Saiki and Hallaby take NMIVA qualifier

Milli Saiki and Melissa Hallaby emerged from a field of four teams on the sand court at the Pacific Islands Club yesterday afternoon to take the latest Northern Mariana Islands Volleyball Association qualifier for the 2005 South Pacific Mini-Games in Palau.

The dynamic duo was unstoppable, as they plowed through the competition without surrendering a set throughout three games of round-robin play, and Saiki and Hallaby put the finishing touches on their perfect day when they swept Fausia Maui and Angela Howell to finish 3-0.

With the win, the experienced Saiki leads the pack of women vying for the chance to represent the CNMI in Palau with 26 points. The up-and-coming Hallaby upped her total to 24 points to move into second place in the race.

Saiki and Hallaby first faced the tandem of Laurie Peterka and Heather Kennedy and won, 21-18 and 21-17, in two of the closest sets of the tournament. Peterka and Kennedy finished the tournament 2-1, and had the tournament included a playoff round, these teams could have met in the finals, but the round-robin format pitted each of the teams against one another in a best-of-three sets competition.

NMIVA secretary Steve Nguyen continued his daylong officiating duties as the champs next downed the spirited combo of Clubmate Stephanie Lloyd and Camp at the Hyatt’s Megan Kinney in their second sweep, 21-11 and 21-16. Though they finished the day 0-3, the enthusiasm of the PIC Pouncer and the Hyatt Heroine never wavered in their defeat to the champs. At one point, they held a lead over Saiki and Hallaby late in the second set, but failed to hold on for the win.

In the final match of the day, Saiki and Hallaby met with some of their stiffest resistance of the tournament when they faced Fausia Maui and Angela Howell, but the tireless twosome refused to relent en route to a 21-12, 21-19 sweep. Maui and Howell finished the day 1-2, but they intend to return to the PIC for the next round of action.

Peterka and Kennedy wrapped up second in the tournament as a result of head-to-head competition, and Peterka slipped into a tie with Hallaby for second place in the points race for the South Pacific Mini Games with 24.

The women will have another chance to gain the precious points in two weeks, when the top female players return to the PIC for anther qualifying tournament on Sunday, Feb. 13, while the latest qualifying round for the men takes place this weekend on Sunday, Feb. 6, at the Hyatt Regency Saipan.

The courts at the Hyatt will roar back to action during a two-day event on Saturday, Feb. 19 and Sunday, Feb. 20, as well.

The cost for the events at the PIC and the Hyatt will be $7 for NMIVA members and $12 for non-members. According to Nguyen, all of the money collected from the games will help pay for part of the cost for sending a men’s and women’s team to compete in Palau this July and August.

All of the two-player tournaments will be played in a double-elimination format without pool play. It will have a 9am registration times followed by 10am starts. Anyone intending on playing in the 2005 Mini Games should be entered, but the tournaments are open to anyone interested in partaking in the beachside events.