Air Force Featured Stories

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Fans of the U.S. Air Force sitting volleyball team celebrate a point during the opening day of the Wounded Warrior Games September 28, 2014 at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The 2014 Warrior Games features wounded athletes from throughout the Department of Defense who compete in Olympic style events for their respective military branch. The goal of the games is to help highlight the limitless potential of warriors through competitive sports. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Taylor Queen)

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The U.S. Air Force team blocks a ball during a match of sitting volleyball at the opening day of the Wounded Warrior Games September 28, 2014 at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The 2014 Warrior Games features wounded athletes from throughout the Department of Defense who compete in Olympic style events for their respective military branch. The goal of the games is to help highlight the limitless potential of warriors through competitive sports. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Taylor Queen)

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Air Force wounded warrior Stephen Malits hits a volleyball during a game of sitting volley ball against the Army wounded warrior team at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Sept. 28th, 2014. The 2014 Warrior Games features wounded athletes from throughout the Department of Defense who compete in Olympic style events for their respective military branch. The goal of the games is to help highlight the limitless potential of warriors through competitive sports.(U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Scott Jackson)

AF starts with clean sweep in sitting volleyball

Published Sept. 29, 2014

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AFNS) -- Competition began Sept. 28 at the 2014 Warrior Games with four games of sitting volleyball to start the round-robin tournament at the U.S. Olympic Training Center's Sports Centers 1 and 2.

Air Force made it a clean sweep of their back-to-back games. The first game against Army provided a close competition as the Air Force won 2-1 (25-22, 17-25, 15-13). In the second game, facing-off against Special Operations, Air Force made it a quick 2-0 win (25-12, 25-16).

In the first round of games, Navy made it a quick match with a 2-0 win (25-13, 25-14). But in the second round, the Marines put a stop to the Navy's winning-streak with a 2-0 win (25-7, 25-20).

"The Marines are always expected to take the gold in volleyball," said retired Lance Cpl. Zach Blair a native of Tipp City, Ohio. "So we came out here expecting to win. We knew the Navy was going to be a tough team, but we knew we had the tools to play the game, the players to get it done and we had the confidence to win."

The sitting volleyball tournament continues each night, with the gold-medal game taking place Thursday, Oct. 2.

Two-hundred wounded, ill and injured service members and veterans will compete during six days of competition in the fifth annual Warrior Games. Competitions are free and open to the public.

The 2014 Warrior Games is hosted by the USOC with support from Deloitte, the presenting sponsor, and other supporting partners including the Defense Department, AT&T, BP, Dow, Semper Fi Fund, The Fisher House Foundation, The Daniels Fund and USO.

Today marks the first full day of competition beginning with cycling at Fort Carson, Colorado.

For more on the 2014 Warrior Games, visit teamusa.org/WarriorGames.

(Courtesy Air Force Space Command Public Affairs)