SPARTANS O’REILLY HEADS TO PAN AM CUP WITH NATIONAL TEAM

Lauren O'Reilly

Women’s Volleyball (Announcement)
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
National Team

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SPARTANS O’REILLY HEADS TO PAN AM CUP WITH NATIONAL TEAM

LANGLEY, British Columbia – Trinity Western University second year setter Lauren O’Reilly (Langley, B.C.), who was selected to this year’s Canadian senior women’s national team, will be in Miami this week with the team Canada as they participate in the Pan American Cup June 24 to July 5.

Canada is participating in the 12 team tournament as they prepare for the World Championship Qualification tournament, which will take place July 6 to July 10 in Puerto Rico.

Each team will play five pool matches in a round-robin format from June 26 to July June 30, followed by an off-day on July 1. The winner of each pool advances to the semifinals on July 3, while the second- and third-place pool finishers play cross-pool quarterfinal matches on July 2. The championship match is schedule for July 4.

The Pan Am Cup, which has three of the four 2008 Olympic Games semifinalists (Brazil, USA and Cuba), will be played on the campuses of the University of Miami and Florida International University. The event serves as a qualifying event into the 2010 FIVB World Grand Prix. The top three teams from NORCECA in the Women’s Pan American Cup and the highest placing South American country will earn berths to next year’s premier annual event.
 
Canada (No. 23 FIVB world ranking) is in Pool A with the U.S.A. 2008 Olympic silver medalist (No. 2), Dominican Republic (No. 13), Peru (No. 17), Uruguay (No. 29) and Argentina (No. 31). Pool B consists of 2008 Olympic Games gold medalist Brazil (No. 1), 2008 Olympic Games semifinalist Cuba (No. 3), 2008 Olympic Games participant Venezuela (No. 24), Puerto Rico (No. 19), Mexico (No. 26) and Costa Rica (No. 30).

Canada placed eighth at the 2008 Women’s Pan American Cup. It finished Pool B with a 4-1 record, but lost all three of its classification matches in five sets.

Team Canada will hope to return to Bayamon, Puerto Rico at the end of the summer when they will compete in the NORCECA Championship September 20 to September 28. In 2007 Canada finished 4th at the NORCECA Championships.

Team CanadaFellow members of team Canada include: Brittney Page (Vernon, B.C.), Kyla Richey (Roberts Creek, B.C.), Samantha Loewen (East St. Paul, Man.), Tiffany Dodds (Lucky Lake, Sask.), Julie Young (Red Deer, Alta.), Ashley Voth (Winnipeg), Jennifer Hinze (Vancouver), Janie Guimond (Bécancour, Que.), Tonya Mokelki (Weyburn, Sask.), Nadine Alphonse (Montreal), Colette Meek (Sherwood Park, Alta.), Tasha Holness (Calgary), Marie-Pier Murray Methot (Montreal), Sofie-Hanna Schlagintweit (Abbotsford, B.C.) and Tammy Mahon (Holland, Man.). The team is coached by head coach Arnd Ludwig and assistant coach Alain Pelletier.

O’Reilly is the third TWU women’s volleyball player to where the red and white of Canada’s Senior women’s team. She joins former Spartans Lies Reimer (Verhoeff) and Dayna Jansen Van Doorn. Jansen Van Doorn is currently with Canada’s FISU team at the World Universiade in Belgrade, Serbia.

-TW-

Last Updated: 2009-06-23
Author: Scott Stewart