INNISFAIL – St. Marguerite Bourgeoys school had a volleyball season for the history books.
For the first time both the boys' and girls' volleyball teams won gold at the annual Chinook's Edge North Athletic Association (CENAA) tournament after a successful and undefeated regular season.
The boys' tournament was held on Nov. 2 at Mother Theresa school in Sylvan Lake with the girls' tournament on Nov. 4 at Penhold Crossing Secondary School.
“The boys went undefeated in league play. They only lost two matches all season,” said Nicole Clarke, head coach for the boys' volleyball team. “At CENAA they went undefeated and didn't lose (a match) to win gold.”
“They play best of five (games) in league play and they never lost a match. Every time they played, they won three matches or more,” she said.
Tyson Roth and Alysia Naesgaard coached the girls' volleyball team this year.
“The girls were the same. They lost a few more matches but not many, and they never lost a game,” Clarke said.
The regular season began the second week of school in early September and finished on Nov. 18 for both teams with the Central West Alberta Junior High Athletic Association (CWAJHAA) tournament in Sylvan Lake.
Clarke noted some factors that contributed to the gold medal wins.
“We work a lot on being positive and not blaming each other. The boys are amazing to each other on and off the court,” said Clarke.
“They've been playing together for four years. They are a strong team, they communicate well, they play well and they worked on passing and hitting,” she added, noting they took the gold medal in two consecutive sets (2-0, 2-0).
“The girls' volleyball team won their gold in two sets as well, against Camille J. Lerouge school in Penhold.”
The boys won silver last year in the gold medal match, while the girls won bronze, said Clarke.
“They lost to Camille last year and they beat Camille this year,” she added. “The girls won bronze last year and also played against Camille J. Lerouge school. They were really good games and they had lots of fun.
“I'm proud of these boys. They're awesome to coach and they're very humble boys when they win,” said Clarke. “They win with a lot of humility. It'll be hard to see them go next year.”
Nicole Clarke, head coach, boys' volleyball team.
"They were really good games and they had lots of fun."
