November 18, 2006 - The weather gods have a twisted sense of humour.  Following several days of above average temperatures in Ottawa, the 17U girls and parents were now looking down the barrel of a predicted major storm system which, coincidentally, was coming straight at us from the southwest.  Leaving the snowy, freezy, rainy environs of Ottawa, the drivers anticipated a slow drive to Windsor for the OVA 17U Girls McGregor Cup/Tier 1.  Just outside our city we noticed several ditched vehicles and contemplated the wisdom of an 800 kilometre trip.  But it rained and it blew and it cleared and it rained again and it flurried and it rained and it cleared, but never did the driving become dangerous.

Most of us broke up the trip with some leg-stretching pit stops along the way.  Movies ("Cars", "Rent", "Dodgeball") and music (you don't like country, Sarah?) and amusing stories about exploding frogs helped to pass the time.  Some of the girls dropped by McMaster University in Hamilton to watch the Lady Marauders volleyball team get defeated by Matt Hoey's old team, the Waterloo Warriors.

It was close to 11 pm when the final car straggled into the Stonecroft Inn.

English muffins, cereal and yogurt brought the girls to life at 9 o'clock the next morning, followed by a circuitous route to E.J. LaJeunesse High School.  It was a long wait until the first match (1 pm).  Poor Greg, who had planned his business trip to coincide with the tournament, saw only 2 matches before he had to leave to fly back home.

As there were only three teams in our pool, each match consisted of three games to 25 points.  The first match saw the CAPS battle against the 7th-ranked Aurora Storm.  Fast out of the gate in the first game but stumbling slightly down the backstretch, the girls just couldn't find the team rhythm.  Despite some great serves and powerful middle hits, they just didn't play as well as they could have (18-25 loss).  The second game saw a more confident collection of CAPS and they "Cap-italized" at every opportunity.  Superior digs by Becky, some cement blocks from Gabby and Sarah and a hot serving streak by Emily propelled the girls to a spirited 25-15 turnaround victory.  Confidence soaring, the girls continued to fly high in the third game and nailed down a convincing 25-17 victory.

Playing straight away, the 17Us faced their archrivals, DRVC, ranked number one.  In the first game, the CAPS committed too many errors and fell 19-25.  But then, in the second game, a trend began to emerge - lose the first, come out stronger in the second and dominate with steady, consistent play (27-17 win), then build on that confidence to whip the opposition in the third (25-12 win).  And who got the match-winning block?  Some pint-sized setter named Gina Morphy, that's who!

Claude and Diane were already getting very sore wrists from some frenetic bell-ringing.

Tony Hofmann offered a theory as to why the top-ranked teams weren't winning their pools.  He suggested that it was the teams that are used to travelling to tournaments who were the ones having initial success in the pool rounds.  However, pools are for sorting and the cream usually rises.

Well, maybe it was the break, maybe it was the chili, but the girls came out stone cold against the Scarborough Vipers in their quest for the medal round.  In the first game, in which they were humbled 8-25, there was no spirit, no offence, no nothing.  Where did our CAPS go?

But game two saw the return of the trend.  The girls played so much better, finding open spaces with timely tips and utilizing a mixed bag of offensive weapons to score a decisive 25-20 victory.  In the third and deciding set, the CAPS and the Vipers dueled point-for-point up to the switch, then "the Iced CAPS" reappeared, cooling off, making too many mental errors (and not following the script) to allow their opponents to take the match 15-10.  Heckity-dang!!

So then we played for 5th place against Peel Selects, but it was like watching a balloon slowly deflate.  Listless and seemingly uninspired, the CAPS showed little ferocity and fell 14-25 and 20-25 to a taller and more buoyant team and ultimately finished in 7th place.

Said Coach Matt the next day at practice, "With the talent we have, we should be Top 3 in the province, (but) we need to emphasize defense".

We know that these National Capitals 17U girls have the talent to climb the mountain, but that extra edge to consistently battle with the best hasn't yet been seen.  It will come -  then watch out Ontario!

Thanks to the cautious parents, Tony, Diane, Claude and Brian, for safely transporting the girls; to Greg for his unwavering support; and of course to Matt and Jess for their coaching wizardry.