One of Nanaimo’s club volleyball teams was able to end its season with a provincial championship.
The Mariners Volleyball Club U17 girls won Volleyball B.C.’s Tier 2 championship on Saturday at the Richmond Olympic Oval, defeating the Vernon Sky Blue team in the gold-medal match, 25-14, 25-23.
“It’s kind of nice to be able to win the final games of the season and finish off so strong…” said Roger Beck, the team’s coach. “With winning Islands and then continuing that through for provincials was kind of a neat experience for them and just shows how their hard work can pay off.”
The U17 Mariners didn’t drop a single set at provincials. They won their semifinal 25-20, 25-17 versus the Prince George Kodiaks to advance to the final.
“One of the things that we really focused on right before provincials was finishing strong and making sure that they didn’t let teams get back into the games and I thought they did a really good job of that, with just being able to finish off each match and make sure that even when we were up, that they didn’t let off and relax,” Beck said.
The Mariners were tested in the final against Sky Blue, trailing 20-15 at one point in the second set, but they remained focused, evened things up at 21-21, and secured the win and the championship. Beck said all 12 players got on the court and contributed in the final and he said the season as a whole saw the athletes not only progress as a team, but develop individually.
“They’ll see that advantage when they go back to their school teams next year,” he said. “I think a lot of these girls will end up being some of the leaders on their teams.”
Also at provincials in Richmond, the U18 Tier 1 girls placed sixth, finishing with a 25-23, 25-21 loss to the Kelowna Junior Heat. Hayley Goodwin and Danielle Groenendijk were selected as 2017 all-stars.
GAME ON … U14 provincials are this weekend (April 28-30) in Abbotsford. U15 and U16 Island championships will be held Saturday and Sunday, respectively, at the Vancouver Island University gym.
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