January 21, 2006 - The 15U girls left behind the snow banks of Ottawa and travelled to the green grass of Burlington to compete in the OVA 16U Girls Challenge Cup/Tier 2.  With 3 vans heading to 3 different locales for the overnight stay, the team came together on Saturday morning to focus on their goals and begin the day.  Having last seen the 16U competition at Tier 1, the girls were anxious to see if they could compete with this group of 11 teams at Tier 2.

First on the agenda was the hometown team, Burlington Blaze.  With their trademark strong serving sometimes ON, sometimes OFF, the CAPS would see their 14-7 lead quickly dwindle to a 23-24 deficit before the gals dug deep to squeek out a 27-25 win.  The second set saw the CAPS jump out to an 11-4 lead before miscues once again let the Blaze get their offense on track en route to a 20-25 win. The third set looked to be all Blaze, as the CAPS were behind 5-8 at the split.  But co-captain Lauren Carter took a deep breath, stepped back at 6-8 and craftily served out the game, giving the CAPS the 15-8 win.

The CAPS then faced Peel Selects 90 (Brampton), who looked to have a couple of tall, advanced players to help keep the CAPS on their toes.  Play was close throughout the first set, with strong blocking from the CAPS turning back the Selects offense time and again, and the CAPS taking the lead 18-13.  However, the Selects used their size and experience to battle back for a 25-22 win.  The second set got off to a slow start for the CAPS, as they fell behind 0-4, before a huge block on a Selects step-around lit a fire under our team.  The girls served strong and blocked hit after hit, to take the set 25-19.  Set 3 flip-flopped between service aces and service errors, and this time the girls were not able to make up the 0-4 deficit, succumbing to Selects 9-15.  But the well-played match had been a real confidence booster for our younger girls.

Regrouping over lunch, the CAPS then faced the positionally sound Stingers (Stratford) in the final match of pool play.  Even with Coach Cathy trying different combinations in hopes of finding some mistake-minimizing magic, the CAPS could not recapture the team dynamic and flow they had built against Selects, and went down in straight sets, 20-25, 15-25 to finish 3rd in their pool.

The first round of playoff action was to be a test of character for the team: win the match and be assured of staying in Tier 2; lose and be relegated to Zones for the next 16U event.  It was up to the team to prove they wanted to play in the Tiers.  Switching gyms to meet Northern Chill (Sudbury), the CAPS once again saw an 0-4 deficit in set 1, before they dug deep to support the strong serving of Rebecca Crosier.  Suddenly the score was 11-4 in their favour, which inspired them to talk louder, hit harder, move faster, and play their way to a 25-15 victory.  Set 2 saw a regrouped Chill team come out ready to play, and the CAPS fell behind 8-16.  Unforced errors looked like they would once again play a role in the outcome, but the girls battled for every point as they quite calmly climbed their way back to 22-24.  Not willing to let the ball touch the floor, the CAPS dug, rolled, communicated and blocked their way to a set and match victory, 28-26.  This was the type of 'gut-check' performance that all of us were encouraged to see and it ensured them that Tier 2 finish.  But the girls were were not quite ready to 'mail it in' just yet.

Next up was a Top 2 15U team, Forest City Green 15U (London), whom the CAPS had enjoyed little success against in their previous meeting in Cambridge.  Looking for a little revenge, the girls focussed on the task at hand and played their best volleyball of the day.  Strong hitting and blocking kept FC on their toes and playing their best to take the first set 19-25.  Taking the court with confidence for set 2, the CAPS strong serving kept Forest City from setting up their offense, and the CAPS took a 17-13 advantage.  However, both teams wanted to win this great match, as they battled on every point with hard hits, great digs, and timely blocks.  With the set tied at 20, the CAPS rallied then surged ahead 24-20, before giving up those hard fought 4 points that brought the match to 24s. When the dust had settled, the CAPS would be 2 points short of forcing a third set: 24-26.  But one thing was abundantly clear after the match: these two teams were much more evenly matched than they were a few short months ago.

The final match of the day saw the CAPS take on their cross-town rivals, the Kangaroos.  Having expended so much physical and emotional energy in the previous match, the team came out as flat as their coach had ever seen them and lost in straight sets: 15-25, 16-25, to finish the tournament tied for 7th.

A somewhat exhausted Coach Cathy commented, "This was one of those days that drives you crazy as a coach - the girls would play really well in one match, then they would go quiet, lose focus and - frankly - misrepresent themselves in the next.  These girls have the ability to do anything they want out there - but only when they enter the gym focussed on the business at-hand.  They've got to really demand a victory of themselves, otherwise all these other really excellent teams will take them apart."  She added, "They are such a FUN bunch of girls, they just need to get focussed as soon as they step into the gym."

A hearty "thank you" goes out to the relatives of Laura Edwards and Lauren Carter for opening their homes and billeting the girls on Friday night... to the parental contingent who drove, cheered and fed the team... and to Coach O'Doherty, who fought off a flu bug to fulfill her coaching role over a long day - thanks for all you do!

The team now juggles studying and the end of exams, as they prepare to travel to Fanshawe College in London this coming weekend to compete in the OVA 15U Girls Challenge Cup/Tier 1.