Army volleyball teams sweep Armed Forces titles

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colorado - The All-Army men's volleyball players slapped high fives and jumped in celebration on the court Sept. 12 after winning the Armed Force Volleyball tournament title. One day later, the All-Army women's team clinched its first Armed Force's Volleyball tournament title in nine years at Fort Carson.

The Army last swept both the men's and women's divisions in 2014 at the USA Nationals Volleyball tournament in Phoenix.

All-Armed Forces sports hosted the volleyball tournament for the first time since 2019 after the COVID-19 pandemic forced the tourney into an indefinite hold.

Army men's volleyball cruises

During one pivotal point in the All-Army men's team's Sept. 12 match with Air Force, Army Sgt. Michael Tuimavave powered a thunderous strike to the tile. The 6-foot-4 inch outside hitter, stationed at Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, strutted back playing to the crowd as fellow Army players cheered on.

The score put Army up 24-12 in the third set on the second day of the 2024 All Armed Forces Volleyball tournament.

Spc. Francisco Bautista-Santa, a 6-3 middle blocker from Hunter Army Airfield, Georgia, closed out the set with kill at the net to put Army up 2-1 over Air Force. Army (5-1) then took the final set in dramatic fashion. Right outside hitter Asaleti Telea fired a spike through the Air Force defense to put Army up 25-24. The contest ended on an Air Force penalty.

With Army's fourth straight triumph, a 3-1 win over Air Force, the Soldiers earned enough victories to be crowned tournament champion on the second day of the three-day tournament.

"I'm really blessed to be part of this team," said Telea, a specialist stationed at Fort Lewis, Washington. "It means a lot to me playing along with my brothers."

Tuimavave, setter Julio Andino, 6-6 middle blocker Gabriel Misilagi, and outside hitters Telea and Sgt. Joe Ulrich (Yokota Air Base, Japan) all contributed points in the final set.

"Across the board everyone is great," said Misilagi, a sergeant assigned to Fort Irwin, California. "All 12 of us, we all put in the work, and the talent level was sky high."

Although only a few dozen spouses, family and supporters sat inside Fort Carson's William Reed Special Events Center, the Armed Forces Volleyball players created a raucous atmosphere.

Andino, a Soldier from Puerto Rico, acted as the team's only true setter throughout the tournament playing long minutes. The commander of the team's second setter called that player back to duty days before the tournament.

"Other than running the court and being exhausted, he is also the psychologist," Army coach, Sgt. 1st Class Jaime Gonzalez, said. "He's got to talk to [the players] and make sure they're in the right place so that we could actually have a clean set."

Gonzalez said he originally cut 21-year-old Telea from the roster due to inexperience. But the coach changed his mind and Telea responded by making critical kills during the tournament from the right side.

"He was the surprise of the tournament," Gonzalez said.

Tuimavave, the team's captain and kills leader, also contributed aces when his team needed him throughout the tourney.

"Thank God that I have him on my team," Gonzalez said. "He did a lot of things that we needed, and he terminated a lot of plays that we needed.

The Army's 12 players began training camp at Fort Carson on Aug. 22 and practiced two to three times a day for three weeks, while also having gym workout sessions. They built camaraderie with team dinners and taking visits to a nearby lake.

Army women's volleyball team returns to prominence

The All-Army women's volleyball team boasted perhaps its most talented roster in years. But talent alone didn't carry the Soldiers to the 2024 Armed Forces Volleyball tournament title, said Coach Tatiana Brown.

"We had some leadership that stepped up at the right time and made the right decisions and on the court and they supported each other," said Brown, a sergeant first class stationed at Hunter Army Airfield. "That's what made the difference."

Army (4-2) outlasted the last All Armed Forces champion Air Force, 3-1 to clinch first place.

On Sept. 13, the Soldiers won the first two sets against Air Force 25-16 and 25-16 behind the hitting of 1st Lt. Monica Eckford and Staff Sgt. Salaia Marshall and the blocking of Capt. Sydney Morriss and 1st Lt. Bryce Quick. Quick, a Soldier assigned to Poznan, Poland, made a block to win the first set.

"We played as a team, and we were really connecting," said Morriss, a 6-0 right side hitter from Camp Darby, Italy. "Whenever we had energy and were working as a team, we were on fire."

Setter Hannah Presley keyed the Soldiers' victory with sharp passes to Army hitters and also kept the Air Force defense honest with four successful dump plays that caught the Airmen off guard. One dump in the second set, landed in a weak spot along the back baseline, five feet from the nearest Airman.

"She makes those crucial saves with setting the ball to the right people at the right time," Brown said of the first lieutenant stationed at Fort Cavazos, Texas. "She knows her hitters so well that when it gets close and we're down, she knows where to put the ball and make those great decisions."

On Sept. 12, Army dropped a five-set loss to runner up Navy (3-3). After starting the match 2-0. Navy rallied to win the last three sets. Following that contest, Army bounced back to defeat Air Force on Sept. 12 in straight sets and then beat the Airmen again on Sept. 13.

"We were humbled real quick," Morriss said of the Navy loss. "It put some fire under us."

Outside hitter/setter Julymar Otero, a specialist stationed in Ponce, Puerto Rico, contributed clutch kills from the left side when the team needed offense, hitting several shots through the outstretched arms of defenders. Libero Ileanushka Maldonado, a sergeant stationed in San Juan, Puerto Rico, made crucial digs off the Air Force hitters and throughout the tournament.

"I think we have a lot of talent on this team from the [defensive specialists] to the hitters to the setters," Morriss said. "We had a stacked bench. No matter who went on the court, I think everyone was going to do the job."

Brown praised Morriss' defense of Air Force outside hitter Brookelyn Messenger on Sept. 13, the Airmen's most talented hitter. Morriss recorded successful blocks against Messenger.

"Sydney just found her swing and she gets very high over that block and she blocks so well," Brown said. "She pretty much shut down [Messenger]."

Marshall joined the All-Army team for her seventh and likely last season in 2024. During her first years with the program, the Army took first at the Armed Forces tournament in 2013, 2014 and 2015. Marshall has also made the Armed Forces women's team.

"Today we made a statement," said Marshall, an active Army reservist stationed at Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. "This year we had a great group of women. We're back. I'm so emotional right now because it's been a long time. Nine years waiting to win gold."

RELATED LINKS:

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