OLDS — École Olds High School senior boys volleyball team head coach Kristy Hartt is hoping the team utilizes “learnings” about the need for mental toughness as they host the first round of league playoffs Wednesday.
Game time is 7:15 p.m.
If the Spartans win that game, they’ll be in the league finals next week.
The Spartans were humbled during a tournament held Nov. 3-4 in Strathmore.
Hartt says they were sporadically into -- and not into -- several games mentally during that tournament and as a result, didn’t even make the top 10.
“The Strathmore tournament ended up being an opportunity to learn about our mental game and how much it impacts our outcomes,” she wrote in an email.
“We struggled on the court in many of our games to put forward a consistent level of energy and it cost us in the end.”
She said the team would win the first set, then come out flat and struggle, then put together a run of four to five points, then “fall short.”
Hartt said that tournament served as an opportunity for the Spartans to gain some “valuable insight into how to overcome adversity and work towards a stronger mental game.”
She said injury and a short bench were also factors that weren’t in their favour.
“We again only had eight players for some of our matches, as we had one player roll an ankle, so he didn't play the remaining games in our round robin pool,” she wrote.
“We hope to take the learnings from this past weekend and come in with a clear mind and positive attitude.”
