Locals sparkle at junior Olympics

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. ? It was an overall stellar performance by the Balboa Bay Volleyball Club at the U.S. Junior Olympic boys’ volleyball championships that concluded Thursday at the Minneapolis Convention Center.

In the Open Division, the Newport Beach-based Balboa Bay 17 Quicksilver finished third in the Gold Division (championship) bracket.

The 15-and-under Quiksilver team finished second in the Silver Division bracket, while the 14 Quicksilver team finished fourth in the Silver Division bracket.

The 17 Quiksilver team beat Torrimar of Puerto Rico in the Gold Division bracket quarterfinals, before falling to eventual champion Pali of Pacific Palisades, 20-25, 25-22, 22-20.

Team members Weston Dunlap, who attends Newport Harbor High, and Gus Ellis, who attends Corona del Mar High, were named to the 17 Open Division all-tournament team.

CdM’s Phil Bannon was also on the Balboa Bay team.

The 17 Quiksilver team went a perfect 3-0 in its first pool, was 1-2 in the next round of pool play, then won a pair of key matches to advance to the Gold Division bracket.

The 15 Quiksilver Open Division squad won a semifinal match but lost in the final to a team from Milwaukee, Wis. The local team won its first five matches and went 6-3 overall in pool play.

It was a streaky run for the 14 Quiksilver team, which lost in the Silver Division semifinal to the Orange Coast Volleyball Club from Laguna Niguel.

The local squad lost its first two matches, but then won four straight to win a challenge pool.

As previously reported, the Balboa Bay 16 Quiksilver team won the 16-and-under Open Division. Team member Kyle Caldwell, who will be a junior at Newport Harbor High next fall, was named Most Valuable Player of the 16 Open Division.

Other team members for the 16 Quiksilver team, coached by Orange Coast College men’s coach Travis Turner, included Tucker Peleuses, Cameron Kosbab, Scott Lijestrom, Clay Knapp, Mike Appel, Ian Wynne, Tony Ciarelli, Connor Hughes, Paul Spitsen, Carl Eberts, Chris King and Jeff Uhrig.

Knapp and Ciarelli were also named to the 16 Open Division all-tournament team, as was Balboa Bay 16 Blue team member Andrew Pavlovich.

Balboa Bay 18 White team member Robby Stowell was named to the 18 Open Division all-tournament team, as was Balboa Bay 16 White’s Kevin Verkaik in the 16 Club Division.

In the Club Division, the third-place Tar 18 team, also based in Newport Beach, was led by recent Corona del Mar High graduate Scott Slaughter, as well as former Newport Harbor standouts Sean Grubbs and Ted Slater.

Adam Schlesinger, a 2005 Newport Harbor graduate now playing for Long Beach State, was also on the roster, as was current Sailor Max Volz.

The Tar 18 team won its first Gold Division match before falling to a team from Illinois, 32-30, 25-22, in a semifinal match.

The local squad went 7-2 through the pool-play rounds to advance to the Gold Division bracket.

The Balboa Bay 17 White won the Club Division title. It won three consecutive three-game matches in the eight-team Gold Division bracket, including the final over Riptides 17 Orange of Redondo Beach.

17 White went an impressive 7-1 in pool play, only dropping four games.

The Balboa Bay 14 Blue team lost in the Bronze Division bracket semifinals to Pitt Elite of Pittsburgh, Pa.

Previously, Balboa Bay went an impressive 8-2 in pool play, winning its first and third pools to receive a first-round bye in the six-team Bronze bracket.

Balboa Bay’s 15 Red team won its opening match, but finished 2-9 overall.dpt.15-caldwell-CPhotoInfoVC1SV62H20060715iwgoarknCredit: KENT TREPTOW / DAILY PILOT Caption: (LA)Balboa Bay Volleyball Club standout Kyle Caldwell (20), shown competing for Newport Harbor High, where he will be a junior next fall, was named Most Valuable Player of the 16-and-under Open Division at the junior Olympics in Minneapolis.