
                         THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
                 Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, June 17, 1994                    TAG: 9406170702 
SECTION: SPORTS                     PAGE: C6    EDITION: FINAL  
SOURCE: BY DENISE MICHAUX, STAFF WRITER 
DATELINE: 940617                                 LENGTH: Medium

W. BRANCH VOLLEYBALL CLUB IN HUNT FOR NATIONAL TITLE

{LEAD} They have been together for only seven months competing against established clubs which field four to six teams, but that hasn't kept the 10-player Western Branch Volleyball Club from meeting its goal of playing for a national title.

``The other clubs may have more players, but we have really good players,'' head coach Beth Lett said.

{REST} Western Branch used its talent and intensity to topple the defending state champions, Blue Ridge South, and the Richmond AceHers en route to the State 16-under Junior Olympic championship in May.

Since the club formed last November, Western Branch has played in seven tournaments, winning three of them, finishing second three times and fourth once in compiling a 28-8-2 record.

The next stop is Austin, Texas, on June 30 to play for the national title. Western Branch is guaranteed at least nine matches in the tournament and must top 48 other teams to gain the title.

Lett didn't want to speculate on the competition Western Branch will face, but is sure that her players will soon realize that 5-foot-10 is not tall. Lett has three players listed at 5-10 or better and another at 5-9 1/2.

``We're not super tall, I think we are going to see that right away,'' Lett said. ``But we have great quickness and are very aggressive.''

One of the team's biggest hurdles has been finding practice time. Several of the girls play softball for Western Branch High School and that has taken priority.

``That's been part of the problem,'' Lett said. ``School sports come first. A lot of the girls are very interested in softball and there have been times when they couldn't give volleyball their full concentration.

``But when tournament time has rolled around, they have been very focused. They are multisport athletes and they are very talented.''

Jaci Morris, the Junior Olympic tournament most valuable player, was also the leading hitter for Western Branch's softball team, which lost to Midlothian in the quarterfinals of the Group AAA tournament last week.

Morris had 21 kills and a service percentage of 100 percent throughout the Junior Olympic tournament. Amanda Adkins totaled 30 kills for the tournament and freshman Cathy Arnette had 54 assists. Both players joined Morris on the all-tournament first team. Katie MacPhail led the club with eight aces in the tournament and earned a spot on the second team.

When the players return from Texas, with or without a national title, it could be the end of the road for the club. With six sophomores on the team, this is the last time it can compete at the 16-under level.

``The next level is 18-under, but these girls will have to sit down and evaluate what they want to do,'' Lett said. ``They have a lot of other interests.''

by CNB