The Barrhead Composite High School junior varsity boys and girls volleyball teams went to Hinton this past weekend shopping for some new wallpaper to decorate the hallowed walls of their gym and returned with two new North Central Zone Championship banners.
Both teams rolled through the round robin portion of the tournament with 5 - 1 records to finish first in their pools. After a semi-final win against St. Joseph from Whitecourt, the only team to have defeated the men in earlier competition, the Gryphons faced their archrivals R.F. Staples, from Westlock, and defeated them in straight sets to capture the zone championship.
"Winning the banner is great and it is always extra special when you can defeat Westlock doing it," said boys coach Steve Montgomery, reflecting the long time rivalry between the schools.
On the ladies side, the Gryphs struggled to beat Edwin Parr from Athabasca in a three-set heart stopper, with the girls eking out a 15-13 win in the deciding set in the semi-final match.
From there they advanced to the final against the host team, Harry Collinge, who had upset the Gryphons in a three-set thriller in round-robin play. Exacting swift and thorough revenge the Gryph girls disposed of their opposition in two floor thumping sets to complete the BCHS sweep of the North Central Zone Championships.
"Our girls played possibly their best volleyball of the season in the last match of the year," said coach Gayle Lamothe, " It is very rewarding to see the level of play that they are capable of."
The zone championships culminate a strong year for both sides that saw the men's and Lladies team medal in four of the eight tournaments that they participated in. Congratulations and thanks go to the athletes, coaches, parents and fans that all contributed to a rewarding and successful season.
