The Virgin Islands look to defend a title as well as gain a new title in the Caribbean Zonal Volleyball Associations U19 Boys and Girls Volleyball Championships beginning Saturday in Spanish Town, Jamaica.
The V.I. boys and girls teams, represented by the letters “ISV” in international competitions, enter the championship with high hopes. ISV girls are the current defending champions in this division. The ISV boys are seasoned and have the tools needed to make a deep run in this event.
“One of the things I had the most trouble with when I started coaching the Virgin Islands national teams was the lack of ball control,” said Isaac Raphael head coach of both ISV teams. He says now, “Our girls team has excellent ball control and the boys have improved greatly in this area. So, I expect both teams to do well.”
Saturday’s events kick off with an opening ceremony followed by a matchup of Trinidad & Tobago girls facing Barbados and Aruba boys verses the host, Jamaica.
The ISV boys and girls teams both face off with Aruba Sunday. The finals are scheduled for Aug. 3 when one boys team and one girls team will be awarded the title of Caribbean Champions.
The ISV girls roster includes Ivanna Eudora Kean High School 2024 graduate Krytal Eddy, who won the best blocker award at the North, Central America and Caribbean Volleyball Confederation (NORCECA) U21 Girls Volleyball Championships held in Toronto, Canada earlier this month. Joining Eddy from the NORCECA roster is Mya Brown, Sophia Hertz, Jahyra Thomas, Jayden Gorman, Zyia Toussaint, and Hailey Pierce. Rounding out the ISV CAZOVA roster are Brielle Nestor, sisters Verneeci and Vernecia Caines and two 13-year old players, Mckaylah Mattis and Nevaeh Jackson.
The boys roster features three returning players, Captain Gabriel Rosa, Jared Brown, and Earl Miguel Toussaint Jr. Rosa will be relied on heavily to run offense as he is the main setter on the team. Brown and Toussaint are the two middle blockers. Kymani Greenidge, Armani Anderson, Zamouy Swanston and Cole Sommer will be patrolling the outside. Logan Rogers and Aden Rojas will be playing opposite. A’jahnai Merchant and Sahid Letang are the liberos on the team.
