April 14-15, 2007 - Despite overshooting the turnoff to the hotel (curse you, Mapquest!) our vehicle eventually found an intersection to make the return to Barrie.  Though we missed the team dinner, I'm sure it was yummy nonetheless.

The Super 8 Motel is brand new, spotless and has quirky room doors which don't always allow entry on demand (just ask Annie).  The tasty, free breakfast fare was a welcome start to our morning on Saturday.  We arrived at St. Joan of Arc Secondary School to find that our host-less OVA 17U Girls Ontario Championship/Tier 1 tournament venue demanded a hasty setup of the courts by some of the more conscientious parents and referees.

The 17U CAPS' first opponents were Aurora Storm.  Aurora came out of the gate flying, with our girls going down 10-3 early.  Nevertheless, the girls regrouped to find their stride and, with superior blocking, tipping and smashing, the confidence increased.  End result: a hard-fought 26-24 victory.  (Matt's emphasis on service and reception was evident as only one serve was missed throughout the entire match.)  The second game saw a pumped-up CAPS team doing everything right.  Brilliant coverage and smart hits saw them cruise to a 25-12 win.

The break saw the girls on the sidelines, busily scribbling notes as they observed their other Pool C opponents.  Well, maybe those notes proved useful as the CAPS exhibited a cohesive, intense front against the Forest City 16U team.  It was a tight match all the way.  Forest City has an extremely talented defence and our girls had to be especialy sharp at the net.  A varied attack and some spectacular saves (that was awesome, Haley!), combined with experience and determination, saw a CAPS victory, 25-19 and 25-22.

It was a long wait until the final Pool play match versus Durham Attack, so we passed the time with a nutritious lunch and a side trip or two to the Overkill booth.  It was a pleasant diversion to have Matt's young cousins visit from Orillia.

At 3:30, the CAPS took the court.  Durham came out strong, but our girls traded them point-for-point.  In the end, the CAPS bowed 20-25.  Switch sides, same scenario: 20-20, 22-22, 23-23, 23-24 for Durham then, as we celebrated a clutch block from Leah, the second referee called a touched net and the match went to Durham.  Rats!

So we had to hastily pack up and travel a ziggy, zaggy, twisty drive to Innisfil for a first round playoff match against Peel Selects to determine "Top 8" or "Bottom 8" status.  Again we had to wait to play, but finally took the court at 6:20 pm.  The CAPS were loose and confident and their play demonstrated that fact.  A cool, workmanlike offense led to a convincing 25-13 win in the first game, despite a few questionable screening calls against us.  The high level of play continued in the second game, resulting in a 25-17 victory.  (Becky provided some entertaining post-match moments by knocking loose some trapped balls from the ceiling of the gymnasium.  Good arm, Beck!)

So tomorrow ... it's quarterfinals against DRVC!

Dinner took place at Casey's and it was a lovely, well-deserved gathering ... but no fries for the girls (Matt's edict).  Gina received a present for her OVA Award of Excellence in the form of a parfait glass of orange ice cream with a candle on top.  How classy!  Back to the motel by 10.

Sunday morning's match was at 10:45, so everyone slept and breakfasted well.  We checked out and found our way to a third venue, Innisdale Secondary School.  This match had all the feeling of a heavyweight fight.  Either team could have won and, inevitably, been crowned the Provincial Champion.  With a total of only nine errors collectively for both teams, it was an intense match.  The game was characterized by Gina and Becky not caring about being injured - running hard into the scorers table to try and save a ball (see photo below).  The effort was exceptional.  Annie and Sarah may have ripped the cover off the ball, Becky and Hales had some wonderful floor defense, Leah, SJOY and Gabo were an impenetrable force in the middle and Emily was a consistent rock at RS.  The game went back and forth, with both teams landing some impressive points, but it wasn't going to be for the CAPS today.  A couple hard calls here and there and a few unlucky breaks put DRVC ahead, but that certainly doesn't take anything away from the game.  The girls were aggressive and fearless, and  - best of all - played like a cohesive unit.  Coach Hoey mentioned, "that if we played DRVC a hundred times it would be an even split", going on to say, "he would love to face them again."

The loss meant a meeting with the Durham Attack 16U team.  The CAPS rode Annie's service to a quick 8-0 lead, but the Attack whittled that away and our girls had to dig deep to secure a squeaker of a win, 25-23.  In the next game, The CAPS continued their steady play but couldn't shut down a hot Durham jump-serve, losing 20-25.  The decider was close at the switch (7-8) but Attack pulled away to win 15-10.

Now playing for 7th or 8th place against the Scarborough Titans, our girls looked tired and disappointed from the earlier losses.  This game was one of the best Sarah had ever played.  She put a half dozen balls inside that attack line that almost bounced off the roof but, though our CAPS showed much resilience and resolve in coming back again and again, the Titans prevailed.  Despite the girls' final 8th place showing at Provincials, they proved that they can play point-for-point with any team and they should be proud of their accomplishments.

Many thanks to Matt and his lovely assistant, Jess.  You have brought out the best in these girls and their progress and developement is so very evident.  Great job!

Thanks also to the parents, grandparents and cousins who drove and spectated. (Special thanks to Hugh, Tony, Jean and Brian for helping with lining and scoring.)

And kudos to Donna and Ulrike for organizing our travel and accommodations.  We hope that friends, family and fans of the 17U Girls will come to Lansdowne Park this coming weekend to see the girls battle it out with the best in the province at the OVA 18U Girls Ontario Championships/Tier 1!