The Mariners found a way to win in their biggest match of the season so far.
The Mariners Volleyball Club U17 girls’ team won Volleyball B.C.’s U18 Vancouver Island club championship on Sunday at the Vancouver Island University gym. The locals defeated Victoria 23-25, 25-15, 15-13.
“The team that they were playing was a team that they haven’t beat in years. So they kind of developed this mental block,” said Keri Chapdelaine, one of the team’s coaches.
But as they found success as the match went on, it lifted the Mariners to a new level.
“They gained a little bit more confidence and a little bit more confidence, and it kind of snowballed … to the point where they could pull off the win,” Chapdelaine said.
Danielle Groenendijk, a team captain, said the Mariners went into the match with a nothing-to-lose mentality.
“They wanted to win it just as much as we did,” she said. “It was just fighting hard and pushing through and never giving up.”
Maddie McDonald, another team captain, said the Mariners began communicating better and upped their energy as the match wore on.
“We realized what was on the line and we started working for it more,” she said.
The Island champs are an “awesome group of girls,” Chapdelaine said. “They’re the best. Our team cohesion is amazing.”
The Mariners Black U14 team also won an Island championship on the weekend. The squad defeated the Campbell River Crush 25-20, 23-25, 15-3 in the final Saturday at the VIU gym.
Provincial championships will be held over the next two months on the Lower Mainland.
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