April 28-29, 2007 - Off to
Etobicoke for the OVA 16U Girls Ontario Championships/Tier 4.
Ranked first in our tier, the 15U CAPS were determined to have a great
weekend and end the season with a medal. Two days of undefeated
matches saw them bringing home the Gold, as well as many smiling faces
and proud parents!
Everyone should have the opportunity to
participate in the writing of the team stories. For this event
we have chosen to all say our piece, and I am simply compiling
everyone's thoughts.
Coaches' Corner (Coach Singh) - Thoughts on the Weekend
We started off the morning with a good breakfast, and traveled to
Silverthorn Collegiate Institute. We were assigned Court 1,
probably the coldest gym I have been in a long time. My heart
warmed as I saw our CAPs warming up. There was something
different about them. There was determination, there were
smiles.
Nothing was going to land on the floor.
We hit and dug our way through Saturday preparing for final match on
Saturday with our cross-town rivals the Ottawa Mavericks.
The match was intense and no freezing gym was going to keep anybody
down. No one was willing to give up, it was a fight for every
moment. We took the Mavericks in two, and they were two of the
best sets I have seen the girls play. Congratulations to both
teams for an incredible display of volleyball.
The team fought hard, determined that the
gold medal was not too far away. Undefeated they were, going
into the gold medal match against the Ottawa Kangaroos.
We had beaten them the previous day in two straight, but the Roos were
determined to change that. It was close, the last play -
the whistle blew ending the match and a huge thunder arose from the
CAPs players and fans. I am very proud of the girls. They
deserved the gold medal and deserved to be called tournament
champions. Congratulations to all!
Special shout out to Kelsey
Wolfenden for being awarded the OVA Award of Excellence.
You are a force to be fearful of. One of the referees asked if
our girls knew how to tip, specifically stating that Kelsey did not
tip at all. Why would she want to tip, when she can hit over the
block??
Parents you are all part of this team. We could not accomplish
these tasks without your support. Thank you.
Coaches' Corner (Coach Prasil) -
Thoughts on the Weekend
On Saturday, the girls gradually built
their momentum throughout the day. They were communicating on
the court, supporting each other and came up with some big plays.
They played some of the best defense this year. The last match
on Saturday against the Maverick Outlaws for the first place in
the pool was the culmination. The girls played with amazing intensity
and deservedly took the top spot. On Sunday, it was the playoffs
and we had to do it all over again. For me, the highlight was
the first game in the semis against a loudly supported local club,
Cambridge Hawks. The team played some great volleyball and totally
dominated. It is always tough to come into the tournament top
ranked and deliver. Well, the girls did - they kept fighting
hard and just refused to be outplayed. They made us all proud
and it was great to see the big smiles and excitement
afterwards.
Players'
Perspectives:
Kayla - Highlight was winning the
last game against the Mavs and ending the day
UNDEFEATED!!
Kristina - We played the best we
EVER have! With 4 straight wins our confidence shot up. We
were talking, covering, blocking and hitting! Nothing could
bring us down ... We are going ALL the way!
Kelly - We played AWESOME! It
feels so good. We definitely played our best game of the day
against the Mavericks. We had so much energy! It was alot
of fun, and we sure showed everyone what we can do.
Kristen - Great job girls!
Kelsey - way to be! Award of Excellence! Congrats!
Coach Singh and Coach Prasil - amazing job - thank you so
much!
Jamie - Ditto to Kristen and
Kelly - you got SERVED!! UNDEFEATED and it was overall a SICK
day!!!
Georgina - Well, overall great
playing by everyone. Got off to a little shaky start with a game
to 15, but pulled it off and kept it up the rest of the day.
Lots of yelling, cheering and loss of voices. Great job Wolf on
the Award of Excellence!
Kelsey - Morning: we won!
Lunch - we won! Afternoon - we still won!!! 4-0!! So
much fun playing against Mavericks. There was never a moment of
silence in the game! Winning Award of Excellence! We only
have 8 players, yet we all play so well.
Zoë - Being undefeated has really
lifted the team's spirit! The Mavs game will definitely be one
to remember. When we won the last point of that game everyone
came into a huddle, screaming and smiling! Shout outs to Kelsey
for winning the Award of Excellence and to Coach Singh and Coach
Prasil for great coaching! Good job guys!
Parents'
Perspectives:
Fiona - A cold, bone-chilling day
for the audience in gym 1, but the CAPS were HOT!! Great
teamwork and individual play! Spinning serves and ace spikes.
The most exciting game was left until last, when the CAPS and their
very rambunctious, loud parents raised the roof with their cheers and
encouragement, never letting down until the CAPS won the final game!
Way to go CAPS!!
Chris - Following a Waterloo serve,
the CAPS all yelled "short!" At that moment a CAP from the
back row dove through the air for the ball and popped it up.
Gravity took over and the trajectory of the diving player curved
downward toward the floor. The player turned her head to the
right to prevent a face plant, then reach out and slapped the floor
simultaneously with her forearms and hands, thereby protecting her
wrists from injury and breaking her fall - a perfect pancake!!
Just one exciting point from two days of great play at provincials.
Go CAPS Go!
Linda - Definitely uplifting!
The girls played as a winning team should play. They played
exceptionally well and gave their utmost performance. There was
a lot of communication, bonding and - most of all - lots of cheering
from players and PARENTS! Good job girls! A nice touch to
a final finish!
Josee - This tournament has been one
of the best I have seen this year. The girls are playing
awesome. #1 in pool play, undefeated! They are
communicating and bonding. Great cheering from the parents.
Good work girls!
Dan - I think the girls discovered
something about themselves today - how to WIN! And how to win in
different ways. Most often we hear coaches say "play your
game". The CAPS heeded their coach's advice and played the
tournament of their lives. They "put it down" as they rose
to a new level. Great to see this new side of the
15Us!!
Bob - This weekend has, so far, been amazing to watch.
The girls are having fun and are playing like they can. No
matter where they finish this weekend we saw their best ball play of
the year. Thanks for the great entertainment girls and can't
wait until Moncton!!! Go CAPS Go!!
Noreen - Dear Diary: I had a
great time watching the girls playing their absolute best today.
Their play was inspiring and great to hear them being so vocal.
That Judy sure is terrific (Manager's note - hey, thanks
Noreen!!) for keeping everything organized. We're
having fun hanging out with the parents. I'm sure tomorrow will
bring victory for the CAPs (and right you were
Noreen!).
Bryce - Nice! Four for Four!!
I should come to these tournaments more often! Saw a lot less
gawk and heard much more talk - well done ladies!! Go Sens Go
(golfing)! (Manager's note - oh Bryce, really-- shake
your head man, the Sens are going all the
way!!!!!)
Judy - All of the above definitely
summarizes the weekend. Thank you to all of the parents for
their participation and support of the team in Etobicoke. And a
very special thank you to each of the girls. As parents, it is
our absolute pleasure to watch you excel and grow in the sport of
volleyball. I am so excited about sharing the Moncton experience
with the team. I am proud of each and every one of
you!
And that sums up our thoughts from this
incredible weekend. The 15U CAPS next see action in Moncton, NB
on May 11-13, 2007.
