WA Volleyballer Excels on the Sand
WA Pearls captain Tara West was selected to partner AIS athlete Alice Rohkamper at the Oceania Beach Volleyball Championships in New Caledonia from 18th - 21st July. In their 1st tournament together, the pairing brought home the gold medal, with Tara later then adding to that collection with an AVL gold medal and MVP. The tournament involved the best teams from the Oceania zone (excluding teams that participate on the World Tour), and the pair only dropped 1 set on their way to victory over the team from Vanuatu.
High Performance Administrator Steve Benson said that "Tara brings with her a level of experience in International Competition and is very much about team and provides a level of maturity both on and off the court. Tara has solid all-round fundamental skills; and although she still has a lot to learn with regard to International Beach Volleyball, she has a great propensity to learn techniques and tactics, which makes her an exciting athlete to coach".
The pair are currently overseas competing in the China Liupanshui Open from August 16th - 18th, against the best teams in the Asian Zone (excluding teams that participate on the World Tour). In their 1st game, they defeated China's top side in 3 sets in terrible conditions that started with all teams warming up inside the hotel. The courts were heavily rained on and the pair were covered in mud, so fingers crossed for a cleaner game for their quarter final.