AAU Nationals in Orlando, Florida
was such an incredible experience for not only myself, but also my entire team
as well. We were excited to play at every moment for all four days and the enthusiasm
radiated throughout the convention center.
Personally, this was my first
national championship so I was in awe of how enormous it was. There were approximately
170 courts and thousands of people filling the massive building. The atmosphere
was incredible. The moment you walked through the door you were instantly in
volleyball mode and felt ready to get on the court to start playing.
The best part about that tournament
was that every team there was highly competitive. There were no easy sets during
any of the four days. Each point was fought for and most importantly everyone wanted
to win. Play was really at a whole new level. It was hard work, but it was
probably the most enjoyable volleyball I've ever played. It pushed me to step
up my game and really play all out. I remember saying on the final day of the
tournament that I felt I had played the best of my entire volleyball career
thus far, and I truly think that was because of the level of competition I
needed to rise to. It pushed me to play better and I do not think I am the only
one who felt that way.
OJVA 16 Gold was the only team from
Oregon in the open division and I think that we represented well. We really
gave it our all and even when we lost we still felt so proud of how hard we
played. For example, we took a set from Mizuno Northern Lights who finished
third in the tournament overall.
The last day was single elimination
and unfortunately we lost our first game and realized the season had ended. The
passion our team felt for the game and the love we felt towards each other was
apparent from our reactions when we realized our time as a team was over. Many
tears were shed and we all kept hugging each other wishing we could stay
together. We grew so close over the eight months of practicing and playing as a
team, and Nationals was a perfect close to an amazing season.
Hello everyone,
I have a lot of photos from Nationals but unfortunately my team photos didn't really turn out that well. I attached a few.
In a couple of the group shots you can see that T.J. decided to jump into the pool with her clothes on to surprise the girls. They were shocked as you can see. Too much fun!
Donna
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