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51st Med Group serves up a championship win

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Steven Goetsch
  • 51st Fighter Wing Public Affairs
OSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea --  Maybe it was a lack of intel, but the 303rd Intelligence Squadron couldn't figure out how to defeat the 51st Medical Group, losing 25-15, 25-18 at the intramural volleyball championship here July 20.

Running offense hinges on good passing, and tough serving from the medics kept intel's hitters from making an impact all night.

The title capped off a great season which left the medics standing alone at the top of the National League with a 9-and-1 regular season mark. The near-perfect season also gave them a first-round bye for their march toward the championship.

The 303rd IS was not intimidated by their opponent's pristine mark as they came out swinging and blocking in game 1. Game 1 started to slip, however, the 51st MDG began firing on all cylinders. Their aggressive jump serving gave the 303rd IS passers fits, and the point spread started to grow.

"They made it hard for us to pass the ball well," said Coby Barnes, 303rd IS. It forced us out of our gameplan,"

At 12-6, the 303rd IS captain called their first timeout to slow the match down and gather themselves for a comeback. There was a ray of light for the 303rd when Eddie Savares hit a nice cross-court shot and followed that up with a service ace. That comeback run was short-lived after three unforced errors by the 303rd was too much to overcome.

Game 1 ended with more aggressive serving as the medics put an ace down the right court line, sealing the victory and putting the medics one game up in the best-of-three championship.

Game 2 started off looking like a repeat of Game 1 after the 303rd IS served out, giving the charity point over to the medics.

The 303rd's Eddie Savares wasn't going to lay down that easy and sent that message forcibly as he hit two hard shots by using two medics players as backstops. He followed that feat with two ace serves of his own.

Unfortunately for the 303rd IS, Game 2 was plagued with errors and the medics' lead was stretched to 17-10. Just when things looked like they couldn't get any worse for the 303rd, Brandon Holling of the medics stepped up his play and took control of the match. He painted the corner continuously with long cross-court shots. The 303rd IS back-row defense kept creeping and left those corners open for Holling, who took full advantage.

After the scoreboard read 24-15 and the championship looked like it was in the grasp of the medics, the 303rd IS decided to give the medics a chill pill and ran off three straight points. Intel brought the score to 24-18 and gave an ounce of credibility to the miracle or medicine debate.

That debate and the 303rd IS squad were both finished as the medics served up their final point with a forced passing error. The championship belonged to the 51st MDG, and medics coach Eric Stubbs attributed the cohesiveness of his team to their impressive victory. "The team worked extremely hard. More importantly, we work very well together," said Stubbs.