It was jubilation on one court and heartbreak on another for the Langley Christian Lightning volleyball programs on Saturday night.
The senior boys capped their season in style, defeating the College Heights Cougars 3-1 in the championship final of the BC 2A provincial volleyball championships at the Langley Events Centre.
But while they were victorious in their quest for the blue banner, the senior girls team was not as fortunate.
Langley Christian — the top seed in the tournament — suffered a 3-2 loss to the MEI Eagles.
The 2A championships were played at Abbotsford’s MEI Secondary.
Even tougher for the Lightning was the fact they were up 14-11 in the fifth and deciding set and serving for the championship before the Eagles went on a 5-0 run to win the title.
“It was eight years of work gone in a matter of 30 seconds,” said Langley Christian coach Lisa Bontkes, on Monday morning.
“It was heartbreaking; the girls are devastated.”
The majority of the players have been together since Grade 4.
This was just the Lightning’s second loss all season and the first against a team from B.C.
A big difference for Langley Christian and MEI were their respective paths to the championship final.
After pool play on the first day, the Lightning beat David Thompson in the first round in straight sets but needed five sets in both the quarter-finals and semifinals, against St. Thomas More and Surrey Christian. By comparison, the Eagles won their three playoff games, dropping just one set along the way.
The semifinals and finals were both on Saturday meaning the Lightning had two five-set marathons while MEI won their semifinal in straight sets before topping Langley Christian in the final.
“They were exhausted,” Bontkes said about her players. “And MEI ended up pushing through in the end.”
Every team works hard throughout the season and unfortunately there has to be one which loses.
“It is a great team and a sad way to end the season considering they had so many other great successes through the season. But it is always the last one you remember,” Bontkes said.
Jayden Bontkes and Olivia Heinen were named first team all-stars while Savannah Caterino-Leger was a second-team selection.
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Three other Langley senior girls volleyball teams were also competing at provincial championships in Kelowna.
In the 3A championships, the Langley Saints finished 13th while the Mountain Eagles placed 16th while at the 1A tournament, the Credo Christian Kodiaks were 13th overall.
