Caledonia Secondary School's Sr. Girls and Boys volleyball teams are back from provincials, falling short of the results they were hoping for in the standings but representing the northwest with class and sportsmanship – and holding their own against teams from across the province.
The Sr. Girls lost a crucial match to College Heights to put them in the bottom pool of the tournament, and ultimately took 14th overall at AAA provincials, held in Delta Nov. 27 - 30.
“We were close to beating so many of the top contending teams but not quite there in the mental part of the game,” said coach Carmen Didier. “I think the Grade 12s are sad that our team did not have a better placing at provincials but really they are at the beginning stages for a very strong volleyball program in Caledonia.
"This senior team has really set the ground work for the young girls who are up and coming. Many of the Grade 8s and 9s volleyball players look up to the senior girls - and I hope the seniors recognize how much more important that this is than winning games and tournaments,” she said, noting she is proud of the team’s performance this year, especially their placing at ‘A’ level tournaments.
And the Sr. Boys team placed 18th at AAA provincials, held in Kelowna Nov. 27 - 30, with a two and four record.
“We played hard every game, we didn’t get blown out in any set, lost close matches,” said Sr. Boys coach Rich Clair, noting standout performances by Cam Netzel and Kai Davies.
But the team would have benefitted from more competition throughout the regular season.
"We actually matched up against most teams when it came to our play at the net, but where we suffered from lack of experience was in the deep defence and back court coverage. We're not used to seeing teams that actually attack. So we're definitely behind the eight-ball.
"But all I wanted from the guys was for them to play their hardest every set and to never give up, and that's exactly what they did. They played right to the very last point as hard as I could expect them to."
And Keel Haldane had a highlight of the tournament, placing sixth in the provincial spike competition.