This weekend is all about the journey for the Moscrop Panthers senior girls volleyball team.
Having taken the long road to get to Nanaimo’s AAAA provincial championships, the docket is loaded with hefty challenges and stern-faced opposition.
When you emerge through a wildcard game to earn one of the last of 16 berths, making the event memorable shouldn’t be an issue.
The Panthers captured the final spot last week by edging Walnut Grove 3-1 in a tightly played tilt on neutral turf.
It also came without veteran outside hitter Isabella Cheung, who suffered a sprained ankle prior to the must-win game.
Trailing 1-0 after the first set, Moscrop stayed on point and closed the gap with some well-honed team play, slowly corralling the momentum and the win.
“It took a little bit of time to get into it for our girls,” said coach Lydia Law. “We were trading points for a good part of it and then we surged with good attacks from our serves.”
The victory was also key in demonstrating to the players how they can turn adversity into advantage.
Taking to the court without a veteran leader like Cheung – who is expected to miss the final week of play – is another obstacle in a route that has had plenty of challenges so far.
It came on the heels of a rough run at the Lower Mainlands, where the Burnaby-New West champions ran out of gas in the semifinal, falling 3-2 to West Vancouver, and were forced into the must-win wildcard contest after losing to Sir Winston Churchill in the third-place match.
“It was hard for them to get back into playing after (the loss to West Van),” said Law. “I think from that we learned about maintaining our emotions and focus. Certainly we were more focused about what we needed to do (against Walnut Grove).”
Now the team turns its attention to the 16-team AAAA provincials, which began yesterday.
While the team’s Grade 12s – middle blocker Katherine Fong and fellow senior Emi Wong -- look to emerge with some lasting memories, the core of the team is equally eager to finish the year on a high note, underdog status or not.
They include Emi’s younger sister, Mari, a Grade 10 libero, Grade 11 Jessica Hu, who stepped into Cheung’s spot and played a variety of positions as a utility player, and Julia Handra, whose nickname ‘Octopus’ is a nod to the middle blocker’s skills.
“As a team we know there’s a lot to do but as underdogs we have the mindset to try our hardest,” said the coach.
“If we play hard we’ll see the result.”
