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Plano volleyball team Excels at Nationals
BY Brad Grim Special to the Star Courier
The Excel 12 Elite National volleyball team squared off against the best the country had to offer at the 2010 USA Girls Junior National Championships in Reno, Nev. from June 24 to July 3 and didn’t come home empty handed.
The Plano-based team took third place in American Division.
Members of the team include: Lisa Barson, Audrey Bramlett, Kellan Fuoss, Allison Hoang, Morgan Hosey, Mary Johnson, Adrianne Lancaster, Amy Leonards, Helen Osborne and Morgan Wadly.
“We didn’t earn a direct qualifying bid,” said Trish Barenberg, an Excel 12 Elite National coach. “We earned a reallocation bid, which means that we were next in line in our region after the first qualifier, so for us to get in the top three was great.”
Even though getting in was no easy task, it only got more difficult as the girls encountered the misfortune of having the eventual tournament runner up, Laguna Beach 12 Gaido (Southern California), in their opening round division.
“Laguna Beach is a very big club and a lot of girls want to play for them,” Barenberg said. “For our girls to play so well against them was very impressive.”
Excel played teams from all over the country, ranging from California to Ohio. But no matter where the teams were from, they all represented a challenge.
“When you play in regional tournaments you can sometimes take a game off if your opponents aren’t as strong,” Barenberg said. “You can't get away with that at nationals; everyone is good and if you are off your game, you really have to dig deep.”
That's what the girls did in their third match when they were down late in the contest and went on a tremendous run that got them back into the match and eventually led to a victory.
“That was a defining moment in the tournament for us,” Barenberg said. “Our girls really rallied around each other and after that they started to believe in themselves.”
Excel ended up with a record of 6-3 while winning 14 of 23 games. Two of those losses came from Laguna Beach, the other came to a familiar opponent, the Mad Frog 12 Elite team that is also based out of Plano.
“We are one of the strongest teams in North Texas, which is the third or fourth ranked region in the country,” Barenberg said. “That sort of experience was extremely helpful in this tournament.”
That experience was crucial to the team’s success, but another thing that helped was how the girls were able to maintain their composure in a pressure-filled environment. Even at the age of 12, the girls showed an abundance of maturity and focus on the court.
“At their age it is really hard for them to focus on every game and not get distracted,” Barenberg said. “This tournament was definitely a team effort.”
Based out of Plano, Excel is one of the newest volleyball clubs in North Texas. But despite being the new guy, Excel has sent five teams to nationals in its first four years of existence. Excel has also begun an international program that sends girls ages 14-17 to train in Italy for 10 days. In return, Excel hosts and trains players from Italy and Germany.
“It is a really neat program,” Barenberg said. “The girls are really excited for this unique opportunity.”
The teams will arrive at DFW airport today in preparation for a tournament next Friday.
After success at nationals, Excel is taking the next step beyond the U.S. in hopes of learning about different cultures, gaining international experience and having some fun.
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