By NPVA WRITER, For the Guardian

The Queen's College Comets boys and the H.O. Nash Lions girls are the first champions of the inaugural New Providence Volleyball Association (NPVA) High School Tournament, which was held over the weekend in honor of Dr. Norman Gay.

"It was indeed a success. With eight boys and five girls teams, we were very impressed with the level of competition and camaraderie," said a NPVA spokesperson.

On Saturday at the opening ceremonies held at the Kendal G.L. Isaacs National Gymnasium, Dr. Gay brought brief remarks about the history of the sport in The Bahamas, his involvement and the contributions he along with others made.

In the open girls division, the top three teams ended up with identical records. After total sets won and points were allocated, the Lions came out on top. In the semifinals, H.O. Nash defeated the Kingsway Academy Saints, 25-18 and 25-17, to advance to the finals. In the second match, it took St. Augustine's College (SAC) three tough sets to defeat the Government Secondary Schools Sports Association (GSSSA) Champions, C.V. Bethel Stingrays. With the win (26-24, 23-25 and 15-13), SAC secured a spot in the championship.

In the end, however, Patricia 'Patty' Johnson and her GSSSA Junior Champions, the H.O. Nash Lions walked away with the 1st NPVA Championship by defeating SAC 24-26, 25-22 and 15-13. S. Smith was named the Most Valuable Player (MVP).

The open boys division was also very competitive as all of the semifinal games went to three sets to decide the winners. There was an excellent showing from Kingsway Academy, who went undefeated in their pool play. The Saints defeated Doris Johnson High, 25-20, 19-25 and 15-12, to advance to the finals. The Queens College Comets, determined to meet the Saints again after their loss in the Bahamas Association of Independent Secondary Schools (BAISS) Championship, went on to defeat C.V. Bethel, 21-25, 25-19 and 15-9, to advance. In a well played, action-packed championship game, coaches Oswald Moore of the Saints and Margaret Albury of the Comets met once again. Saints' Chris Moore put away a number of kills to keep the Saints alive as they were determined to win yet another championship.

However in the end, Kendal Brown and the Comets had a different plan. The Comets remained tough and got revenge, putting the Saints away in three exciting sets, 22-25, 25-20 and 15-13. Kendal 'KJ' Brown was named the boys MVP.

The NPVA Executives extend gratitude to all officials, teams and coaches which participated and made this tournament a success. In an effort to continue the focus on youth development the league will be hosting more tournaments and hopefully a summer league to spark and keep the interest of the young players alive. Other schools which participated were R.M. Bailey Senior High and Aquinas College, both of whom made their presence felt.