U17 Beach Volleyball: Anderson and Dunman High make splash in preliminaries

By Lai Jun Wei/Red Sports

Siloso Beach, Saturday, May 28, 2011 — 36 teams battled it out today on the sand of Siloso Beach in the preliminary rounds of the Volleyball Association of Singapore’s U17 Beach Volleyball Competition. The girls’ teams played for seeding in tomorrow’s knockout round while the boys’ teams played to qualify for tomorrow’s draw.

In the girls’ preliminaries, Anderson Secondary emerged as the biggest winners, as their three teams put up a stellar performance to finish in respectable positions in their groups. Anderson Team 1, comprising Denise Lee and Jolly Chan, was the best performer among the three teams from Anderson as they topped Pool B with decisive wins in all their group matches. They beat Team X (comprised of Iris Teng and Tan Xin Lerk from Nanyang JC) 21-13; Bukit Panjang Team 2 (Jodie Lee and Guo Hong Xia) 21-14; and Hillgrove Team A (Brenda Chan and Chua Wei Lin) 21-7.

Anderson Team 3, comprising Cally Lim and Ong Lee Ting, also topped Pool C, beating Chung Cheng High Yishun (Lim Zheng Min and Vivian Ong) 21-14; and North Vista (Yeo Xin and Akicia Kou) 21-7.

Dunman High also posted surprising results as they finished one-two in Pool A. The group saw the closest competition as the evenly matched teams ensured the scoreline was close. Dunman High Team 1 (Laura Lim and Janet Tay) finished on top of the group while Dunman High Team 2 (Creshelle Padilla and Kok Jie Yu) finished second.

The single knockout round will begin tomorrow where the teams will fight it out for a chance at glory. Anderson Team 1 (Denise Lee and Jolly Chan) and Dunman High Team 1 (Laura Lim and Janet Tay) have earned automatic qualification into the quarter-finals. The draw seems relatively straightforward, with a closer match likely to be that between Bukit Panjang Team 2 (Jodie Lee and Guo Hong Xia) and Chung Cheng High Yishun (Lim Zheng Min and Vivian Ong). The winner of the match will then progress to face Dunman High Team 1 (Laura Lim and Janet Tay) in the quarter-finals.

Another potential quarter-final encounter would be between Bukit Panjang Team 1 (Tiffany Yeo and Debbie Chang) and Team X (Iris Teng and Tan Xin Lerk) and an all-Anderson encounter between Anderson Team 1 (Denise Lee and Jolly Chan) and Anderson Team 2 (Theresa Tay and Juniper Thang).

The semi-finals will start at 11am, with the final at 2pm.

In the boys’ preliminaries, the players from the top volleyball schools also made a splash with decisive wins. Team Oreo Boys (Andy Ong and Iryan Bin Iraimi) and Team O.T.K (Kevin Chua and Matthaeus Ang), comprising players from St Hilda’s championship winning team remained a favourite for the competition as they powered their way to victory. Team Anderson Black (Soon Ping Huay and Syamil Bin Toriman) also appeared to be a credible force as they put up some strong opposition alongside the three teams named ‘Pikachu Is Godlike’ (comprised of players from various schools).

The boys’ teams play to qualify for tomorrow’s single knockout round which start at 9am. The semi-finals will also be at 11am while the final will be at 3pm.

The teams which eventually qualified are: Pikachu is Godlike Team 2, Hillgrove Team A, Team Zh & Cy, Team Kevin, Pikachu is Godlike Team 1, Team Fat & Short, Team PC2, Team BPS, Pikachu is Godlike Team 3, Team Epic, Team Anderson Black, River Valley High, Team Oreo Boys, Bukit Panjang Team 1, Team Legendary, Team O.T.K

For more photos, go to the next page.