The St. Thomas More girls volleyball team hopes to extend its perfect string a little longer.
The junior girls AA squad captured its league final last week, beating Little Flower Academy 2-0 (25-13, 25-17) and now head into the provincials with an unblemished record.
Ledy by Grade 10 Vanessa Gatto, the club continued on the roll it built through a dominating regular season. Gatto, an outside hitter, was selected player of the match.
Now the focus turns to Seaquam, which host the junior provincials Nov. 27 and 28.
The Delta school has already been the scene of an impressive performance, and head coach Alicia Catalano hopes two times a charm.
“I think winning the Seaquam final against Pacific Academy (2-1) meant the most to the girls because it was the first tournament of the year and going undefeated really set the tone for the rest of the season,” said Catalano. “It gave them a lot of confidence, and it’s this tournament that inspired them to set their goal of having an undefeated season.”
From there, More went on to capture the B.C. Catholics and Handsworth tournaments, spinning perfection along the way.
“So far we are undefeated, and the team has made it their season goal to have an undefeated season,” the coach said prior to the league final. “The goals the girls set at the beginning of the season include win (the) B.C. Catholics (tourney), win (the) league and finish Top-5 at provincials.”
From a coach’s standpoint, Catalano says the team’s effort at the Handsworth tourney as their best. They blanked the host team in the final, but first faced a rematch in the semifinal that gave them a chance to measure their progress.
“This (semifinal) was also against Pacific Academy, and I think because our previous game against PA had been so close the girls really brought their ‘A’ game and played amazingly,” said Catalano. “We beat them in two and the sets weren’t that close. I think it was our most consistent game this season.”
The Knights, with an 11-players strong roster, were 12-0 in league play and swept St. Patrick’s in the semifinal. Led by captains Julia Spagnuolo, a middle blocker, and Gatto, they aim to make good on a preseason goal of a top-five placing.
