The Red Hawks junior and senior girls volleyball teams went undefeated in their homestand Jan. 13 as they continue to develop towards year-end qualifiers.
The senior team won both their matches and all their sets, defeating Brock and St. Thomas Aquinas (STA). The junior girls won against Brock but tied St. Thomas, splitting a pair of sets.
The juniors came on strong, winning sets by scores of 25-14 and 25-13 against Brock. They beat out STA by 25-10 in their first set but struggled in a 25-22 loss in set two.
Junior girls coach Dan Gimon attributed the last set on the day to some mental fatigue and poor serving.
But despite the stumble, he said his 9-3-2 team can go deep this season.
“We have the potential to go far. We should be able to make it to COSSA (regional championships),” Gimon said. “If they keep playing the way we can, I believe we can get there.”
The senior girls rose to a 7-6 record with a pair of wins, including close sets against Brock (25-22, 25-20) and bigger wins against STA (25-17, 25-14).
Coach Steven Smith said the team had some nerves playing at home, resulting in a closer game against Brock. But they were able to bounce back to defeat STA more handily, he said.
“We had a little talk about that. Tried to get them to settle down and just play their style of volleyball, which they did,” Smith said.
Though the regular season does not affect qualifying games, Smith said he is happy with where the team is at developmentally.
“We are on the right path that I need them to be on,” Smith said. “We’re not going down, we’re not dipping They’re improving every match, every game. Every point, I see some improvements.”
Kawartha qualifying games start Feb. 11.
