avalanche finished 7th out of 14 teams and earned a berth in the Silver Bracket.  Coach Manny added 14U player, Camryn Norman, as libero and the team responded with tough defense and strong serving from every position.  They earned 2 match wins in straight sets over Team EVO and Quicksilver where they scored a 31-29 win in the opening set!

15 TEMPEST
Tempest continued their strong play on elimination day with 3 match wins on Day 3 and a Flight 5B victory in the American Division!  Overall, the team finished 71st as they experienced the stiff competition of a national qualifier for the first time.  Their final win over Revolution left them with 4 match wins on the weekend and a lot of momentum heading into their last tournament!

No rest for the weary, the AAU Grand Prix is this weekend!!!