Polk freshmen help lead Xcel squad to top-five national finish

Polk County freshmen Kenzie Alm and Alia Vorbe helped lead Xcel Volleyball Performance’s 14 Elite Blue team to a fifth-place finish at the AAU Girls National Volleyball Championships last week in Orlando, Fla.

The tournament, held June 24-27 at the Orange County Convention Center, featured 95 teams in the 14 Aspire division. Xcel was one of just eight teams to win 10 or more matches, finishing with a 10-2 record.

The team lost just once in pool play, a three-set defeat, before reaching the national quarterfinals. There, Xcel fell to New WAVE 14 Tsunami of Darien, Ill., 17-25, 25-22, 15-13. New WAVE went on to finish as national runners-up.

Xcel competed throughout the four-day event with just seven players. A third Polk County freshman, Breelyn Morrison, is also a member of the Xcel 14 team but was unable to compete in the national tournament.