Six top 20 finishes including a first-ever Open division Runner up at AAUs
Triangle Volleyball Club achieves success at Nationals
Six top 20 finishes including a first-ever Open division Runner up at AAUs
Morrisville, NC, June 27, 2014: For nine consecutive days at least one of sixteen Triangle teams competed on courts in Orlando at the 41st annual AAU Junior National Championship. Each team engaged in four days of intense competition with many dramatic moments. When competition was complete Triangle achieved its highest overall finishes in its twelve year history.
AAU Junior Nationals has multiple competitive divisions at each level. From highest to lowest they are Open, Premier, Club, and Classic. Both Triangle 17 Black and 16 Black earned top ten finishes with 16 Black being the first team in North Carolina history to be represented in an Open division national championship final. The total competitive field at AAU’s was over 2000 teams and included some of the best junior girls’ teams in the country from as far away as Canada, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico.
The finishes for each team are as follows:
Team Division Finish
12 National 12 Club Division T62/68
13 Black 13 Open Division T22/31
14 Black 14 Open Division 19/31 [White Bracket Champions]
14 Blue 14 Premier Division T29/68
14 White 14 Club Division T51/139
15 Black 15 Open Division 17/44
15 Blue 15 Premier Division T27/92
15 White 15 Club Division T29/123
15 Regional 15 Classic Division T21/126
16 Black 16 Open Division 2/83
16 Blue 16 Premier Division T13/80
16 White 16 Club Division T59/138
17 Black 17 Open Division T9/59
17 Blue 17 Premier Division 29/88
18 Black 18 Open Division 23/49
18 Blue 18 Premier Division T13/44
Complete results for AAU Junior nationals can be found on Advanced Event Systems.
Triangle 17 Black finished tied for 9th and defeated powerhouse Orlando Volleyball Academy [OVA] to advance to the championship bracket. Triangle 16 Black pulled off a win against the 2014 finalist Mizuno Northern Lights to advance to the championship match. Never before has a North Carolina team earned this distinction. 16 Black lost in the finals to Skyline [Dallas] 15-25, 24-26. “The 16 Open field at AAU’s was recognized as one of the strongest in recent history. It is evidence that the sport has gained a strong foothold in North Carolina that 16 Black could push through an extremely tough Championship bracket to play for a national championship. This is a huge accomplishment for Triangle and North Carolina volleyball,” states Sherry Fadool, Triangle’s Executive Director.
AAU Junior Nationals continues to grow both in number of teams and overall competitiveness. In 2011 the event was declared the national championship event for the Junior Volleyball Association [JVA]. “To have two teams finish in the top 10 at AAU’s is very exciting for our club. There are no easy matches at this level and to see our teams from 12’s to 18’s compete at the highest level on a national stage is very rewarding” added Fadool.
With the completion of nationals Triangle’s twenty-seven teams, 12 & under through 18 & under, achieved a club wide winning percentage of 61% while competing in a total of 1450 matches. The conclusion of the 2014 season saw twenty-four athletes complete their club volleyball career and head to college. Nearly every member of Triangle’s class of 2014 will play in college this coming fall and their efforts garnered this group of athletes over $2 million dollars in athletic and academic aid.