New combos take NMIVA Pacific Games qualifier

A pair of newly formed teams didn’t let their lack of familiarity hold them back on Sunday as Mark McDonald and Tyce Mister bested all comers in the men’s division, while E.J. Lee and Michelle Hammons took the women’s crown during the latest Northern Mariana Islands Volleyball Association Pacific Games qualifier at the Pacific Islands Club.

The action on the sand was intense as McDonald-Mister went undefeated against the four-team field, and they got started with a convincing 21-5 win over Mathew Blanco and Keith Sablan before dispatching Yosh Gabaldon and Ben Wood in the finals, 21-14, for their third victory in as many attempts.

McDonald was without the services of his partner from the first three tournaments as Chris Nelson is still recovering from an injury suffered on Thanksgiving Day, but teaming up with Mister proved to be a smart choice.

Last week there was talk on the sidelines that the duo would play well had they joined forces at the start of the series and McDonald-Mister proved speculators correct with three straight wins on the San Antonio sand.

Gabaldon-Wood went 2-1 and earned a finals bid after topping Luther “Luda” Taylor and Joe Ayuyu, 21-8. NMIVA president Jon Cramer said that despite a small turnout on the men’s side McDonald-Mister looked “pretty good” and that there were some great matches on the women’s side that kept people at the PIC to watch the winners.

“The level of play is stepping up a notch and the ladies are playing harder than ever. [The tournament was a] great experience for the younger ones and a good work out for the veterans. We had a pretty decent crowd on hand for that terrific final,” he said.

Lee-Hammons only teamed up the night before the tournament when the indoor star from team CNMI called Hammons looking for a teammate for the latest qualifier. They earned top honors in the tournament after defeating Heather Kennedy and Kelley Butcher in back-to-back sets in the finals, 22-20 and 15-10.

After losing to Kennedy-Butcher three games into the tournament, Lee-Hammons defeated Melissa Halaby and Nina Mosley, 16-14, in the losers’ bracket to earn their rematch.

Once there, Lee-Hammons were behind the 8-ball as they had to defeat Kennedy-Butcher twice to take the crown, and that’s exactly what they did.

Kennedy-Butcher looked like the team to beat after cruising through their first three matches unscathed. Their only close match before the finals came in a fiery contest against the up-and-coming tandem of Halaby-Mosley, which they won 23-21.

The next qualifier in San Antonio takes place next year when the post-holiday action resumes at noon on Jan. 7, 2007 and Jan. 21. The tournament slate has two February dates as well on Feb. 4, 2007 and Feb. 10 but quality play isn’t enough to get a ticket to the Pacific Games.

Points will be awarded based upon the team’s performance in the tournaments. First place squads earn 10 points for their efforts on the sand, runners-up bring home eight points, third place garners six points, fourth place finishers take four points, and fifth place counts as two points toward qualifying for the CNMI team.

The cost to participate in each of the tournaments is $5 per person for NMIVA members and $10 for non-members.

Qualifying tournaments are open to everyone but the results of the qualification series will count as 65 percent of the selection process. In addition to the qualifiers, NMIVA is offering a series of volleyball clinics at the PIC with beach volleyball Russell Quinn every Wednesday through Feb. 7, 2007.

All participants will be rewarded for their commitment as attendance at the clinics count for 20 percent of the qualification process. Each session counts as two points toward making the cut and those who miss out more than half of the clinics will lose their eligibility altogether.

The final 15 percent of the process comes at the discretion of coach Quinn, who will make his rankings based upon overall fitness and shape, attitude, cooperation, skill level, and technique (passing, setting, spiking, and service).