Thonya Joseph represented the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) and her home country of Barbados well in the recent North, Central America and Caribbean Volleyball Confederation (NORCECA) tournament. At stake was a trip to the FIVB World Championships. While Barbados didn't qualify, the United States won the pool to advance, Joseph shined, earning the award of Best Blocker for the event.
Barbados took fourth place in pool G after falling in a heartbreaking match to the Netherlands Antilles 25-22, 20-25, 27-25, 21-25, 16-14 with the bronze medal at stake.
Joseph was a spark for her country, contributing 19 points and a match-high five points in the loss. Shari Matthews paced Barbados with 21 points, including four blocks and 16 kills.
Barbados Head Coach Andrew Brathwaite thought that the blocking could have been better in the match but was pleased with it over the summer, "[our blocking] had been one of our strengths in tournaments leading to this."
Joseph was the only player from Barbados to be honored with an accolade. Christine Anthony from Netherlands Antilles was named Best Scorer while the United States players accounted for the other seven awards, including MVP Cynthia Barboza who was also named Best Spiker. Courtney Thompson was named Best Setter and Best Server while Stacy Sykora was named Best Digger, Best Receiver and Best Libero.
Joseph and the Hawks get the 2009 season started on August 28th in a tournament hosted by William & Mary in Williamsburg, Va. They will take on conference foe North Carolina A&T in the opening match.