Ponte Vedra native sees success in professional beach volleyball

PHVS alumna places 5th in international volleyball tournament for Team USA

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After graduating from Pepperdine University in California and Ponte Vedra High School earlier, 22-year old Corinne Quiggle has made quite a name for herself in the professional beach volleyball scene, and is determined to make it to the top. 

Quiggle recently returned to the United States after competing in Malaysia’s FIVB (Fédération Internationale de Volleyball) Kuala Lumpur Tournament, where she placed fifth in the entire competition. 

“We were super happy about it,” Quiggle said. “The No. 1 team in the world right now, the Czech team, was there. Kerri Walsh was there. Laura Ludwig, who won the Olympics last year, they were all there and we came in fifth place there which was amazing.”

According to Quiggle, tournaments are ranked from one to five stars. The more stars, the more challenging the competition and the more points players can win to qualify for the Olympics. 

“The three-star tournament winners are the people who play in the five-stars (tournaments) and win them, so that was a really big tournament for us,” said Quiggle, who plays with teammate Amanda Dowdy.  

Quiggle and Dowdy represent Team USA in all FIVB tournaments, and they also play in the AVP, or the Association of Volleyball Professionals. This is Quiggle’s first full season as a professional player. Playing with Dowdy, their first tournament was this past February in Cambodia. They finished in second place. 

“It’s a really good finish for our first tournament together,” Quiggle said. “It was a two-star FIVB Tour, and it was the first tournament we ever played together. We definitely figured a lot out between our partnership and how we were going to play.”

But before Quiggle was a world-travelling professional, she started out at Ponte Vedra High School with her high school volleyball coach, Robin Mignerey. 

“She’s the one that got me into it and set me up with collegiate coaches,” Quiggle said. “And as soon as I got into it, I knew I wanted to play professional beach volleyball.” 

Quiggle moved to California during her junior year of high school and graduated from Pepperdine University with a degree in business administration. She continues to work toward her goal of being an Olympic athlete and hasn’t looked back since, except to reminisce about the place she calls home and the journey and people that helped her get to where she is now. 

“I love Ponte Vedra and where I grew up,” she said. “I’m so thankful that I can actually withstand the heat and humidity in all these places that we go to because you’d actually be surprised. It’s a huge factor on the beach.”

When Quiggle was younger, she admired and watched volleyball players such as Kerri Walsh. After years of hard work and persistence, Quiggle made it to Malaysia, where she not only saw Walsh play live, but also competed against her in the tournament.

So for those young girls watching her on TV now, hoping to follow in her footsteps, Quiggle encourages them to “just enjoy every moment of it and keep it light and positive.” 

“It’s hard not to get ramped up because beach volleyball is a grind,” Quiggle said. “It’s a great sport, but it’s really hard and it’s easy to get distracted from enjoying every moment. I’m in Austin now. I go to New York soon. It’s just an amazing sport that can show you so many parts of the world. Enjoy the places that it takes you.”