Storm Attack at Beach Nationals
Know this about Aaron Nusbaum and Joey Nuguid – no one kicks sand in their faces and gets away with it.
The duo overcame a season of playing mostly in the runner-up role on the Ontario Volleyball Association beach tour to capture the Volleyball Canada boys U16 national title Sunday with a come-from-behind, three-set victory over arch-rivals Reid May and Grant O’Gorman at Ashbridge’s Bay in Toronto.
The tandem swept through nine matches over the three-day event, including two wins against May and Gorman, a pairing that dominated the age group all summer on the association tour.
“They beat us all year and (also) in the Ontario final, so it made it all worth it,” said the six-foot, one-inch Nusbaum, who is entering Grade 11 at Dr. G.W. Williams Secondary School in Aurora.
In the gold medal match, Nusbaum and Nuguid rebounded from an opening set loss to score a tense a 15-21, 23-21, 15-12 victory.
The victory was one of five division titles claimed by teams with connections to the Aurora Storm Volleyball Club.
“I was on top of the world and couldn’t believe what just happened,” Nusbaum said, recalling the moment of victory. “We got beat up in the first set. I was thinking, ‘We can’t go through all this and lose again’.”
It was the second national title in three years for Nusbaum and Nuguid. They also won the U14 title in 2007, but went their separate ways last summer.
“We started practicing together again this year,” said Nusbaum, a five-year veteran of club play for the Storm. “It’s like there is a chemistry between us. We use emotion to win. We make a good combination.”
The duo hooked up three years ago when Nuguid, who lives in Pickering, approached Nusbaum at an association tour indoor tournament.
“I had never played (beach) before that intensely so I thought I would try it,” Nusbaum said. “We’re very emotional guys when we get fired up and yelling at each other. We know where on the court the other guy will be. That makes it a lot easier.”
It was a good weekend overall for Storm members and graduates.
Sharon’s Caleigh Whitaker (just back from the Canada Games in PEI) and her partner, Kaitlyn Krizmanich of Guelph, captured gold in the women’s under-21 division with a 21-18, 21-10 victory over Alex Mingay and Allie Grand, of Toronto, in the title game of their final tournament outing prior to competing at the world U19 championships this month in Blackpool, England.
Meanwhile, first-year teammates Julie Longman (Newmarket) and Jaime Fryer (Pickering) followed up on their Ontario provincial title as they surrendered just one set in winning nine straight matches to capture the U14 title.
Melissa Humana-Paradis and Victoria Altamaire won the women’s U18 crown.
On the boys side, Cole Grossinger (Richmond Hill) and Cole Jordan (London) combined to capture the boys U14 title in a three-set final.
John Cudmore, YorkRegion.com
