In an epic, five-set battle, the D.P. Todd Trojans slipped past the College Heights Cougars for zone gold. Deservedly -- and in a break with tradition -- both senior girls volleyball teams advanced to the double-A provincial championship tournament.
In a fun twist, neither club knew that just getting into the final guaranteed a berth in provincials.
The zone championship match was played Saturday at Nechako Valley secondary in Vanderhoof. In the deciding set, the Trojans edged the Cougars 15-11.
"They played really well -- they fought hard for every point," Trojans coach Kim Forrest said of her players. "So did (the Cougars). There were times when we'd get down and we'd come back, and same with College Heights."
Neither Forrest nor College Heights coach Jason Olexyn told their players beforehand there were two berths in provincials instead of just one.
"We kept it a secret until they lost," Olexyn said. "They thought there was only one going to the provincials so after we lost I said, 'We have good news, we have bad news. What do you want?' They said, 'We'll take the bad news.' I said, 'Well, you only got the silver.' They said, 'What's the good news?' I said, 'The good news is, we still get to go to provincials.' There were tears of joy. They were just ecstatic because they thought their careers were done, so to speak."
Olexyn has eight Grade 12 players on his roster.
Piper Hoekstra, a Grade 12 power hitter for the Trojans, was the MVP of zones.
"She was great defensively and offensively," Forrest said. "She's definitely our best player, by far. Without her, I don't know that we could do as well as we do."
Provincials are Dec. 2-4 in Kamloops.
Polars miss provincials
The PGSS Polars finished the senior girls quadruple-A zone championship tournament earlier than planned.
At the weekend event, held on their home court, the Polars were eliminated in the semifinal round, where they lost 24-26, 25-21, 25-19, 25-22 to the Correlieu Clan of Quesnel. The Clan later fell to the North Peace Ookapiks in the gold medal match, so the Fort St. John-based Ooks will represent north central B.C. at the provincial gathering, Dec. 2-4 in Nanaimo.
"Correlieu played exceptionally well against us," said PGSS coach Allan Tong. "They really stepped it up a notch in all aspects of the game.
"Our passing was our one area of weakness. And there were times when we went into little funks and would give up five or six points in a row."
Barb Cranston of North Peace was picked as the tournament's MVP.
