As the senior volleyball teams get set for regionals playoffs, the Regional Optimist has a preview of what those teams expect heading into the biggest weekend of the season and how their season has went thus far.
John Paul II girls: "The season has been very enjoyable because of the personalities of the athletes we have on the team," said coach Dallen Schwab.
The Crusaders are a young team and have been inconsistent at times this season, but have showed a willingness to improve and learn.
Schwab sees the regional playoffs as a strong tournament with some of the best competition in the province. The Crusaders are ranked seventh heading into the weekend. If his team can finish better than they are ranked it would be a successful weekend for the team with four Grade 10s, three Grade 11s and just one Grade 12 player on the team.
Last year, the Crusaders were beat in the quarter-finals at regionals and the biggest difference from this team to last year is experience.
The team wants to have a good showing and be competitive in all their games at regionals this weekend. To do that, serving and serve receive are going to be important for the Crusaders. Those two areas have been the major areas of inconsistency and if they focus on those areas Schwab says the other aspects of the game will fall into place.
Nonetheless, this weekend will give the young team some valuable experience, for the future, which looks bright. The skills will continue to improve as they continue to play some of the better volleyball teams in the province.
2011 tournament results: The Crusaders made the playoffs in four of their six tournaments this season with third and fourth place being the team's best finishes this season.
North Battleford Comprehensive High School girls: "The past week we started focusing on what each individual could bring to the team," says coach Sheila Gabert. "Volleyball is a game of mistakes and you must learn from them, so rather than externalize each athlete has to set a goal as to how they can improve for the overall team play."
The Vikings' goal at the beginning of the season was to improve on their tournament finishes from last year, and they felt did that. Last year they were knocked out in the quarter-finals in many tournaments. This time the finishes have been better and the ones where they did lose out in the quarter-finals were bigger and more competitive tournaments.
The Vikings expect to advance to provincials and this weekend and have set a goal to win the northern regional playoffs in Prince Albert.
The team's attitude and effort along with perseverance will be the keys to success, as they understand there are no easy games from this point on and every point of every match is important.
Gabert says the biggest differences in the team this year are maturity and experience and the ability to call and execute plays with confidence. Throughout the season, the Vikings' team defence and offence have improved and having lost just one starter from last season has helped the 2011 team learn through experience.
The Vikings have five Grade 12s on the team this year, three Grade 11s and four Grade 10s, who played the majority of the season with the Grade 9-10 team in order to gain experience for next year.
Last season, the Vikings hosted provincials and were eliminated in the first round of the playoffs. They are hoping to be peaking at the right this season and go further.
2011 tournament results: NBCHS gold, St. Mary's quarter-finals, University of Regina sixth, Swift Current silver, Edmonton quarter-finals, Weyburn fourth and John Paul II gold.
John Paul II boys: "It has been a great season," says assistant coach Kristina Binette. "We have improved with every match we play."
The Crusaders have an experienced team with five seniors on the roster, one Grade 11 and two Grade 10s, so perhaps this could be the year John Paul II has a strong showing at regionals and betters last year's finish. In 2010 the Crusaders were bounced out of the playoffs in the quarter-finals by Meadow Lake.
This year, the team appears much more positive in their approach to the game and are supportive of each other. That support and team unity has led to some strong results in a short period. Some of the Crusaders took the opportunity to play football as well this season, which limited the volleyball team to mostly one-day Saturday tournaments, because the football team played most Fridays.
With three tournaments under their belts, the Crusaders look to continue to improve and to play at a high intensity level, something their coaches know they are capable of.
Team support will be key this weekend in Melfort as well as recognizing the individual strengths of each athlete and using that to the team's advantage.
2011 tournament results: In three tournaments the Crusaders have lost out of the playoffs once, took bronze in Unity and silver at their home tournament last weekend.
North Battleford Comprehensive High School boys: "We have had a pretty good year so far," says coach Bruce Friesen. "Our team has shown some improvement from last year and has gelled into a pretty strong team."
The Vikings head into regionals as a bit of an underdog, behind Meadow Lake and St. Mary's, but have had success against those two teams this season. Friesen says the Vikings, along with the other top two teams, would be legitimate provincial contenders, but unfortunately only two will advance from regionals. The Vikings head in with some momentum and progressively had better finishes as the season went on. If the team's top players step up and lead and everyone plays to their potential Friesen says his team is capable of an upset. The Vikings could be one of the two teams to move on to provincials in Prince Albert next weekend.
The Vikings lost two key players from last season's roster, but have worked hard to fill the void and have been playing much more consistently this season thanks in large part to the experience gained from last year. Last season, the Vikings finished fourth at regionals, losing the bronze medal game to Meadow Lake.
The Vikings have three seniors on the team with a mix of four Grade 11s, two Grade 10 players and one from Grade 9.
2011 tournament results: Meadow Lake bronze, St. Mary Prince Albert fourth, University of Saskatchewan fourth, Swift Current silver, Regina Campbell Collegiate fourth, NBCHS silver and John Paul II gold.
