(INDIANAPOLIS, IND., JUNE 27, 2019) — Just who is Mindy anyway?
That was the question on a more than a few people’s minds as they walked by Court 18 at the USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championships in Indianapolis Thursday morning.
Players and parents both sported the mysterious T-shirt during warm-ups as the Mintonette Sports (Powell, Ohio; Ohio Valley Region) prepared for its first match of the tournament against Academy 14 Red (Long Island, New York, Garden Empire Volleyball Association).
Turns out that Mindy isn’t actually a person, but a clever idea from the club’s coaches that turned into a great marketing tool.
Mintonette’s club teams all start with the “M.” moniker, and tagging “Indy” on to the end got, well, “M.Indy,” which morphed into Mindy.
“It’s really a bit of an inside joke,” said 14 National coach Bryan Bastuba. “Some (of the players) thought it was a little weird.”
In general, the players agreed that it was weird,, including Madie Franzel, who is playing in her third national championships.
“On our team, we just thought it was funny,” Franzel said. “It’s a joke.”
What’s not a joke is how focused Franzel and her teammates are about playing well and reaching their goals. Mintonette opened with a 25-14, 25-6 win over Academy Red, and Bastuba and Franzel both called out serving as a main factor in victory.
“We spent the better part of the last month focusing on serving,” Bastuba said, “and it’s really paid off.”
Franzel added, “We really came together for or first match, and a lot of our points came off our serves. We do need to work on a couple of things for the next match.”
Mintonette qualified for nationals by placing third at the OVR Regional, but Franzel said they have big plans for this weekend.
“I’m proud of our team’s talent, she said. “Our goal is to make it to the podium.”
“M.INDY” also won its second match of the day, defeating Dynasty 14 Gray (Heart of America Region), 25-13, 25-22, but lost to TIV 14 Black, 25-20, 25-13.
Sport Court is the official athletic flooring for all USA Volleyball national championship events.
Day One Notes
14 American: Thirteen teams finished 3-0 in pool play today, including last year’s silver medalist, Sunshine 14 South Bay.
14 National: Last year’s bronze medalist Metro 14 Travel is one of seven teams that finished day one 3-0.
adidas will host @ThreeStripeLive on Twitter, Friday, June 28, at 9:50 a.m. The live stream features Team Dynasty against Metro Travel in the 15 Open division. The live stream is part of the adidas #SheBreaksBarriers campaign.