(PRESS RELEASE) When the American Samoa Community College (ASCC) women's volleyball women's team returned home from Apia earlier this month, they brought with them the Champion Trophy for Volleyball that they won during Samoa 's Independence Volleyball Championship 2009. Through an invitation courtesy of the American Samoa Volleyball Association, ten ASCC players traveled to Apia for the event, held at Gym #2 at Tuana'imotu in Faleata, part of the new sports village built by Samoa for last year's South Pacific Games.

"There were two pools of nine teams throughout the two-day tournament in the women's division," recalls Physical Education instructor and team manager Juliette Sword. "ASCC was in pool A with four teams to rotate. We never lost a game and made it all the way to the semi-finals, where we beat one of the favorite local Apia teams to make it to the finals." The ASCC players, the only team representing American Samoa in the women's division, included Captain Salaia Salave'a, Sinavaiana Mamea, Fuafiva Matavai, Silomiga Suiaunoa, Sancia Sopoaga, Akeriana To, Fuatino Ali'iva'a, Glory Siologa, Ruby Selu and Saiga Tomi. Sword and Coach Sosene Aufa'i accompanied the girls during the trip.

To put the team together, Sword said, "We first selected girls from the ASCC team who competed in the local competitions. However, some of the girls from the semester team could not make the trip, so we replaced them with other interested volleyball players who were not part of the volleyball PE team. When our newly configured team first started to train together, they had to get to know each other while going through a training regimen much more intense for Apia than it was for the semester matches. They all showed their commitment by changing their diets to loose weight in order to meet the requirements of the tournament. "

To raise the funds for uniforms and travel expenses, the team held three car washes and a pick-a-thon. ASCC faculty, along with local businesses and individuals, also lent their support. "We had a long, hard struggle to train and fundraise for the team," said Sword, "but on the night of the final game, when the team realized they were one point away from winning the tournament, you could see by the looks on their faces that all the hard work paid off."

For Sword, the ASCC team's victory in Samoa represents a fitting conclusion to her time with the College, as she will depart this month for an extended stay Honolulu to spend time with her children attending college there. "As the last thing I could do for ASCC, I wanted to take the team to the tournament," she says. "Even if we didn't win, we would give it our best"