Rick Stiebel/News Gazette staff
Instead of taking the summer off, Belmont volleyball players have been hard at work increasing their net presence indoors and outdoors.
The defending AAAA B.C. high school champions have kept their skills sharp with strong showings on the indoor court and at the beach as well. Savannah Purdy earned a spot on the B.C. U-18 indoor squad and helped the team earn a sixth-place finish at the U.S. High Performance Championships in Florida. The team’s strong performance against regional teams included a victory over Team Canada. Team B.C., which also includes Oak Bay player Erin Mutch, will represent the province at the Canada Summer Games, which take place in Winnipeg next week.
Belmont players Taylee Pomponio, Jocelyn Sherman and Gracie May were selected to the U-16 B.C. team and competed against the top teams in Canada at the National Team Challenge Cup, which took place July 15 to 19 in Richmond, B.C. Pompiono and Sherman led Team Blue to a silver medal, losing the final to Ontario 1. Gracie, playing on Team Red, defeated Ontario 2 to earn a bronze medal.
Meanwhile, back on the beach, Belmont’s Hannah May and Olivia Godek made it to the final at the Vancouver Open qualifier. The pair, both 16, came up just short of a shot at competing against pro players. Hannah’s older sister, Gracie, teamed up with partner Arden Copping from Vancouver to win the U-16 Beachfest Tournament in July in Vancouver. All of the girls, with the exception of Purdy, are preparing for the Beach B.C. Championships Aug. 5 to 7 in Vancouver. Members of that team aim to qualify for a spot on Team B.C. Beach, which will represent the province at the Seaside Tournament in Oregon on Aug. 10 to 13.
