KVC - KVC'S FIRST EVER MEDAL AT NATIONALS

KVC'S FIRST EVER MEDAL AT NATIONALS

May 11, 2009 - Moncton, NB

This past weekend the Knights VC participated in the 16U Girls Eastern Canadian Volleyball Championship in Moncton, New Brunswick. The championship began for the girls with a brief practice on Thursday, May 7th prior to opening ceremonies which took place later that evening. The team were now veterans of the national stage as they had competed in this very same tournament last year in the 15U age division. On Day 1 (May 8th) the team began the tournament with a match against the top seeded team, Libellules de Joliette who were also the overwhelming favorite to win the Eastern Canadian Championship. Well the Knights VC girls were ready to rock and an estimated 100 people saw the Knights defeat the big favorites in the first set 25-22. This was a HUGE shock to the tournament as everyone now began talking about the Knights as the match was unfolding. The second set was much different as the Knights barely touched the ball and were outworked to lose the second set. The third and final set was another thriller. The score at the turn read 7-8 in favour of Libellules. Both teams were playing well and traded big time attacks and big defensive plays. The score read 9-9 and the crowd that was watching the game grew to well over 150. In the end the Knights were unable to complete the upset as they fell 11-15 in the last set, but they played well and seemed hungry to win.

The second match of day 1 was against the Cape Breton Attackers. This team played a simple, but controlled game which was a change for the Knights as they are used to a fast game. With a rotation card error to start the match, the girls just couldn't get it together. The performance in this match could be described as lack luster for our girls and the consistency of our opponents proved to be the deciding factor. The Knights lost this one to the Nova Scotia team in two sets. The final match of day one pool play was against the Mousquetaires from Lac Megantic, Quebec. This team was small and fiesty and ready to play. The Knights went into this one still down from the previous match and began very flat. The Mousquetaires fought hard as the Knights made several errors and dropped the first set 22-25. The second set was much different and the Knights finally got back to the level of play from the first match of the day. The girls were hitting the ball so hard at times it seemed like men were playing. The second set went by in a flash 25-12 in favour of the Knights. The final set was another solid performance by the KVC ladies and they pushed through some adversity to win the match 15-9. The girls finished with a 1-2 match record and finished 3rd in their pool.

The second day was "Power Pool Day" where teams were re-pooled based on day 1 results. The Knights drew a couple of teams from Nova Scotia and a team from Ontario that was ranked 15 spots ahead of our girls after Provincial Championships. The first match was against the Middleton Magic. This was a one sided affair with the Knights running a stunningly effective offense. Kills were coming from everywhere and everyone chipped into a big win to start the day. The second match was against the Bedford Blizzard. This team was a little stronger than the Knights previous opponent, but the Knights still were a much stronger team. The girls played some of their worst volleyball of the tournament, but found a way to get the job done. The Knights took care of the Blizzard in two sets and set up a battle for first place in the pool against Durham Attack Red. This match meant more than just who finished higher in the pool. It meant redemption for the Knights who were left out of Division 1 provincials due to the new Ontario ranking system. So our girls had a chance to prove that they were capable of beating anyone in Ontario. Well the Knights did exactly that. The girls controlled Durham Attack Red from start to finish and proved to be the better team on this day. There wasn't a single category of the game that the Knights were weaker in and showed the tournament they were for real. The Knights won their pool and were placed into the Tier 3 section for Sunday's single elimination play-offs.

Day 3 came and the Knights had a quater-final match against the Nova Scotia Provincial Champions, Eclipse from Tusket. The girls were ready to rock for this match and destroyed the Nova Scotia Champs in two sets. The Knights dominated they're opponents at the net with big blocks and great attacks. This put the Knights through to the semi-finals were they would meet a familiar foe from Lac Megantic. The Mousquetaires moved onto the semi-final by taking care of business in their quarter final against Colonels from Charlottetown. So the re-match was on and our opponents were ready. The Knights stumbled out of the gate in the first set. The unforced errors were piling up for the Knights and the Mousquetaires built a little lead. The Knights would not be outdone in this set as they pushed back with force and took control of the game by limiting errors and executing on both sides of the ball. The KVC girls won the first set and looked to take this best of three match in 2 straight sets. With the highest error tally of the tournament the Knights did not look like they were going to get the job done, but they found the resolve to push through the errors and defeat the Mousquetaires to advance to the Tier 3 final.

The team seemed good to go entering the final match against the Elans FX Vert from Quebec City. The Knights played great at the beginning of the set and were controlling play, but this time it was our opponents that pushed back late. Les Elans stormed back in the later points of the set to take it 22-25. The second set was a little more down hill for our girls. They just didn't bring the fire as we have seen in the past and Les Elans built a large lead early and the Knights just couldn't dig themselves out despite a valiant effort. The Knights lost they're last match for Tier 3 gold, but were still silver medalists at a National Championship. In the end the Knights had a match record of 6 wins and 3 losses (13-7 set record) at the Eastern Canadian Championship and were one of only two teams to take the National Champs to 3 sets. Not too shabby for a team that represents a very small population. The silver medal marks the first medal at a National Championship in Knights Volleyball Club history. A great acheivement for this batch of 15 and 16 year old girls. A big congratulations goes out to the team members Katie Lafreniere, Maryse Allard, Thalia Hanniman, Jean Cardona, Robyn Beauchamp, Taylor Decaire, Jenna Yaraskavitch, Brailey Severin, Claire Ullrich, Aisha O'Connor, Olivia Hoelke, and Victoria Clarke. A special thank you goes out to the parents that attended the trip and were unbelievably supportive to our athletes all trip long; Joe and Gaya Lafreniere, Glenn and Cheryl Hanniman, Brenda Beauchamp, Anna Warner, Teresa Yaraskavitch, and Sylvia Hicks.

This tournament was an incredible experience which I am sure no one that participated in will forget for a long time. This season was a ton of fun that included over 150 hours of training and even more in competition. Another winning season goes into the books for this very skilled team as we start the off season routine and prepare for open selection for next years team in June. Thank you to all those who have contributed and donated this season and I am looking forward to next season with my team.

GO KNIGHTS GO !