EDMONTON, AB - In what can only be described as a nail-biter, the North Bay Junior Lakers 18U Blue squad captured a silver medal at the Volleyball Canada National Championships in Edmonton on the weekend.
Playing nine matches in three days, the Laker Blue team ran the table on day one, going undefeated in their first three matches. Finishing the preliminary matches with a record of 4-2, positioning themselves well for the playoff rounds.
Defeating Southern Alberta VC, in three sets in the quarter-final match required some grit after losing the first set 12-25. The semi-final was no walk-in-the-park either having to battle the Calgary Canucks to a tough 25-23, 25-23 victory.
Playing Dawson Creek, British Columbia in the finals was not only exciting but had the team in unchartered waters.
The Lakers were attending their second national championships, and were first in the medal round.
“There is no question, we were ready. We have been building our team and it’s character for a long time now and it really paid off,” said Head Coach Mason Truswell.
After splitting the first two sets, the Lakers team could not hang on to a late third set lead, eventually losing 14-16 in the third set.
“The final match was exciting and we played our very best volleyball this week; the best we’ve played all year. That in in itself is rewarding. We’re so proud of our entire roster of girls," said Truswell.
For many of these players, this brings an end to their club playing careers.
“Our team has grown so much, every girl played an important role on our team. It’s such an awesome way to end our club playing careers. Some of us have been together for six years and this means so much to us, it was a lot of fun."
