The Cedars Christian Eagles were ranked eighth in B.C. when they traveled to Castlegar last week for provincial single-A boys volleyball championship that's where they finished in the standings when the final spike was driven into the hardcourt.
The Eagles, who defeated Chetwynd 3-0 in the North Central zone championship final, started out quickly in the seeding round. After a 2-1 loss to fifth-ranked St. Andrews they swept No. 6 Unity Christian and No. 7 Kelowna Christian to lock up sixth seed for the playoff round.
Cedars took out Fernie 3-0 in round of 16 but lost a gut-wrenching three-set match to third-ranked Centennial of Terrace to fall out of contention for the championship, losing 23-25, 23-25, 21-25.
"This tough loss could have gone either way and it affected their last two matches," said Cedars athletic director Steve Wilson. "Coach Roland Rempel was really pleased with their pool play and their match versus Centennial, but knew the boys were only a few missed plays from competing for a medal and that letdown led to a less than stellar final two matches."
In their placement matches, the Eagles lost 2-0 to Kelowna Christian and 2-0 to Ebenezer of Smithers and ended up eighth.
Eagles middle blocker Evan Tiefensee was an all-star team selection.
The Cedars senior girls team is in action this week at the single-A girls provincial championship in Castegar, ranked 12th out of 16. Led by tournament MVP Hailey Gilkerson and all-stats Maillee Taylor and Regan Faller, the Eagles captured the zone title with a 3-2 win over Lakes District of Burns Lake.
Five other Prince George teams are chasing down provincial high school titles this week.
At the 20-team double-A boys championship in Langley, the North Central-champion College Heights Cougars are ranked fifth heading into Wednesday's opening-round matches, while the Duchess Park Condors, who lost to College Heights in the zone final, hold the No. 10 ranking.
College Heights faces No. 7 Pacific Christian in their first match of the day at 9 a.m., then plays No. 8 Langley Fundamental at 11:30 a.m. The Cougars finish the day against No. 6 Pacific Academy. The Condors play No. 12 St. Michaels University at 9 a.m., No. 13 Sir Charles Tupper at 11:30 a.m., and No. 9 Hugh McRoberts at 2 p.m.
The 20-team double-A girls provincial tournament starts today in Vernon and the Kelly Road Roadrunners are ranked 14th. The D.P. Todd Trojans, who won a wild-card berth last weekend in Vancouver, are in the No. 16 slot.
The Roadunners take on No. 7 Langley Christian Wednesday at 12:10 p.m., then face No. 4 York House at 3:40 p.m. and No. 17 John Barsby at 7:10 p.m. The Trojans start with No. 5 Mennonite Educational Institute at 1:20 p.m., then play No. 6 West Point Gray Academy at 4:50 p.m., and No. 15 Surrey Christian at 7:10 p.m.
At the triple-A girls tournament which starts Thursday in Langley, the Duchess Park Condors and PGSS Polars will both represent Prince George. The Condors are matched with Vernon at 12:15 p.m., Crofton House at 4 p.m. and W.L. Seaton at 5:15 p.m.
The Polars, who won their provincial berth last weekend in a wild-card playoff in Kamloops, start with Okanagan Mission at 11 a.m., then play the North Central zone-champion Dawson Creek Penguins at 2:45 p.m., ending the day against Salish at 5:15 p.m.
