One bad match in the semifinals was all it took to knock the R.F. Staples senior boys volleyball team out of contention for a spot at provincials.
Competing at the 3A North Central zone tournament in Athabasca, the boys went undefeated in the round robin before bowing out in the semis to the host Edwin Parr Composite Pacers, 25-12, 25-19.
“Unfortunately the boys didn’t play to the best of their ability and kind of had a down game and it cost us,” said coach Steve McKenna.
With Whitecourt hosting the provincial tournament, and the zone being given a wildcard berth, there were two spots at provincials up for grabs, meaning the gold and silver medal-winning squads earned those spots.
In the end, Edwin Parr and Barrhead played for the zone banner and in the process qualified for provincials.
After the semifinal loss, the T-Birds took on Edson in the bronze-medal match, and came out on top 26-24, 25-20, despite not quite having their hearts in the game, McKenna said.
“The last game we played was pretty hard for them to play because their goal wasn’t going to be reached,” he said. “But they pulled it through and they managed to find a way to win.”
While McKenna said it was overall a good year for the T-Birds, the semifinal loss stung and its pain will continue to be felt for weeks to come.
“There’s no doubt in my mind we were the best team there, and it’s unfortunate because you start looking at things,” he said. “That was our only loss and it knocked us out of provincials.”
In that match against the Pacers, the T-Birds started off well and were leading by a healthy margin when one ball was blocked, changing the match’s entire complexion.
“We stopped doing stuff that we were doing that made us so successful and Athabasca took advantage,” McKenna said. “Athabasca won, but at the end of the day it was our mistakes that we weren’t making through that whole tournament.”
Even though the boys did not achieve their goal of qualifying for provincials, it was still a very successful season. In the nine tournaments they entered, they played for gold in all but two of them.
However, the 2013 season is looking like it will be a development year. Of the nine players on this year’s squad, seven are graduating. With a slew of new players coming on board next year, the T-Birds will be spending a lot of time working out the kinks.
