Club Attack set for nationals in Orlando
Jun. 24—The Club Attack volleyball program owned the state of Tennessee over the winter. Now they'll give Florida a try.
The 18U team will begin play in the USA Volleyball Nationals in Orlando on Friday. The tournament runs through July 1.
Club Attack had a successful run through the AAU circuit to get to this point. They won championships in three of the five tournaments they played — the K2 Sun Sphere Smash in Knoxville, Tenn.; the AAU Jewel of the Mountain in Kingsport, Tenn.; and the Spikefest Volleyball Tournament in Gatlinburg, Tenn.
They finished runner-up at the Myrtle Madness Volleyball Tournament in Myrtle Beach, S.C.
The team carries some star power. Chylyn Pate of Greenbrier East was the 2020 Prep Volleyball Player of the Year, and teammate Madison Boswell was a Class AAA second-team all-stater. Also a second-teamer was Elysia Salon of Woodrow Wilson, and fellow Flying Eagle Kacee Fansler was a special honorable mention selection.
Pate will play collegiately at Wheeling and Boswell at West Virginia Wesleyan.
Also on the team are Olivia Barnett of Shady Spring, Abby Wooten, Abby Dillon and Hannah Goode of Woodrow Wilson and Macie Pack of Mount Hope Christian.
The team is coached by Brantlea Wood and Mandy Bloomfield. They like the team's cohesiveness above all else.
"They get along so well," Wood said. "The team chemistry is awesome. You would never guess that they go to different schools. They range from 14 to 18 (years old). They all get along so well, every single one of them. And the parents are awesome. That makes a huge impact on everything."
All that spills over to the court.
"They talk, and then it comes down to chemistry," Wood said. "They trust each other. They know how each other plays. Who's going to be more aggressive, who's going to be a little more tentative and kind of have to push more. And they learned that very quickly from one another."
Email: gfauber@register-herald.com and follow on Twitter @GaryFauber
