The D.P. Todd Trojans and College Heights Cougars are once again on a collision course and this time the fallout will decide the North Central zone boys double-A volleyball championship.
Ranked eighth in the province, the Trojans opened play against the Duchess Park Condors Friday afternoon in the four-team tournament at College Heights secondary school, while the Duchess Park Condors, the sixth-ranked team in B.C., took on the Kelly Road Roadrunners.
Backed by some faultless team serving and a controlled passing game spearheaded by Grade 12 setter Jared Pritchard, the Cougars swept the Condors 3-0 (25-11, 25-20, 25-22) in their semifinal match to qualify for today's 2:30 p.m. final.
"It went off pretty well," said Cougars head coach Linden Smith.
"The first set was definitely the best for us, I think we only missed one serve and that was one that went long, which is always better than serving into the net. We emphasize serving in every practice. Every serve you miss is a point for the other team, so we're always on the
players about how many serves we miss."
Pritchard and power hitter and Cougar captain Colin Appleby gave the Condors more than they could handle at the net and Smith says they will have to continue to play well to defeat the Trojans, who have had a see-saw battle going with the Cougars all season.
Last weekend at the Duchess Park tournament the Cougars beat D.P. Todd in the round-robin but lost to them in the final. In the first tournament of the year, College Heights lost a round-robin match to the Trojans and topped them in the final. Then in the second week of the season the Trojans did the same to the Cougars in the final after a preliminary round loss.
"We've played them in two best-of-five matches and three best-of-three matches and won both best-of-five matches," said Smith.
The Trojans had no trouble defeating the Roadrunners 3-0 (25-12, 25-12, 25-20) in the other semifinal.
The Condors and Roadrunners will meet in the bronze-medal match today at 11:30 a.m.
Regardless of the outcome of today's gold-medal match, the Cougars and Trojans will both advance to the double-A boys provincial championship in Langley, Nov. 26-29.
The North Peace Oscars of Fort St. John have the top seed in the three-team North Central triple-A boys zone championship and looked the part in a straight-set win over the Prince George Polars.
In later matches Friday, North Peace played Correlieu of Quesnel and afterwards Correlieu faced off with PGSS.
The second- and third-place triple-A teams after Day 1 face each other in a semifinal match today at 10 a.m. The winner will advance to the gold-medal match today at 1 p.m. against the first-place team in pool play.
At stake is a chance to play for a provincial banner. Langley will host the double-A and triple-A provincial championships Nov. 26-29. The Cedars Christian Eagles, ranked fourth in B.C., have already guaranteed their spot in the single-A provincial championship, set for Nov. 29 in Kelowna. The Eagles captured the North Central zone crown last weekend in Chetwynd.
Meanwhile at PGSS gym, the seven-team triple-A girls zone championship is shaping up to be a clash of titans. The College Heights Cougars, ranked third in the province, are the top seeded team in Pool A, while the fourth-ranked Duchess Park Condors are seeded first in Pool B.
The Cougars swept their first two matches, beating Kelly Road 25-13, 25-14 and Lake City of Williams Lake 25-2, 25-8. The Condors faced Dawson Creek in their opening match.
Semifinals are scheduled today at 12:45 p.m. at PGSS. The championship game starts at 4:30 p.m. The top two North Central teams will advance to the triple-A provincial championship in Parksville, Nov. 27-29.
The College Heights senior girls won bronze last year at the provincial championship in Delta.
The single-A zone championship started Friday in Mackenzie, where the Cedars Christian Eagles of Prince George have the top seed as the fourth-ranked team in B.C. The Eagles won provincial bronze last year.
The D.P. Todd Trojans senior girls, fifth-ranked in the province, will meet the Nechako Valley Viqueens today in a winner-take-all best-of-five match. The zone champion will advance to the double-A championship tournament in Cowichan Valley, Nov. 27-29.
