Page 10 - Sanger Herald 1-24-19 E-edition

SANGER HERALD 2B THURSDAY, JANUARY 24, 2019
Volleyball team wins, gets berth in national tournament
By Scott Okada
Apache volleyball coach
On Jan. 12-13, the Apache Boys Volleyball Club 17’s Team, a group comprised of 10 Sanger students ranging from eighth to 12th grades, traveled to San Mateo to participate in the Northern California Volleyball Association’s Far Westerns Bid Tournament.
And Sanger won it all, qualifying for a spot in the national championships this summer.
Teams at regional tournaments play in various divisions vying to earn bids to qualify for the Boys Junior National Championships in July in Dallas. Our Apache team competed in the 17-year- old USA Division, which means all players on the team must be 17 or younger and have birth dates before a specific time frame.
Most club teams are comprised of players from
Basketball
Continued from Page 1B
Junior guard Joe LeBeau remained undeterred. “We’ll get them back at home,” he said of Edison. “We just need to practice. That’s the good thing about playing them twice. We know what to look for.”
Senior forward Sal Dhillon, who also emerged on Blackwood’s list for double-digit scoring and rebounds in a season with seven so far giving him No. 4 all-time, didn’t appear rattled. “That’s when we beat Edison,” he said. “It’s
Scott Okada photo
These Apaches just won it all and qualified for Dallas.
love and understanding of the game of volleyball.
For this tournament, the Apaches took a mix of young athletes; the team had one eighth- grader, one ninth-grader, three 10t- graders, four 11th-graders and one young 12th-grader. The teams they competed against were predominately comprised of only 11th-grade students because most clubs have different teams for each age level — for 14-year- olds, 15-year-olds, 16-year- olds, etc.
The young Apaches showed outstanding skill, determination and heart as they won their first four matches during competition, which started at 9 a.m. and finished around 7 p.m. that night on Jan. 12. The next morning, the Apaches faced greater challenge as they squared off against the No. 8 seeded team, City Beach.
In this challenging match, the Apaches fought back, showing resilience and winning 2-1 with scores of 25-21, 22-25 and 15-11. This led the Apaches to a showdown with the No. 2 seed, Legends Volleyball Club.
Going into this semifinal- like match, both teams were undefeated in the tournament at 5-0. In an exciting match that featured several long rallies and a loud Legends cheering section, the Apaches again found a way to advance with another 2-1 victory (25-18, 19-25, 15-12). This allowed the Apaches to advance to the championship match for their division.
Waiting for them was the No. 1 seed, Mountain View Volleyball Club’s 17 Black Team. Mountain View is one of the most dominant and intimidating clubs from Northern California and features several high- profile players and coaches.
The championship match featured two teams that were undefeated up to this point in the tournament, both at 6-0. Mountain View seemed to have the obvious advantage in terms of physical size and number of players. But, as the Apaches tend to do, they utilized their ball control, tempo and energy to fight back from an early deficit.
At one point in set one, they were down 5-11 but went on to claim the first set of the match with a score of 25-23. In the second set, Mountain View roared back using strong serving and powerful kills to defeat the Apaches 19-25. This led to a final third set with the division championship on the line.
The game began with controversy and emotions from both sides with a strange ruling by the referees on what seemed an obvious call. This seemingly unfair call inspired the Apaches to a quick run and a lead of 4-1.
But, Mountain View pushed back with a run of its own, taking and extending its lead to 8-4. After settling in, the Apaches worked their way back to another standstill, evening the score to 11-11. At this point, another controversial call led to a pause in the action.
But this time, the Apaches capitalized on the distracting moment. They pushed forward with two aces by sophomore Kennedy Navo and a huge
Soccer
Continued from Page 1B
And Sanchez, who is always good for a comment, said this about how well his team is playing. “We hella raw,” he said. Asked to explain for older readers and this reporter, he added,
block by junior Madhav Singh. At 14-11 Mountain View was able to side out, but the Apaches quickly ended the match with a strong kill by sophomore Brennan Taylor, which secured the victory at 15-12.
This is a significant accomplishment that shows the toughness and belief of our young players. This is the Apaches second time qualifying for the national championship tournament, but it’s the first time they have won a qualifying division tournament to get there. It’s a profound accomplishment.
We have a really special group of young men, who work hard to represent this town and community with pride and enthusiasm. I am so excited to see them succeed and look forward to continuing on this journey.
The Apaches finished 7-0 and champions of the 17 USA division. This earned them a qualifying bid for the Boys Junior National Championships in July. At that tournament, the 17’s USA division will feature only 32 teams from across the nation that have earned a qualifying bid.
Although the Apaches are excited for the journey, they also know that it is a difficult task to make the trip to Dallas. While they constantly work to keep club/travel fees as low as possible for the players and their families, they could use some help.
If you are interested in helping this exciting group of Sanger students participate in the national championship this summer, please visit their Facebook page: https:// www.facebook.com/ donate/2027219990730925/
“Which means we’re a lot better. That’s what raw means.”
And there you have it.
The reporter can be contacted by email at nemethfeatures@gmail.com or by phone at the Herald at (559) 875-2511.
a variety of areas and high schools. The more well- known established clubs feature all-star like teams with numerous players that have signed or will go on to play Division I NCAA mens volleyball.
Unlike these clubs, the Apache volleyball club is comprised of only students from Sanger Unified. The mission and focus of the
when when the whole team is clicking.”
And of the Tigers, Dhillon said, “They’re an athletic team.”
Stanley said, “They’re up and down. They played a great game. I can guess they wanted it. We’re in their house.
“Teams like Memorial, they’re really stacked (with talent). But when teams (challenging them) aren’t intimidated, they can play.”
Stanley didn’t say it, but he likely referred to Jan. 16 last year when the Apaches, in front of a crowd estimated to be 1,300 at the Coach Dean Nicholson Gym, beat the
club, which is run by Sanger High School teachers and varsity boys volleyball coaches, which includes myself and Marcos Mireles, is to provide opportunities for Sanger students to grow and develop their skills by participating in high- level competition that will further prepare them for their experience at Sanger High while developing a
Panthers 85-75 behind Mo Norris’ game high 25 points. Stanley had 10 points and four assists in the game.
Stanley pointed out that on Jan. 4, Bullard beat Memorial 71-64. And of the Tigers, he said, “Today we played their game.”
He walked off to the bus wearing a Lakers sweat shirt emblazoned with No. 23, LeBron James’ number.
The reporter can be contacted by email at nemethfeatures@gmail.com or by phone at the Herald at (559) 875-2511.
Call Paulette for ALL your Advertising needs 875-2511
To my favorite
Valentine...
I love you so
much....
Love you
Always!
Tell your sweetheart how much you love him/her this Valentine’s Day with
an ad in the Sanger Herald for only $21.50. Place your ad on or before Friday, February 1st for Feb. 6th & 7th issue.
ad size is a 1x2
Call Paulette for more info 875-2511