Communication is key in the sport of beach volleyball.
Playing in pairs, Yuwo Chen, of Maple Ridge, and Birpartap Dhillon of Mission, who play for Zone 3 Fraser Valley, took on a team from Zone 5 Vancouver-Coastal at the BC Summer Games Friday morning.
The 16-year-olds have only ever played once before as a team together.
Communication with your partner is one of the biggest challenges of the sport, said Chen.
"I really think it's getting that connection," said Chen, about how each member of the team plays.
Both teens play with the Cougars Volleyball Club in Maple Ridge. Dhillon also plays with Junior Cascades Boys Volleyball Club in Abbotsford.
It's getting to know one another, noted Dhillon.
"Depending on where we want to set. Or like, if I like hitting the ball tight, he can learn to adjust and set the ball tighter," he explained.
The boys will be playing Zone 1 Kootenays next after falling in their first round to Vancouver-Coastal. Their biggest challenge going into the next game will be reading the other team.
"Reading the other players and where they are going to hit and calling it out before they actually do it so we can get there," he said. If a player drops their elbows, they might roll the ball over the net instead of spiking it, or if their body in coming in at an angle, they know they are hitting cross court.
"Their mindset plays a big factor in it," added the team's assistant coach from Port Coquitlam Tiana Brennan, who coaches with Ducks Volleyball.
"Volleyball is a very mental game," she said.
The 2024 BC Summer Games are being held between Wednesday and Sunday, July 17 to 21, in Maple Ridge. This is the third time in the Games history that Maple Ridge has been the host. This week, an estimated 2,400 athletes (average age is 14 to 15), plus some 500 coaches and officials are here for the competitions being held at sports venues throughout the community and region.
Stay tuned for coverage of the Games at www.mapleridgenews.com.
