Special Olympics volleyball team from Arizona to represent US at World Cup in Poland

A unified volleyball team from Special Olympics Arizona will be headed to Poland to play in the Unified Volleyball World Cup in October.

BY JEFF VINTON

Sep 29, 2025, 11:14 AM Updated: 12:11 pm

Follow on Google News

Watch: 1.6 million eggs recalled: Is our food supply safe? | 7 mins

PHOENIX — The state of Arizona will be represented on the world stage next week.

That’s because a team from Special Olympics Arizona was selected to represent the U.S. in the Unified Volleyball World Cup in Poland.

“This is a great opportunity for Special Olympics Arizona athletes to have an experience of a lifetime and compete and make friends with athletes from all over the world, while promoting and supporting inclusion,” Special Olympics Arizona President and CEO Jamie Heckerman said in a press release last week.

What is the Unified Volleyball World Cup?

The inaugural event will be held Oct. 5-8 and will feature 16 teams from 15 countries. The teams will be split into two divisions, men’s/mixed and women’s.

The team from Arizona will be placed in the men’s/mixed division alongside teams from Austria, Finland, Iraq, Poland, Serbia, Slovakia and Saudi Arabia.

Every team is guaranteed to play five matches.

🏐 Game On! 16 International Teams Set for #SpecialOlympics Unified Volleyball World Cup in Poland! From 5–8 Oct 2025, Katowice will host a thrilling showdown as nearly 200 athletes take center court at the Spodek Arena: https://t.co/u4KGbVRcik @soeuropeeurasia pic.twitter.com/5VKj7YGIti

— Special Olympics (@SpecialOlympics) July 31, 2025

How many people from Arizona will be going to the Unified Volleyball World Cup?

Special Olympics Arizona will be sending a total of 15 people to Poland for the tournament.

The delegation is comprised of six athletes with intellectual disabilities, six “unified partners,” which are athletes who do not have intellectual disabilities, and two coaches.

The athletes are:

Mariah Berryhill from Phoenix.
Aidan Burke from Phoenix.
Caoilin Despasquale from Phoenix.
Drew Encinas from Phoenix.
Alek Vujanov from Phoenix.
Jordan Wright from Chandler.

The unified partners are:

Alicia Hayden from Chandler.
Joe Ippolito from Phoenix.
Diana Kebbekus from Mesa.
Jenny Lara from Phoenix.
Joel Nathanson from Phoenix.
Barbara Poggi from Gilbert.

The coaches are:

Stephen Minshall from Phoenix.
Teresa Scobee from Phoenix.

Special Olympics Arizona Senior Director of Sports and Area Services Ryan Betcher will also travel with the team as the head of the U.S. delegation.

The Unified Volleyball World Cup will be livestreamed on the Special Olympics Poland website. Along with game broadcasts, the stream will also feature interviews with players, coaches and special guests.