Red Devil seniors earn WOSSAA A boys’ volleyball silver medals

The TVRA Southeast A champion and WOSSAA A silver medallist Woodstock CI senior Red Devils volleyball team. (Jeff Tribe Photo).

Jeff Tribe

The Woodstock CI Red Devil seniors left their game on the court against Ecole Secondaire Monseigneur-Bruyere (ESMB) in the Western Ontario Secondary Schools Athletic Association A championship match on Nov. 13 in Goderich. And while their effort fell short on the scoreboard, it did not in the eyes of their coach.

“The boys gave a solid effort,” summed up coach Colin Maltby. “Super proud of them to play with a team like Bruyere.”

It is Maltby’s understanding that the team features several Ontario Volleyball Association (OVA) players and an OVA coach who begins developing the school’s program at the Grade 8 level. WCI was able to stay with their opponents until around the 15-point mark said Maltby.

“That’s when they just kind of pulled away.”

ESMB took the WOSSAA A gold medal with a three-set sweep, by scores of 25-18, 25-16, 25-18.

“Our boys fought hard,” Maltby added.

Beyond a credible showing in the final, the Red Devils earned their WOSSAA A silver medals in a five-set, see-saw semi-final win over St. Marys DCVI.

“The five-setter was crazy,” said coach Maltby. “Just a real fight, back and forth, back and forth.”

The Red Devils were not ready for St. Marys’ intensity in the first set, which they took by a comfortable 25-11 margin. The Red Devils rebounded to take sets two and three 25-19, 25-20, and while they dropped the fourth set, 16-25, they finished up with stronger play said their coach, carrying momentum forward for a 15-7 match-clinching victory.

“We just kind of kept the pedal to the metal and pushed through.”

Naturally, Maltby and company would have preferred a WOSSAA A gold medal and the accompanying berth to the provincial A championships in Chatham. But all things considered, Maltby was pleased with a good, even great showing and the related WOSSAA A silver medals.

“Pretty proud of the guys,” he summed up.

The Red Devils qualified for WOSSA with a sweep of the Woodstock Ecole Secondaire Notre Dame (ESND) the previous Wednesday at WCI, by scores of 25-3, 25-15, 25-10. The victory met the Red Devils’ primary goal said setter Zack Molinaro.

“To compete at WOSSAA.”

“The end goal of the season and the start goal of the season is a WOSSAA A gold,” added teammate Will Halward.

The ESND Wolves entered the contest with more modest goals admitted William Pinder, namely having fun and improving.

“It was a good season,” he said. “Most of us got to enjoy a game we didn’t get to play together.”

ESND has a Grade 9-12 student body of 92 explained assistant coach Chloe Hallee-Theoret, filling in for Viviane Rouleau. The lack of available players is reflected in the squad’s competitive level, not enjoyment of the game.

“We won a set here and there,” Hallee-Theoret said. “That’s really what we focus on to keep their spirits up and develop teamwork.”

WOSSAA A Junior Boys

A comparatively comfortable WOSSAA A semi-final win over Exeter South Huron may have been a mixed blessing for the Woodstock CI junior Red Devils.

In one sense, every player saw the court inside the St. Marys DCVI gym through a 25-19, 25-7, 25-16 victory Wednesday, November 13th. However, the match may not have provided the competitive push to hone WCI’s competitive edge for the gold medal match against London Christian.

“We just came out flat in that first set,” said WCI coach Jeff Melanson.

After dropping that set 25-14, the Red Devils found their game, only to fall by a 25-23 margin in the second, placing the team in a tough psychological position.

“Sometimes it’s like the air coming out of the balloon,” said Melanson, whose squad nevertheless was able to rediscover its game. “We kind of found our footing,” said Melanson of back-to-back 25-20 set victories which squared the match at two apiece, setting the stage for a 15-point sprint to the gold medal.

Trailing 6-2 early, Melanson called time out but was unable to stem the tide of an eventual 15-8 match and gold medal-clinching victory.

“They earned it. Just the shorter run to 15.”

WCI was missing two starters including its captain, one to travel, another to injury, but it was the second set Melanson referred to as one that slipped away, a little like sand through the fingers. In a set that tight, an extra point or two could have made a difference and shifted momentum.

“We were so close,” Melanson added. “Two teams that kind of traded blows.”

The outcome brought understanding to the ‘lose the gold, win the bronze’ theory, underlined by WCI’s five-set bronze medal win over London Christian the year previous.

However, by the time the ink had dried on the scoresheet, perspective had returned to silver medals which felt like a victory.

“It was a good season,” Melanson concluded. “Number two and very close to the top.”

The Red Devils qualified for WOSSAA with a 25-17,25-17, 25-12 win over St. Thomas Arthur Voaden Vikings the week previous, at WCI.

“Just do the best we can and try and win,” summed up Red Devils middle Graedon Smith at the time.