The 13th Annual MaxPreps Tour of Champions presented by the Army National Guard made a stop in Olin, North Carolina on Thursday, Dec. 14 to recognize the
North Iredell (Olin, N.C.) girls volleyball team on its 28-2 championship season and No. 19 finish in
MaxPreps' National Rankings.
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North Iredell slipped a feather into its cap by avenging one of its two losses on the season with a 3-0 semifinal win over Marvin Ridge. Then, head coach Natalie Tribble and the Raiders achieved top honors in the state by defeating Chapel Hill 3-2 in
North Carolina's Class 3A state championship match.
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MaxPreps and the Army National Guard honored the Raiders at a special school assembly organized by North Iredell High School Principal Teresa Hays. Hays opened the ceremony by introducing Tribble and the Raiders. Once the team was seated, Hays turned the presentation over to MaxPreps Representative Jonathan Van Riper, who talked about MaxPreps, the history of the Tour of Champions, and the prestige of the Army National Guard national ranking trophy. After listing some of the Raiders' on-court accomplishments and congratulating the team on earning its national ranking, Van Riper introduced Sergeant First Class Byron Williard of the North Carolina Army National Guard.
SFC Williard called the team to the podium and presented them with the trophy and the national ranking banner to the cheers of an excited crowd. He congratulated the team on its hard-earned success and compared its dedication to that of a successful Guardsman. Following the ceremony, SFC Williard caught up with the girls to personally congratulate them on their championship season.
After concluding her 17th and final season as head coach of the Raiders, Tribble finishes her career with 396 career victories and two state championships. Shortly after the ceremony wrapped up, MaxPreps visited with Tribble. When asked about her most important players, Tribble always responded, "All of them."
Tribble, who instilled a team mentality into North Iredell's 2017 season, will certainly be missed. But we look forward to seeing what the Raiders will accomplish in years to come. Congratulations to the North Iredell girls volleyball team for its 2017 NCHSAA 3A state championship season!
Click
here to view the
TOC photo gallery and for more information about the Volleyball TOC, please visit the MaxPreps Tour of Champions site.
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