Adam Prudhomme
Editor
The defending EOSSAA champion NDSS junior girls volleyball team are proving last year’s historic run was no fluke.
The Golden Hawks’ encore has been just as impressive, winning their first nine league games before suffering their first loss on Tuesday on their home court.
Facing off against the Kingston Secondary School Bears, there were a handful of story lines at play. KSS was the only team to beat the Hawks last year, spoiling their bid for a perfect season. Napanee entered Tuesday’s match just two wins away from perfect and had a shot to lock up the top seed heading into the playoffs.
Things were going Napanee’s way early, starting with a 25-15 win in the opening set. They continued to roll in the second set, winning 25-20. The Bears refused to go away quietly however, rallying for two straight sets and then taking the rubber match fifth set.
Sadie Lupton volleys in front of the net. Photo by Adam Prudhomme.
With the win the Bears remain the only team to have bested the junior Hawks in the last two seasons combined.
Disappointing as the loss may have been, the chance for the Hawks to do something special for a second straight year is still very much alive.
“With the experience from last year we’re all leaders and we all help out each other,” said Vienna Ballance-Hinch, one of the team’s Grade 10 co-captains who was a member of last year’s squad.
“Mr. Collard (the team coach) has this saying, the job’s not done,” added co-captain Sadie Lupton. “Even though we’ve won all our KASSAA season games (heading into Tuesday’s match), going into playoffs it doesn’t mean that we’re going to sweep it away. If we win KASSAA it doesn’t mean that we’re done. We just need to keep pushing. Even if we play a bad team we need to expect them to put the ball over and give us a fight. It’s just really important to stay composed and just know that we can play our best.”
Abby Kelsey prepares to finish a rally as Kingston players attempt to block. Photo by Adam Prudhomme.
Lupton attributed the team’s string of success to a mix of experience and dedication.
“We had a lot of club players come in last year but even non-club players were playing on the court as starters,” said Lupton. “I think the hard work and dedication that we had was really good to help us carry it all the way.”
Head coach Todd Collard added that experience could be a huge asset as they wrap up the regular season and turn their attention to the playoffs, which start Feb. 8. Regardless of where they finish in the standings, once the playoffs get underway, every game is win or go home.
“It’s particularly fluid in the junior sport where you get that one player and has a fantastic game and it just changes the whole game,” said Collard of the playoffs. “We do have a lot of experienced players, we have eight players returning from last year which really gave us a great start. We’ve got a great group that are working hard.”
While not wanting to look too far ahead, the coach also wants the players to remember the ultimate goal is to repeat. Doing so would only further establish NDSS’ reputation as a legitimate volleyball school with a young core in place for at least the next three years.
Vienna Ballance-Hinch prepares to volley. Photo by Adam Prudhomme.
“It’s exciting. It took us awhile to get here,” said Collard. “The previous time we had a team in the championship before last year was 2000. It took awhile and we have a chance to get there again this year. If things go our way and we keep working hard we’ll hopefully make it two in a row.”
Napanee will wrap up the regular season on Feb. 6 with a road game against Mille-Iles Public High School.
Sadie Lupton smashes the ball onto the Bears’ side of the court. Photo by Adam Prudhomme.
From there the Hawks are guaranteed to host the quarter-finals on Feb. 8 and would host the semifinals on Feb. 12 should they advance. The KASSAA finals will take place at the neutral site of Kingston’s St. Lawrence College.
Napanee has been chosen to host the junior girls’ EOSSAA championship on Feb. 21. Despite being the school being locked in as host, they team will still have to earn its way into the tournament by winning the KASSAA crown.
-NDSS’ senior girls also hosted the Bears, suffering a sweep in three sets. Despite the loss, the Hawks have locked up the eighth and final playoff seed and will take on the top seed in the quarterfinals on Feb. 8.
-NDSS’ basketball teams were on the road Tuesday, also taking on Kingston Secondary.
The junior Hawks fell 51-23 while the seniors kept it close, but ultimately came up short in a 56-50 defeat.
KASSAA league action will now take a bit of a pause over the next week as the athletes focus on finishing up the first semester. Games resume on Feb. 5.