U.S. Boys' Youth National Team in Dominican Republic for NORCECA tourney

by Paul Soriano USA Volleyball Manager, Public Relations & Publications

The USA boys' youth national volleyball team is one of four teams that will vie for the NORCECA Boys' Youth Continental Championship that will be held at the Pabellon de Voleibol in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Aug. 14-18.

Mexico, Puerto Rico and the United States join the host team, the Dominican Republic, in making up the tournament field. The winner of the tournament earns an automatic bid to the 2003 Boys' Youth World Championships (date and site to be determined).

The 12 members of the USA Boys' Youth National Volleyball Team, comprised of players born on or after Jan. 1, 1985 (17-years-old and under), were selected from an original group of 154 players at three different tryouts earlier in the year (Chicago, Long Beach, Calif., and State College, Pa.). From the original group, 18 players were chosen as members of the USA Boys' Youth National Volleyball Training Team. Those players attended a tryout in Los Angeles over Memorial Day weekend.

That squad went through 18 hours of rigorous tryout sessions in three days. From there, head BYNT coach Sean Byron and assistant coaches Pete Hanson and Greg Vernovage trimmed the roster to 15 players who flew to Lake Placid, N.Y., on July 25 to begin training for the NORCECA tournament. The roster was subsequently cut to a final team of 12 players.

Byron is the head coach of the Rutgers-Newark men's volleyball team. In Santo Domingo he will be assisted by Dennis Hohenshelt, who recently completed his sixth year as an assistant coach for the Penn State University men's team.

The United States' best finish at the NORCECA Boys' Youth Continental Championship was a fourth-place in 1998.

NORCECA Boys' Youth Continental Championship Schedule

Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2002

USA vs. Puerto Rico, 6 p.m. Dominican Republic vs. Mexico, 8:45 p.m.

Thursday, Aug. 15, 2002

Mexico vs. Puerto Rico, 6 p.m. Dominican Republic vs. USA, 8 p.m.

Friday, Aug. 16, 2002

USA vs. Mexico, 5 p.m. Dominican Republic vs. Puerto Rico, 7 p.m.

Saturday, Aug. 17, 2002

Semifinal (No. 1 vs. No. 4), 6 p.m. Semifinal (No. 2 vs. No. 3), 8 p.m.

Sunday, Aug. 18, 2002

Gold Medal Match, 4 p.m. Bronze Medal Match, 6 p.m.

(Time Listed is Central Daylight Time)

For more information, go to the USA Volleyball web site.