Reservist selected for AF beach volleyball team

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Samuel King Jr.
  • 919th Special Operations Wing Public Affairs
DUKE FIELD, Fla. --  A 919th Special Operations Wing Airman was recently chosen to play on the Air Force men's beach volleyball team.

Tech. Sgt. David Dean, 919th Maintenance Squadron, was selected for the second year in a row and is looking to capitalize on his strong second place performance at last year's Armed Forces Tournament. 

The 33-year-old began playing beach volleyball as a high school freshman at age 15. A friend encouraged him to try out for the team, but he was cut.

"That gave me a lot of motivation to make it the following year and I've been playing ever since," said the Keller, Texas native.

Since that fateful day, he's gone on to play in more than 40 semi-professional tournaments and even one pro tournament. He played well in many local and regional challenges, but said he doesn't plan on quitting his day job any time soon based on the tough competition at the pro level.

To prepare for the Air Force selection, the 13-year veteran said he tried to play as much as possible. He trained and played pick-up games at the Boardwalk in Fort Walton Beach, Fla.

The Duke Field reservist said he sees a connection between volleyball and life on the "line" maintaining Combat Talons.

"They both require knowledge of what to do and the timing and skills necessary to do it," he said. "Then patience, because both can be difficult."

He and his partner, Capt. Joseph Gross, Air Force Special Operations Command, have to be in the top two teams at the upcoming Armed Forces Beach Volleyball Champion, April 12-15. From there, they could represent the U.S. at the 5th Annual World Military Games in Brazil in July.

He'll take the lessons learned from last year's tournament to help him advance this year.

"Never underestimate how far playing with a lot of heart can take you," he said. "The best thing about volleyball is competition, and it doesn't hurt that you're out in the sun and on the beach either."