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Alamo, Texas Tornados Capture Cross Court Championships

March 9 — Alamo Kaepa captured the 18 Open championship of the Houston Cross Court Classic Sunday, but Dallas Skyline made it anything but easy. With Allen junior J.J. Jones using all of her weapons, including high school teammate Whitney Stare, a sophomore, in the middle and Rachel Talley and Rachel Altman on the outside, Skyline took a surprisingly easy 25-20 win in Game 1.

Alamo responded, however, as Erin Hickman turned to Ryan Maspero on the outside while Brittany Hildebrand and Kari Chapman controlled the middle to even the match 25-17. The teams traded points in Game 3 until Alamo snapped a 6-6 tie with a four-point run then survived a Skyline rally to claim the championship 15-12.

Alamo had advanced to the finals by knocking off Texas Advantage Arthur 25-15, 25-10 in the semis while Skyline advanced to the championship by cruising past Texas Juniors 25-13, 25-11. Texas Juniors took third with a 25-22, 25-18 win over TAV.

In the 17s division, Texas Tornados improved to 33-3 with another undefeated weekend and a 25-19, 25-21 win over Copperfield Green to claim the championship. Copperfield had advanced to the finals by beating Alamo 17 Kaepa 26-24, 27-25 while the Torandos advanced to the finals with a 25-19, 25-21 win over Skyline Roshambo.

Tornados coach Jared Day admitted that his team is ready for a little rest after two weeks of intense competition. The Tornados, who won a brutal Tour of Texas pool last weekend, were without Melissa Cadwell, who was nursing a sore knee all weekend. Despite struggling at times on Sunday, the team was still perfect for the weekend and now looks forward to a couple of weeks off before their first national qualifier at the end of the month.

"We were a little beat up this weekend," said Day. "Without Melissa our passing wasn't as sharp as it has been. Plus, I think some of our girls may have already taken spring break mentally. But I'm pleased with the way we've been playing."

Cajunland took the 16s championship with a 12-25, 25-21, 15-11 comeback win over Alamo 16 Kaepa. Canjunland advanced to the finals with a 25-22, 25-23 win over Alamo Gold. Alamo Kaepa knocked off Bexar County, 25-16, 25-17 in their semifinal match. Bexar took third with a 26-24, 25-19 win over Alamo.

Of course, one of the biggest stories of the weekend involved the Alamo Kaepa 15s, who were putting their undefeated record on the line in the 17s division. Alamo's undefeated streak finally came to an end late Saturday night with a 25-17, 14-25, 15-12 loss to Dallas Skyline's top 17s team. Alamo had won its two earlier matches in pool play.

"This is what this weekend was all about. It was a chance to play big teams that can block and have good ball control," said coach Keith Wilson. "We knew that one (the Skyline match) was going to be the tough one. I don't think they had a lot of respect for us at first, but I think we earned their respect in the second game. After the match their coaches and several parents told us they were impressed with our poise. That made me feel good. Overall, I was really proud of the way the girls figured out the different adjustments they needed to make on their own. They knew who they needed to serve to, where they need to be and what they were trying to do to us without me having to tell them. That was impressive. I told them that it's important to learn things from a loss as well as a win."

Alamo's losing streak actually reached two when they lost to the South Shore's Thundermonkeys 22-25, 25-16, 15-12 to open bracket play on Sunday. The team rebounded to beat Spike Sport Black 25-20, 25-19 to finish seventh in the 17s division.

Results

18 and Under Open
1. Alamo Kaepa (Gold champion)
2. Dallas Skyline Roshambo
3. Texas Juniors
4. Texas Advantage Arthur
5. New Orleans Hurricanes
6. Willowbrook
7. East Texas Black (Silver champion)
8. South Shore National
9. Baton Rouge
10. South Shore Mizuno

17 and Under Open
1. Texas Tornados Kaepa (Gold champion)
2. Copperfield Green
3. Alamo Kaepa
4. Dalls Skyline Roshambo
5. South Shore Thunder Monkeys (Silver champion)
6. BR 16 Black
7. Alamo 15 Kaepa
8. Spike Sport Black
9. Cajunland
10. East Texas Black

16 and Under Open
1. Cajunland (Gold champion)
2. Alamo 16 Kaepa
3. Bexar County
4. Alamo Gold

Complete Open and Club Division Results