Sobo Village produces top v-baller

With this accomplishment, she has joined the ranks of other top achievers as Anthony Rougier (football) and Gus Logie (cricket), to bring added pride to the south village.

The local volleyball standout is a fast-emerging, hard-hitting talent on the Caribbean volleyball scene. Grant recently received honourable mention at an appreciation function hosted by the Trinidad and Tobago Volleyball Federation for her performance as a member of the victorious 2006 Caribbean Senior Women’s Championship team.

Grant was ranked second among local attackers and sixth overall for the tournament.

At six-foot one inch with an excellent vertical leap, Rheeza Grant is an imposing figure at the volleyball net. It has taken her a short three years to rise to the top. But it has been long hours of hard work and much personal sacrifice.

Grant credited newly appointed national senior women’s coach Professor Francisco Cruz for fine-tuning her game and giving her the chance to compete at the highest level in the Caribbean. She was overlooked for selection two consecutive years but made good of the opportunity to represent the country.

Her Starlings clubmate Krystle Esdelle was also included in the national team.

The 22-year-old has also established herself in the outdoor beach version of the game. In 2005 she was one of the two-some that won the national title. She is currently ranked among the top players in the region having competed at tournaments in Barbados, Antigua and in Trinidad and Tobago. Grant is only the second local player to earn recognition in both beach and indoor competition, following in the footsteps of her former club and national team-mate Nadiege Honore, in claiming top honours in the sport.

Grant now holds the title as the top attacker of the Starlings Volleyball Club, one of the top teams in local competition. She has emerged as the go-to player in the club where she got her start in the sport.

She has remained committed to her club contributing to the success at national titles in both beach and indoor competitions and assisting in sharing her knowledge with the younger players.

Grant was discovered by Rev Terrence Honore, founder and president of the south-based Starlings Volleyball Club. “We have watched Rheeza grow up,” said Honore. “She has become a powerful part of our team’s offence.

Grant recently received scholarship offers to US schools. She is a graduate of the Pleasantville Senior Comprehensive School.