The heat didn’t stop Team Ontario Black from leaving their mark at the USAV High Performance Championships in Fort Lauderdale, Florida which took place from July 18-22. Teams representing the USA and Canada were complimented by international squads from Chile, Liberia, New Zealand, Peru, and Puerto Rico. The event is a co-ed international tournament held in the United States for the purpose of helping develop the international game. 

Team Ontario Black girls

The Team Ontario Black girls secured a spot on the podium after dominating the competition winning in straight sets in their quarter and semi-final matches. In the gold medal match Team Ontario, coached by Matthew Schnarr, were unable to solve the challenge of Team Florida GIY, ending their win streak but leaving with a well-deserved silver medal.

“Honesty, Integrity, and Excellence. These were the team’s core values for their provincial team experience," said Schnarr of his team's demonstration of the values of the Team Ontario Program throughout the 15 team event. "These 16 athletes went through the grind of 16 days of high-performance training and tournament play. They were committed to every detail, point and each other 100% of the time. They were cohesive, they stayed in the bubble but more importantly, they played with raw emotion and passion.

Many laughs were had, friendships created, tears aplenty but more importantly, our hearts are full with a silver medal to remind each other of one another and the journey. Thank you to each and every one of them. I am a better person for them and the experience they have given me,” waxed the coach on his Instagram feed.  

Along with their silver medal, Team Ontario Black girls Sasha van der Merwe and Atara Kuruppu received the All Tournament Team award to add to their collection.

Team Ontario Black boys

The Team Ontario Black boys competed hard throughout the championship finishing 10th overall in the 21 team Youth International division. Head Coach, Steve Delaney, was proud of the way his team grew throughout this experience.

“Team O Black boys had a very successful training camp and competition. It was a pleasure to watch the boys learn and develop as both athletes and people. The technical and tactical knowledge they gained was evident as they finished off the tournament with three 3-0 victories on way to top 10 finish,” said Delaney of his team's effort. “It was a pleasure to work with such a great group of athletes and coaches over the past 17 days. The athletes experienced growth in all aspects of what it means to be a high-performance athlete and the future is bright for all of them.”

The Florida tournament concluded the high performance season for Team Ontario Black.