The R.F. Staples boys and girls senior volleyball teams put on a good show at the 2018 Gryphon Invitational in Barrhead, with each making the playoffs, but bowing out of medal contention at the Oct. 12-13 tournament.
The girls made it to the quarterfinals, while the boys made it into the semifinals.
Boys coach Kyle Beattie was glad his team could make it into the semis, but remains perplexed as to how to beat Morinville.
“We can’t figure out a way to beat them,” he said.
“It’s all in our guys’ minds, I think. I don’t think they’re much more skilled than us, if at all.”
The T-Birds opened the event against their regional rivals, but dropped two straight sets 14-25 and 19-25. It was the fifth straight time the Westlock boys have fallen to the Morinville team.
The boys also lost their second match, falling 19-25 and 23-25 to St. Paul, but took care of the team from Athabasca handily 25-9 and 25-13.
They continued their winning ways Saturday, beating Pigeon Lake 25-18 and 25-5 and then taking care of Beaverlodge 25-20 and 25-15.
The boys then racked up another win after defeating Louis St. Laurent from Edmonton, but couldn’t keep it up, bowing out to Morinville, once again, in the semifinals.
“We had two really strong games against Beaverlodge and Louis St. Laurent. The boys seemed to get fired up for those games. We played well as a team and played with confidence,” said Beattie.
The girls also made it to the playoffs, but couldn’t get past Morinville in their first game of the tournament, losing 15-25 and 22-25.
They went on to win their next three matches though, beating St. Paul 25-23, 25-23; Athabasca 25-22, 25-21; and Pigeon Lake 25-23, 25-21.
They lost to Beaverlodge 19-25, 27-25 and 15-9 in their final round robin game before dropping their quarterfinal match to Sturgeon Composite.
“We made the playoffs, so that was a big step,” said coach Denise Boulerice. “Then they just kind of ran out of gas, but they’re making small strides.”
Boulerice said the team was happy to welcome back a couple of veteran players. The added leadership really made a difference, she said.
“Their confidence is coming up in terms of hitting the ball as much as they can and earning their points and not relying on the other team to make an error. So it’s coming together,” she said.
Both teams will be taking part in the Western Canadian Challenge volleyball tournament Oct. 18-20, hosted by Morinville Community High School and Sturgeon Composite.
