New Zealand women's beach volleyball side named for Commonwealth Games

Shaunna Polley. Photo / Getty Images.

Kelsie Wills and Shaunna Polley have been named as New Zealand's women's beach volleyball representatives for the upcoming Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast.

The pair's selection comes after a successful international season, which saw them claim a bronze medal at the last year's 1 Star World Tour Event in Ulsan, South Korea.

Beach volleyball will be making its debut at the Commonwealth Games when the tournament gets underway in April.

"It's a huge honour and it's going to be pretty special to represent our country on the international stage against some great teams," said Polley.

"We've put in a huge amount of work to make it to this point so we're really pleased to be named and we can't wait to compete in the Commonwealth Games."

Wills, a former professional indoor volleyball player, outlined Australia, Canada and Vanuatu as the key threats to their medal aspirations.

"Australia, Canada and Vanuatu are some of the really strong teams, they're some of the best in the world but we're up for the challenge and we'll be ready for them," the 25-year-old said.

"After a year of working full time and travelling to competitions and trying to meet criteria it's such a great feeling to be named to the team and to get to represent New Zealand and wear the fern."

Polley and Wills will compete in the Waikato Open in Hamilton tomorrow, before departing to Australia and the United States to participate in warm up competitions against international opponents leading into the Games.

The national men's beach volleyball side is expected to be named in the coming weeks.