Big South Qualifier
4/06/2007
8:32am
Yeah, here we go again. 3 weeks in a row of this stuff. This weekend a number of Sting teams take to the court at the Big South Qualifier in Atlanta, GA. Yes, we know it's Easter weekend but for those of you who are new to all of this, this is nothing new.
I once had an Easter Egg hunt at the Marriott in downtown Indianapolis. So, who needs online results when the bat phone is close at hand. Fresh off of the phone with Mike Blanchard (parent of 14 Gold member Hannah Blanchard and 11 Gold member Martha "Popeye" Blanchard)
here is the scoop. Sting 14 Gold has begun the day 1-0 in a 3 set match win over Champions 14-1 (FL) 20-25, 25-22, 15-9. It seems 14 Gold wants to see just how many years they can put on their dear coach who began this season as one of the youngest head coaches
in the club but may end as one of the oldest if they keep going three at every qualifier. News is Sting 15 Gold has also won their first match in 2. They won over Club Texas 15 Black with set scores of 25-20 and 25-19.
Overall here is where Sting teams entered into the weekend in terms of seeding:
Sting 17 Gold - #9
Sting 17 Black - #11 (out of 120 teams!)
Sting 16 Gold - #4
Sting 15 Gold - #6
Sting 14 Gold - #6
No other results to report at this time but I'll be trying to stay on it through the weekend. Please keep checking back for updates. Good Luck to everyone down there! Bring back some more bids and keep representing the Black and Gold the way you always do.
UPDATE 9:25am cst
Sting 17 Gold won their first match in 2 and are off to a great start in their second straight week of qualifiers. They won with scores of 25-15 and 25-21 over Xceleration VBC 17-1 (CA?). Sting 16 Gold also won their first match of the day in impressive fashion.
They beat Synergy (PA) 25-14, 25-18.
Sting 17 Black is also in Atlanta this weekend and don't begin play until 3:00pm est.
UPDATE 10:20am cst
After 3 rounds of play the morning wave teams are doing great. Sting 14 Gold GOES 2!!! Yes folks, the team that went 3 in all but 2 matches at the MEQ and continued the trend by going 3 in their first match at Big South have finally found themselves at the tail end of a 2 set match. They won 25-19, 25-18 against Cinncinati Elite 14-1.
On court 74 Sting 15 Gold increased their pool standing to 2-0 with a victory over Team Saint Louis 15 Blue; 25-19, 25-15. Sting 16 Gold is rolling in pool 4 of 16 Open. They won their most recent match with scores of 25-12, 25-16 over Boomers (FL). All three teams are reffing in round 4 and Sting 17 Gold should be mid-way
through their second match of the day.
UPDATE 11:00am cst
Sting 17 Gold is still alive and kicking with one match left to play. They recorded scores of 25-12, 25-12 against Metro American 17-1 (MD). Going into the final round of play for the early wave teams Sting teams are all undefeated. The final match for all teams in this wave will begin at noon cst. I hope to have the morning results posted by 1:30.
UPDATE 1:45pm cst
Day 1 is done for the Open teams. Great day of play by all 4 teams. Sting 17 Gold managed to move up a couple of spots in the overall seeding by beating the #1 seed in their pool, A5 17 Kelly in 2 to the tune of 25-19, 25-13. Great bounce back from last weekend. Keep it up! Meanwhile, Sting 16 Gold had a battle against Team Z 16 Navy in their final
match of the day. The scores of that match were 18-25, 25-23, 15-12. On court 74, Sting 15 Gold had a little easier time with their Team Z opponent in their final match as they beat Team Z 15 Orange 25-19, 25-15 to finish the day 3-0. Sting 14 Gold slipped a bit in their final match losing in three to club fusion 14 black, 19-25, 25-13, 13-15. They tied
in match record with the first team they played today; both teams ended pool play at 2-1. The tie-breaking procedure in this case sends Sting 14 Gold on to the next round as the winner of that pool based on their head-to-head win over the other team.
So for the first wave of Sting teams at Big South, here are the overall records:
Sting 17 Gold - 3-0
Sting 16 Gold - 3-0
Sting 15 Gold - 3-0
Sting 14 Gold - 2-1
Milwaukee Sting 17 Black begins competition shortly and I'll be updating as the evening moves ahead.
UPDATE 3:20pm cst
Beginning the tournament where the others left off, Sting 17 Black took the court with poise for round one of wave two and won their first match against Bexar 17 Black (TX - I think it's actually pronounced "bear") 25-14, 25-18. It seems my connection to the bat phone has been cut (cursed riddler) and I haven't recieved any phone calls since this morning. If anyone hears anything
and has any interesting side notes to add, I'm all ears. I'll add it to the site. Sting 17 Black is the #1 seed in their pool so they are reffing right now, play, ref once more, sit and then play their final match at 7:00pm cst (scheduled time).
UPDATE 5:15pm cst
25-14, 25-15 were the scores of 17 Black's last match win over SAVA 17's (FL). That places them at 2-0 and keeps them in position to retain their seed going into the final match of the day.
UPDATE 7:40pm cst
It's over it's done; day one is complete for the Milwaukee Sting teams. Sting 17 Black ended with a perfect pool record of 3-0 winning their last match of the day against Triangle 17 Black (NC). That makes Sting teams a collective 14-1 on day one. Great job players and coaches! There is a lot of qualifier left and it never gets easier. Good Luck tomorrow everyone!
Big South - Day 2
9:00am cst
With day one in the books we move on to day two where Sting 17 Black not only find themselves retaining their 11 seed overall, but in the morning wave along with everyone else. They were the first team to take the court today and got things started off on the good foot winning in two over a familiar name; WI Juniors 17 Blue, 25-19, 25-22. Yup, go all the way to Atlanta and end
up playing a team from home. Sting 17 Gold should be playing right now as they are the number 2 seed in their 4 team pool this morning. Sting 14 and 15 Gold are both in 3 team pools at this point in the tournament and don't begin play until 10:00am cst.
UPDATE 9:08am cst
Sting 17 Gold is keeping it in gear and took their first match today against Tampa Bay 17 Black, 25-10, 25-14.
UPDATE 10:04am cst
Make it 2-0 for 17 Black as they went 25-14, 25-17 over JJVA 17R (FL). One more match to go for them to wrap things up in impressive 2 day fashion. Good Luck!
UPDATE 10:55am cst
First of all, my apologies. For some reason I thought 14 Gold didn't begin until 10:00am cst in a 3 team pool. They were actually in a 4 team pool and began play at 7:00am cst. Unfortunately their day isn't starting off as well as it did yesterday and they lost in 3 sets to TCA 14 3rd Degree, 25-17, 25-27, 10-15. They should be in their second match of the day as I type. Sting 15 and 16 Gold
should also be taking the court at this hour for their first matches of the day. While 17 Gold should be in their second. As a side note, 14 Gold could very well be in what some may term as a "Pool of Death." So far every match has gone to three sets making it appear to be an extremely even and competitive pool.
UPDATE 11:45am cst
Sting 15 Gold begins with solid day 2 opening match; 25-12, 25-15 against OVA 15 Asics (FL). 16 Gold also began their round of play and dropped their first match to NC Challengers 16 Blue, 20-25, 25-21, 11-15. On court 51 Sting 17 Gold dropped their first match of the tournament in 3 sets to Illini Elite 17 Cardinal, 24-26, 25-21, 8-15.
In the 17 Club division, Sting 17 Black is on the court for their final match of the day. 14 Gold should be playing their second match of the day and it should be ending shortly.
UPDATE 11:58am cst
Sting 14 Gold lost their second match of the day in a very tight 3 set loss to KC Power 14-1, 25-19, 23-25, 14-16. Looking at the overall pool records that loss looks to knock them out of contention of the Gold bracket at this point. At best a win in their final match would not be enough to force any kind of tie-breaking procedure for Gold.
UPDATE 1:05pm cst
At this time Sting 17 Black is still playing in their final match. There won't be any more updates here until later tonight. Good Luck everyone in the rest of your pools and your challenge matches this evening if you have them!
UPDATE 8:40pm cst
So far, two teams are still alive for a bid. Sting 17 Black lost a very tight 3 set match in their last match of pool play this afternoon with scores of 24-26, 25-15, 14-16 to USA South 17. This set them up for a 7:00pm est Challenge Match where they won in 2 over GJAC 17 Black (FL), 25-20, 26-24. They will take the court tomorrow
morning for the first round of Gold Playoffs against Club Texas 17 Black at 8:00am est. The other team that is still alive is Sting 15 Gold. They went 2-0 in their 3 team pool for the first round this morning. That placed them in a 4 team pool that began play at 3:00pm est. They played the first two rounds of that pool today and will finish the
pool beginning first thing tomorrow morning. As it stands, they are 1-0 in that pool. If they win their pool, they will secure a bid and then simply play for bragging rights. There doesn't appear to be any trickle down in play for this division so it's all or nothing in pool play tomorrow. Sting 17 Gold finished pool play at 1-2, 3rd place overall;
essentially knocking them out of contention for the Gold bracket. They will play in the Silver Division playoffs tomorrow morning beginning at 9:00am est. On court 53 Sting 16 Gold dropped two tough 3 set matches in their pool of 3 putting them in 3rd place. They played a crossover match at 5:00 est against a familiar rival, WI Juniors 16-1.
Sting 16 Gold won the match with a second set score they won't soon forget, 25-13, 32-34, 15-12. They too will be fighting things out in the Silver Division tomorrow morning where there is a chance they will face juniors once more. Sting 14 Gold went 0-3 on the day and will be playing things out in the Bronze Division.
Good luck to everyone tomorrow. For some the bid is still in reach, for others it just got away a bit this weekend. No matter what, we know our teams will still be fighting things out tomorrow. It's always about pride.
Big South - Day 3
9:15am cst
HAPPY EASTER Sting fans. Our first basket of goodies today comes from 15 Open where Sting 15 Gold went the distance with Sky High 15 Black (IL). Sting won set 3, 16-14. They have one more match to go in this pool. They win it, they have a bid. Our other contender still in the hunt for a bid, Sting 17 Black should be just under way on their court for their first round.
Sting 17 Gold won it's first match of the Silver Division placing them in the Silver finals at 11:00am cst. They defeated Mizuno Long Beach 17 Elite (CA), 25-22, 25-15. They will meet OVA 17 Asics (FL) in the Silver finals. In 16 Open, Sting 16 Gold also won their first round of the play in the Silver division winning their match in 3 sets, 20-25, 25-19, 15-8 against North Dallas 16 Red.
That win moves them into the semi's against Impact VBC 16 Purple (TN); also to be played at 11:00am cst. Sting 14 Gold has yet to take the court this morning.
UPDATE 12:15pm cst
Sting 15 Gold had a fantastic run towards the bid but fell short in their final match versus MAVA 15 Elite (KY), 18-25, 19-25. In 17 Club Sting 17 Black lost their first round match, 26-24, 22-25, 14-16. No results/updates to report on 17 or 16 Gold. Sting 14 Gold won their first match against GJAC 14 Black-N (FL), 25-19, 25-13 and will play Tampa Bay JRs 14 Purple for the Bronze title.
UPDATE 2:00pm cst
Sting 17 Gold makes huge strides since last weekends run in Indianapolis and leave Big South as the Silver division champions beating OVA 17 Asics, 28-26, 25-11. 16 Gold won their semi-final match in the Silver division and will be playing for 13th place. That match should be wrapping up as it was scheduled to begin at 1:00pm cst. No scores/result listed for the 14 Open Bronze division as of yet.
That match was also scheduled for 1:00pm cst so the final results for Sting teams attending the Big South Qualifier should be in shortly.
LAST UPDATE 3:17pm cst
Big South is officially over for all Milwaukee Sting teams. What a wild ride it was but that's what qualifier weekends are all about. The final two matches for Sting teams both ended in losses. Sting 16 Gold lost in the Silver finals to Front Range VBC 16 Blue (CO), 12-25, 24-26. That places them 14th overall in the 16 Open division on the weekend (due to the trickle down process in play for their division
the Silver finals were for 13th place rather than the usual 9th). In the 14 Open Bronze final Sting 14 Gold lost 22-25, 18-25 to Tampa Bay 14 Black. That places them also in 14th place. Here are the offical final finishes for our teams in Atlanta this weekend:
Sting 17 Gold - 9th
Sting 17 Black - 9th
Sting 16 Gold - 14th
Sting 15 Gold - 4th
Sting 14 Gold - 14th
There is one more National Qualifier for our Sting teams. Next stop is Minneapolis, MN for the Northern Lights Qualifier. We've had some great finishes over the last several weeks including two bids in hand. Sometimes you are on a roll and stay on a roll. Sometimes a team jumps up to bite you and it takes a while to recover. All in all it was a good showing in the national arena and at the very least it continues to
battle test our teams. Great job representing Milwaukee Sting at Big South players and coaches. Lets all keep working towards those bids waiting in Minneapolis.
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Ever see a Bison play defense on a volleyball court. It's usually never pretty unless you are watching the Bison of NDSU and it's about to get even better. Sting 18 Gold member Abbey Perez (West Bend East HS)
made her verbal commitment on Saturday evening to the NDSU Bison in Fargo, ND. The very dyanmic defensive specialist joins a number of Wisconsin athletes heading north this summer to join what will be a very young and extremely talented NDSU Bison program. A full article can be found 