Momentum One volleyball teams open season

By Pierre LaBossiere • December 29, 2021 1:30 am
Photo courtesy of Christine Halberg The Momentum One Volleyball Academy U18 Tsunami won the silver division at its first tournament of the season in Auburn earlier in December. From left, back row, are Emi Halberg, Alexis Perry, Jasmine Messinger, Ava Hairell, Sam Robbins and Josephine Edgington. From left, front row, are Keana Rowley, Jayde Wold and Lily Halberg.
Photo courtesy of Christine Halberg The Momentum One Volleyball Academy U18 Tsunami won the silver division at its first tournament of the season in Auburn earlier in December. From left, back row, are Emi Halberg, Alexis Perry, Jasmine Messinger, Ava Hairell, Sam Robbins and Josephine Edgington. From left, front row, are Keana Rowley, Jayde Wold and Lily Halberg.

Momentum One Volleyball Academy directors, coaches and athletes are excited to start their second season on the Olympic Peninsula after missing last year due to COVID-19 restrictions.

There are four teams with athletes 13 to 18 years old from Port Angeles, Sequim, Forks and Neah Bay. The goal of Momentum One is to create opportunities for female athletes to gain competitive experiences and improve their volleyball skills that will help them during their middle school and high school volleyball seasons.

The season will continue through March or April, depending on the team, as they try to minimize the overlap with spring prep sports.

All four Momentum One teams attended their first tournament Dec. 11-12 at the Kraken Fieldhouse in Auburn. The U14 team, made up of girls from Port Angeles and Sequim, had their first exposure playing competitive club volleyball. The team is coached by Eric and Michelle Palenik of Sequim, who said their girls saw a lot of tough competition, but by the end of the day, they started to see some big improvements.

The two U16 teams are made up of athletes from Port Angeles, Sequim, Forks and Neah Bay. The U16 Hurricane team, coached by Lucritia Stansbury from Forks, went 1-3 on the day, while the U16 Tsunami team, coached by former Port Angeles High School volleyball alumnus Elizabeth DeFrang, placed second in pool play and finished 2-2 for the day.

Both coaches said it was a great day because the girls had fun and found ways to be successful while playing tough competition.

The U18 Tsunami team has athletes mostly from Port Angeles with Keana Rowley from Forks. The team played three tight matches in pool play and finished 1-3. They stormed through the afternoon bracket play, beating three teams from Auburn, Seattle and Lynnwood, and finished as champions of the silver bracket. Setter Josephine Edgington was selected as the MVP.