Young Dominicans get their feet wet at international level

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic, August 10, 2018 – The pipeline of female volleyball players out of the Dominican Republic is in constant activity with players of all ages taking part in as many tournaments as possible to get the necessary experience.

The last group to get their feet wet was the U-16 squad that competed at the High Performance Volleyball Tournament held in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

With a team whose eldest player was just 14 years-old, and competing at the U-18 class, the Dominican girls compiled a 3-4 win-loss mark.

“It was a wonderful experience for the girls who had an outstanding performance taking in consideration the age difference with the opponent teams,” said former Dominican star Nurys Arias, who is one of the coaches of the team along with Evelyn Carrera, another standout player of past Dominican teams.

“They did a spectacular job and enjoyed their first experience playing at international level which is very important in their maturation process,” Arias said.

Both Arias and Carrera had the chance to meet with American Danielle Scott-Arruda, another former athlete who competed against them in many international events. The former Olympian was coaching one of the teams in Tulsa.

“It was a great moment for the three of us after many years without seeing each other,” Arias recalled. “I played with Danielle in the same team in Italy many years ago and it was an emotional encounter.”

Arias has been participating in several coaches course organized in Santo Domingo and is enjoying her new career while Carrera has the experience of coaching in Mexico for three years in Tijuana, Mexico before coming back to her home land to work with young compatriots.