FAR EAST TOURNAMENT WOES

[two_third last=”no”]By Robert Balajadia

Guam High Panthers celebrate after sinking the ND Royals to move on to the quarterfinals. (GSPN photo)

Eight teams from Guam participated in the 2013 Far East Girls Volleyball Tournament which included the 2013 champion Academy Cougars, Southern Dolphins, ND Royals, Guam High Panthers, JFK Islanders, Okkodo Bulldogs, GW Gekos, and Sanchez Sharks. As big a deal as the tournament was, there appeared to be a serious lack of media coverage despite the tournament being on Guam, which only happens once every seven years. All games took place at the Naval Base Gymnasium, which already means getting in to the games was going to be difficult for those without base privilege. For the media, it was an even tougher task considering requirements and protocol changed almost every day. In order for media to gain access for a day: 1. A security check would need be granted from which could take anywhere between one hour to all day. From GSPN experiences, it took all day, Day 1 of the tournament to be exact. This required your social security number, of course. This also had to be done daily, just in case you committed crimes or participated in illegal activities over night, I think? *It’s also important to make sure you know where the games are at via correct sources so you do not end up at Andersen Air Force Base instead of Navy, as GSPN figured out first hand on Day 1 of the tournament. 2. You are not allowed to drive your own vehicle on base and have to be accompanied by one of the tournament organizers to the game, which is not a problem since the organizers and staff were very hospitable. The issue for them is that they have to make sure you are not wandering in unauthorized territory so they MUST stay within eyesight of you at all times to make sure you’re taking pictures of the games only and nothing else. 3. You are not given a curfew, which is great! 4. You must then be accompanied out of the base with the friendly and welcoming tournament organizers the same way you came in, which is understandable. 5. Make sure you don’t leave too early in case you were hoping to get scores of later games over the phone! A new protocol was hammered down to deny any of the organizers or members to relay scores of the game over the phone or through text messaging. No joke. 6. You will eventually get the info you need by the end of the day, but for a website that updates information instantly, end of the day is already too late.

CAJ Knights do a pre-game celebration in the huddle before facing the Academy Cougars. (GSPN photo)

American School in Japan (ASIJ) are the defending champions and appear to be on their way to another title after taking down Guam’s best in the Academy Cougars in the semifinals 25-18, 25-16, 25-22. Kinnick defeated Seison 25-14, 27-25, 25-18 to advance to the championship game against ASIJ. The Cougars were the only team to represent Guam in the semifinals, but miscommunication on the specific time of the game also provided a lack of coverage. The other seven Guam teams competed in the consolation games and Academy will play Kinnick Thursday morning at 11 a.m. for the third place spot. GSPN had hoped to provide better tournament coverage, but some limitations and miscommunication hindered the type of information released as well as the timelines of the information. We will continue to put out the best product we can and we thank you fans for all the support! Day 3 Consolation Scores Southern def. ND 15-25, 25-20, 15-12 Okkodo def. Guam High 25-13, 25-22 Sanchez def. Kubasaki 25-22, 25-19, 15-9 GW def. Sanchez 25-20, 23-25, 15-12 Southern def. Okkodo 25-21, 25-16[/two_third]

UPDATE

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The Academy Cougars secure third place with a win over Seisen this morning in the 2013 Far East Volleyball Tournament Academy vs. Seisen 27-25, 25-19 In the championship match, ASIJ won for the third straight year with a win over Nile C. Kinnick. ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM Most Valuable Player—Mia Weinland, American School In Japan All-Tournament team—Liz Thornton (four-time selection), Mia Weinland (two-time selection), American School In Japan; Audri Salter, Kaile Johnson, Kelly Osterbrink, Nile C. Kinnick; Erin Wong, Ladera Perez-Linn (two-time selection), Academy of Our Lady of Guam; Nicolette McGuire, Jade Vasconcellos, Seisen International; Zhanissa Mendiola, Kristin Artero, Kiarra Rojas, Simon Sanchez; Destiny Castro, Notre Dame; Kelsey Rogers, Kubasaki; Kristin Sapp, John F. Kennedy. [fbshare url=”http://www.gspnlive.com/volleyball/far-east-tournament-woes/” type=”button”] [fblike url=”http://www.gspnlive.com/volleyball/far-east-tournament-woes/” style=”standard” showfaces=”false” width=”450″ verb=”like” font=”arial”]…