AAU boys unbeatens, Torri’s energy, Maui fires didn’t keep Aloha home
ORLANDO, Florida – All 17s, 15s, and 14s continued battling in pool play at the AAU Boys Junior National Volleyball Championships on Friday.
Saturday, the third day of the tournament, is always known as movement day. By Saturday night the elimination and championship brackets will be set.
The best of Friday
— 17s open undefeated teams: Academy, Bay to Bay, Coast, MB Surf, MKE Sting, Mountain View, Serve and Spike and Team Rockstar.
— Santa Monica Boys Club’s 17s Premier setter Matt Fisher is our 17s player of the day. Fisher, a 6-foot – 7 setter from Adolfo Camarillo High School, has led his team to a 6-0 start.
— 15s open undefeated teams: Aspire, Balboa Bay, Bay to Bay, C2 Attack, HPSTL, MB Surf, Pinnacle and Team Rockstar.
— 14s open undefeated teams: Balboa Bay, Borinquen Coqui, Coast, GVA, HPSTL, MB Surf and Team Rockstar.
— Whip, snap, and pop! The whip that 11-year-old super fan Juan Rivera was snapping around got his Torri fans from Puerto Rico jacked up. Torri 15s was down 23-19 against Coast in the second set and they came back in win 28-26, 26-24. During two Coast timeouts, Rivera took stage and used his whip to get the Torri fans going.
— C2 Attack and coach Camren Thomas remain undefeated in the 15s Open Division.
“Our team was successful today because of our serve receive, ball control, communication, and our aggressive attacking,” said Jakai Houston.
— Team Momentum in the 15s Elite division is 6-0. Outside hitter Kevin Rauscher has been averaging six kills per set and middle blocker Max Winter is averaging two aces.
“They have been firing on all cylinders. Taking advantage of free ball opportunities and converting during difficult transition moments,” club director Jacob Reese said.
— SC Legends 14-Elite has had something to prove after considering it was seeded too low. They entered Saturday morning as the overall No. 3 in the 14s Open behind setter Andrew Ma and outside Maki Estrella.
— Dawson Langley and his Exel 14s Open team jumped on a plane after their USA Volleyball national championship third-place finish to come here. Langley is hitting .235%, passing at 2.1, and had 32 digs in the first two days.
“After finishing third at USAV Nationals my team came to this tournament to compete,” Langley said. “Not every game has gone our way. Our last tournament of the season has definitely been one of the best with how the team is playing and the experiences we get to have all thanks to our amazing coaches.”
— In 2023 the Maui fires had a huge impact on the Aloha Volleyball Association Club.
Directors Scottie Zucco and Rachel Pond immediately went to work after the fire to make sure their teams could practice. They managed to send two teams to the AAU Junior National Championships, in 14s and 16s.
“The entire island banded together to help one another to overcome the tragedy,” Pond said. “One parent started a Go Fund Me, and another started writing grants to help get our club to nationals. It was our hope and mission that all our athletes got to participate in this tournament. Our club covered any necessary dues.”
They said it
“The AVCA recruiting seminar was informative to me because it gave me a better understanding on how an athlete should be accountable for his own volleyball journey. Finding a school that is a good fit is important and I learned about the work that goes into recruiting, in terms of sending emails and updating coaches with film.”
— Nick Safray, Elite 17s
“I am impressed with the AAU Junior National Championship event. It is exciting to see states and regions from North Carolina, Texas, Maryland, Minnesota, and many more field competitive teams. The talent continues to grow for our sport.”
— Richard Gary, Vassar College coach
– “The AVCA recruiting panel was a great opportunity for me to share knowledge that I wish I would have been pertinent to when I was playing club. It is phenomenal to see the engagement by both the athlete and their families with us as a panel.”
— Jorge Collazo, UC San Diego assistant coach
VolleyballMag contributor Kevin Pratte is the boys varsity coach at The Bishop’s School in La Jolla, California and Grant elementary physical education teacher. Pratte, who lives in San Diego, played at the University of Pacific. He was a graduate assistant at Nebraska, an assistant at Pacific, and has coached at the junior college level. He also is a college recruiting coordinator, Rotary member, president of the www.kevinprattefoundation.com, host of the KP HERE Podcast and editor of the boys volleyball website middlehitter.com.
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