The FIVB is hosting the U21 World Beach Volleyball Championships in Nanking, China, and SPC is well represented. Two incoming freshman, Michelle Valiente from Paraguay and Martyna Kloda, from Poland are competing for their home counties in China including. "Since SPC is right in the beautiful beach for the Gulf of Mexico, it is a natural fit for the Volleyball program to seek out beach players. I have been following and talking with both of these players of the last few years and we are all excited for them both to join our program in the fall. Last year, Ana Costa placed 4th at the U19 World Championships." Said Coach White.
When asked why beach players, Coach White responded "accomplished beach players are typically very athletic, very self-driven, and they know how to win. These are the exact characteristics I am looking for in players for our program. Of course, it does not hurt that we use our off season to improve our beach skills, leverage the world class talent in the area by working with BeVolley (http:www.bevolleyacademy.com). For these highly recruited players, our embrace of the beach game is why they choose SPC over our rivals."
Martyna and Michelle will add some tremendous talent to what is looking to be a very deep team this fall. The season start right after school starts on August 22nd with a home game against Pasco-Hernando, 6:00 PM on the St. Pete/Gibbs campus. The full schedule is listed on the website at: www.spcollege.edu/volleyball