Volleyball players in full force
Teams from five communities flock to Inuvik for tournament
Sarah Ladik
Northern News Services
Thursday, February 4, 2016
INUVIK
Inuvik's Invitational Volleyball Tournament descended on the community last weekend, drawing out the crowds as well as the players.
Edwin Amos jumps to spike the ball during a game Jan. 30 at the Inuvik Invitational Volleyball Tournament at East Three Secondary School. - Sarah Ladik/NNSL photo
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Tuktoyaktuk took the men's title three sets to two, while an Inuvik team, Five Hens and a Chick, won on the women's side in three straight sets.
"This is a really good turnout," said Kate Snow, one of the organizers, on Jan. 30. "Some of the people playing come out often, and some not so much, so it's great to see everyone here today."
Teams from Fort McPherson, Aklavik and Tuktoyaktuk - as well as a few players from even further away in Ulukhaktok - joined Inuvik teams to go head to head for a day and a half of games, hosted at East Three Secondary School.
There were eight women's teams and four men's teams.
"We had people rushing in off the ice road to make their games last night," Snow said. "Just shows how excited they were and how much they were into it."
Snow said the tournament was a great event for the whole community, a place for people to gather, including small children, who could be seen running around the lobby and gym for the duration.
"It's all a lot of fun, laughing, joking around," Snow said. "It's really a community event."
This year was the third volleyball tournament this year and one advantage is that it extended the season somewhat.
"Volleyball has too short a season," said co-organizer Stacey Christie. "It's only really eight weeks in the fall at the school, so we want to keep it running."
She noted the co-ed volleyball in the evenings runs longer than a few months and that it's open to school-aged players, but that having an event brings the sport to the forefront for a weekend.
"Half the registration fees go to the volleyball program at the school and the other half to winnings, so it's a good deal for everyone," said Christie. "It's great to see so many people coming out to watch."
While Snow said Inuvik tries to organize a few such events every year, they are not the only ones. Christie noted Aklavik will be hosting its own tournament in February and that several Inuvik teams are planning to make the trip over.
"I'm glad to see the community teams out," said Christie of last week's tournament. "It's been a great weekend."
