The Ayuyus, coached by Emy Quitugua, muscled their way to the championship round after beating Saipan Southern High School in game two and Saipan International School in game five.
They finally came across Marianas High School (Team 1) in the finals, which seemed to be a breeze.
Kroy Ogo, a crucial member of KHS, blew the Dolphins away with powerful spikes. His teammates Justin Kumagai and Ryan Camacho played well on the defense, protecting the team against MHS’ JP Darag and Genesis Mamaril.
Both teams played evenly at first, but it was a matter of time before KHS took the first lead.
A change in position brought KHS’ Anthony Foster to the front row, where he partnered up with Ogo in the offense.
The two offer a monstrous assault on the Dolphins as Foster sets Ogo for instant kills.
The Ayuyus needed only two sets to claim their well-deserved trophy. They struck a 25-12 win in the first set before beating the Dolphins 25-18 in the second. Their team consisted of Ryan Camacho, Ichitaro Faisao, Anthony and David Foster, Joshua Jones, Justin Kumagai, Kroy Ogo, Angel San Nicolas, and Douglas Dillay.
“Overall, we played a good game and we challenged pretty strong teams,” said Coach Quitugua after the game.
Practice paid off for the Ayuyus, who trained three times a week and also during lunch at school. Aggressiveness and teamwork, combined with more spiking and bumping were the keys to the team’s victory, according to Ogo.
Before landing in the finals, the Dolphins came a long way from the start. They crushed MHS Team 2 in game one before being stopped by Saipan International School in game three. In the loser’s bracket, they eliminated the SSHS before coming across SIS for the second time. They played a closely fought match against the Geckos in the semifinals, losing to them 25-16 in the second set. The forces of Mamaril, Darag, and Ralph Francisco eventually conquered the Geckos 15-12 in the third set.
Marianas High School’s first runner-ups included Denmark Lizardo, Mike Moran, Genesis Mamaril, Jason Limes, JP Darag, Jesse Lorenzo, Paul Cielo, Ralph Francisco, and Coach Tyce Mister.
