Washington State Volleyball Championships - All Divisions -Tacoma, 10-11 Nov 06

[VBLIStaff]

Prep Notes: Tacoma gets all volleyball tourneys
By Sandy Ringer

Seattle Times staff reporter

Prep volleyball enthusiasts will experience a first next fall when the state championships for all six classifications are contested at the Tacoma Dome. The Executive Board of the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association voted Wednesday to award the tournaments to Tacoma for the next two years, marking the first all-classification event for the sport under one roof. The 2006 event will be Nov. 10-11.

"I think it's fantastic for the sport," said coach Bill Caillier, who has guided Kentwood to a pair of top-eight finishes at the Class 4A tournament in Everett the past two seasons. "It's an opportunity to give fans and recruiters a dose of what it's all about."Joanne Gilligan, who coached Bishop Blanchet to the Class 3A state title in 2004, concurs.

"I'm excited about it," she said. "To have all six championships in the same building is pretty phenomenal."

The 4A and 3A tournaments have been played at the Everett Events Center the past three years after a long run at the Spokane Arena. The 2A and 1A tourneys are traditionally in Yakima, with Class B teams playing at Eastern Washington University in Cheney.

Tacoma Dome representatives pitched an all-classification event to the Executive Board in December. School administrators and coaches were polled and the results were largely positive, according to Mike Colbrese, WIAA executive director.

"The Board was interested in trying to create an event that would showcase volleyball and provide the unique opportunity for kids in different classifications to all be together," Colbrese said, adding the event could also be more cost-effective for the WIAA. The Tacoma Dome will be configured to house 12 volleyball courts for simultaneous action. The facility already is used for the state's all-classification wrestling tournament, Mat Classic, which celebrates its 18th year Feb. 17-18. All the football state-championship games are played in the Dome in December. The Class 4A and 3A state boys and girls basketball tournaments also will be in the Dome again next month, although the 3A
tournaments will move to Seattle in 2007.