COLUMBUS, OH -
If you want to be the best, it helps to see the best at a younger age.
That's the philosophy for Northeastern's boys volleyball program and so far it's working . The Bobcats have won five straight double a state championships. Their 14 and under club team is competing this week at U.S.A. volleyball's junior nationals .
Northeastern is one of a record 510 boys teams on the courts in Columbus, OH.
Unlike most of the competition though, all of the players on the squad go to the same school district. Building cohesion that
ultimately pays off as they grow through high school according to coach George Miller
"It is entirely in the club season that we do reload. Our kids play club tournaments solely for the purpose to strengthen our school program."
Joel Braswell, is enjoying his time on the court and also the competition.
"It's not different from playing at other courts but you are just nervous because in your head, you know that you are at nationals and this is the best play that you are going to see. Yesterday, when we started playing, it kind of got shaky in the beginning, we were all really nervous. By today, we're all loving it. We're having a lot of fun and we're playing well too, which is really important."
The bobcats have won seven of their nine matches, advancing to the quarterfinals of the bronze bracket.
Sports director Todd Sadowski's coverage of junior nationals continues on Wednesday featuring the 14-U Prevail volleyball club based in Palmyra that draws kids from Lebanon, Lancaster and Dauphin counties.