While many of us likely stayed close to home to celebrate this past Fourth of July, the Oly Reign Volleyball Club’s 16 Gold Team was in the Motor City putting on some fireworks of their own.
The Oly Reign squad finished 13th overall at the 2018 USA Volleyball Girls’ Junior National Championships, an event that was held June 25 through July 4 in Detroit, Michigan, and featured the top clubs from around the nation.
The Oly Reign 16 Gold Team, which secured a trip to nationals through their performance at the Puget Sound Region Bid Tournament, was comprised of Devyn Oestreich, Addie Robertson, Gabrielle Blair, Maeve Griffin, Molly Zepeda, Leah Cairns, Kalissa Lane, Maddie Mathews, Ellie Bocksch, Alandra Pastor and Kayla Schwartz; and led by coaches Megan Birge and Pam Hartman-Beyer.
The Reign were champions of their eight-team pool, registering a strong 6-1 record and winning their final four matches, before venturing into crossover competition. Overall the team posted a 6-3 record at nationals.
“The 16 Gold team did well at nationals. We went in seeded 12th and ended up 13th out of 64 teams,” said Oly Reign Volleyball Club director Todd Oestreich. “The important part was the team peaked at the end of the season. They played well at The Emerald City Classic on Memorial Day weekend and it carried over a month later with just practice. This group of girls were dedicated throughout the month of June.”
The highlight for the team at nationals came during pool play on the third day when they knocked off Rancho Valley, the top seed in their pool and the No. 5 seeded team overall among the 64 teams at the tournament.
The Reign rebounded from an the opening set that saw them lose 25-18 to the California team to capture the second set in a thrilling 26-24 contest before winning the deciding set, 15-13.
In its first crossover match, the team lost to the Kansas City-based Invasion Volleyball. The two teams split the first two sets, with Oly Reign taking the second, 25-22, before falling in the third, 17-15.
“One of the most memorable moments from the tournament had to be the crossover match,” Oestreich said. “The girls were playing great and everything was just flowing for them. They ended up losing the crossover 17-15 in the third set at 10:30 p.m. They were the last match to finish in the convention center and then had to turn around and be back in the gym for an 8:00 a.m. match the next morning. They struggled a bit in the beginning, but fought their way back into both sets and showed a lot of heart.”
The Reign closed out their run at nationals with a straight set loss to the Toledo Volleyball Club on July 4, losing 25-18, 27-25.
“As a club, Oly Reign had a good season. This is the first year that we were able to provide an opportunity to have two developmental teams,” Oestreich said. “Our goal with these two teams was to introduce club volleyball to kids between the ages of 8- to 13-years-old and teach them the fundamentals of the game. It was fun watching them. They were so excited and full of energy.”
In addition to the inclusion of two developmental teams and the 16 Gold team’s performance at the national tournament, Oestreich also stated another memorable moment for the club this season was the creation of their inaugural Oly Reign Olympics, an event hosted by Micah McBride, coach of the 14U Gold team.
“This event brought together the entire club for a mock Olympic Games,” Oestreich said. “The teams were made up of girls from every age group and they were able to pick a country and design a flag to represent their team. At the end of the night, teams were awarded gold, silver and bronze medals to commemorate the event.”
Along with the 16 Gold, Oly Reign Volleyball also saw its 12 Gold, 13 Gold, 14 Gold and 15 Gold teams qualified for the Puget Sound Region Bid Tournament this past season.
“All in all, this has been an amazing season,” Oestreich said. “We are so grateful to have had the opportunity to reach more athletes both in and outside of our community and watch them develop and grow. We thank our families, coaches, and volunteers for helping to make this season a reality. We can’t wait to see what next year brings.”
