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The third annual Franklin Department of Parks and Recreation/Camp25 Volleyball League drew participants from around the region this fall to hone their skills and have fun on the court.

“I felt like the league went really great,” Camp25 Executive Director Eric Benton said. “We had a total of 94 kids and eight teams.”

The participants ranged in age from 6 to 15, with the younger athletes competing across two teams in the Rookie Division and the older athletes competing across six teams in the Junior Division.

The Red Wings won the league championship in the Junior Division, and the Raptors won the league title in the Rookie Division.

FDPR Athletic Specialist Tory Myrick Jr. and FDPR Recreational Assistant Da’Maz Barrett, who both helped facilitate the league this year, were also pleased with how it went overall.

“Franklin Parks and Recreation is super proud of the athletes who participated in our volleyball league as we partnered with Camp25,” FDPR officials stated. “The progression of the season was shown at its highest form with the development of young athletes. The athletes showed dedication, skill and most of all had fun.”

The officials noted that the league’s coaches this season did a wonderful job of guiding the athletes’ development in volleyball and served as particularly important examples to follow as they modeled sportsmanship.

“Overall, we could not have asked for a better season as we look forward to next year’s league,” FDPR officials said.

Team practices for this year’s league began in early November, with matches being played on Sundays from Nov. 12 through Dec. 17, and the athletes came from different parts of Hampton Roads and beyond.

“I would say it was probably about 15 kids from the Windsor/Smithfield area, maybe another 10 or so from Suffolk,” Benton said. “I know we had a few Sussex County/Tidewater Academy area (kids), of course Franklin/Southampton, and I think we had one or two Chesapeake (kids).”