Colorado University Athletics
Five Buffs Head to USA Volleyball Tryouts
February 27, 2017 | Volleyball
BOULDER — The Buffaloes are sending five players to the USA Volleyball tryouts, March 3-5, at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.
The University of Colorado's contingency includes current athletes Naghede Abu, Taylor Joachim, Frankie Shebby, Alexa Smith and Justine Spann. Joachim and Smith were both named to one of the three teams in 2016.
"The USA tryout is a great opportunity for Lex, Naghede, Taylor, Justine and Frankie to compete and train with some of the best players in the country. They are very excited for the experience and we expect that this group of players will represent our program very well," Colorado head coach Jesse Mahoney said.
The tryout will evaluate 245 athletes from 82 colleges and 10 high schools from across the country for spots on the U.S. Women's National Team and the U.S. Collegiate National Team program. Further, select athletes born in 1998 or 1999 are also competing for spots on the 2017 U.S. Women's Junior National Team. The breakdown for the tryout includes 63 middles, 58 outside hitters, 56 liberos, 40 setters and 28 opposites.
U.S. Women's National Team Head Coach Karch Kiraly and his staff will direct the entire tryout process, which can be viewed with an online video stream. The tryout will involve four sessions with three waves per session. Friday's first session goes from 2-8 p.m. MT, while Saturday's sessions are at 8 a.m. (focus on serve/receive and individual work) and 2 p.m. (middle-centered and out-of-system focus). The final session on Sunday begins at 7:30 a.m. MT with tournament style play, along with 16-18 athletes selected by the U.S. Women's National Team staff to participate in a "USA" training session. The Sunday session wraps up at 10:30 a.m. MT.
The U.S. Collegiate National Team program has three competition options:
Selections for the U.S. Collegiate National Teams will be made by the end of March.
The tryouts are free and open to the public; however seating is very limited.
The University of Colorado's contingency includes current athletes Naghede Abu, Taylor Joachim, Frankie Shebby, Alexa Smith and Justine Spann. Joachim and Smith were both named to one of the three teams in 2016.
"The USA tryout is a great opportunity for Lex, Naghede, Taylor, Justine and Frankie to compete and train with some of the best players in the country. They are very excited for the experience and we expect that this group of players will represent our program very well," Colorado head coach Jesse Mahoney said.
The tryout will evaluate 245 athletes from 82 colleges and 10 high schools from across the country for spots on the U.S. Women's National Team and the U.S. Collegiate National Team program. Further, select athletes born in 1998 or 1999 are also competing for spots on the 2017 U.S. Women's Junior National Team. The breakdown for the tryout includes 63 middles, 58 outside hitters, 56 liberos, 40 setters and 28 opposites.
U.S. Women's National Team Head Coach Karch Kiraly and his staff will direct the entire tryout process, which can be viewed with an online video stream. The tryout will involve four sessions with three waves per session. Friday's first session goes from 2-8 p.m. MT, while Saturday's sessions are at 8 a.m. (focus on serve/receive and individual work) and 2 p.m. (middle-centered and out-of-system focus). The final session on Sunday begins at 7:30 a.m. MT with tournament style play, along with 16-18 athletes selected by the U.S. Women's National Team staff to participate in a "USA" training session. The Sunday session wraps up at 10:30 a.m. MT.
The U.S. Collegiate National Team program has three competition options:
- Tour of Thailand (12 athletes): May 19-30
- Tour of Europe (12 athletes): July 5-16
- USA Volleyball Girls' Junior National Championships (projected 36 athletes): June 22-July 1 in Minneapolis
Selections for the U.S. Collegiate National Teams will be made by the end of March.
The tryouts are free and open to the public; however seating is very limited.
Players Mentioned
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