Volleyball Gets a Special Touch at Tournament

More than 400 special education students from 12 Orange County schools gathered Friday at Jordan Secondary Learning Center in Garden Grove to compete in the Orange County Special Olympics’ annual volleyball tournament.

Matches among 33 teams of disabled youngsters narrowed the competition to three six-person squads competing today in the Southern California Special Olympics volleyball tournament in San Bernardino.

Ratana Hy, 16, used sign language to say that, despite the tough competition, his team from the Speech and Language Development Center in Buena Park was victorious. “We fought good,” an excited Hy said.

The team from Hope Special Education School in Buena Park also won a trip to this weekend’s state finals, as did a “unified” team of special education and mainstream students from Jordan Secondary Learning Center and its neighboring middle school.

Dressed in his red and yellow “Hope School” T-shirt and matching red shorts, 21-year-old Richard Rangel and his teammates basked in winners’ glory as they ate lunch afterward.

“We started practicing a long time ago,” Rangel said, explaining that his teammates paid particular attention to learning how to serve the ball.

Gail Santiago, Special Olympics games coordinator, said the athletes are chosen for teams based on ability. Students from 8 to 30 years old were represented at Friday’s event, which featured four levels of competition plus a beach ball division.

The team from Cypress High School captured first place in beach ball division, earning its six athletes a medal attached to a green-and-red ribbon.

Jennifer Evans-Maurer, area director of the Orange County Special Olympics, said the volleyball tournament is one of 22 sporting events that the organization sponsors for special education students annually.