Volleyball — Eyes on the prize

As a child, Sydney Anderson hung around the gym watching her mother play volleyball on a county recreation league, hoping for a chance to touch the ball.

"I always went with my mom to the games and just hit the ball against the wall," said the Alta senior who verbally committed to the University of Utah this spring. "I loved it; I was just dying to hit the ball."

Once she got the chance to play, volleyball quickly consumed everything else. She started playing club volleyball when she was 12 years old on a 15-and-under team.

She now practices three times each week for two hours a day and plays volleyball all year around. She and her High Country club teammates will vie for the most prestigious honor at this year's Junior Olympic Girls Volleyball Championships — the open 18s title.

To qualify for that division, a team must place in the top three at one of the regional qualifiers. There are three levels of play, with open being the highest; national is the next level, and then the American division. The teams qualify in divisions based on the tournaments in which they play.

The tournament will feature 756 teams and 11,500 volleyball players ages 12-18 playing in different age categories and different divisions. In addition to Anderson's High Country squad, there are 17 other Utah teams hoping to earn national honors.

It is the third time Utah has been chosen to host the event, which organizers estimate will have a $43 million impact on the state as thousands of players, families, officials and coaches gather to watch some of the most competitive volleyball in the country.

High Country 18s coach Kim Norman has to wear two hats for the next two weeks, that of organizer and coach.

"It's a little more difficult when you host as well as play in the tournament," she said with a laugh. "I have to make sure we have all of our ducks in a row. But we don't play until the last four days of the tournament, so that helps in allowing us to get everything in order before I have to change hats."

Norman has help on the sideline in one of the most overqualified assistants around — Viewmont High volleyball coach Lori Salvo. The U. of U. graduate has coached for 24 years and has won state titles in 2001 and 2002. She was named one of the top 100 athletes in Utah, won nine all-conference awards, was an All-American basketball player and is a member of the U. of U. Hall of Fame.