Woodstock CI Red Devils rising to meet AA challenge

The Woodstock CI Red Devils (right) took a three-set victory over the College Avenue Knights (left) Tuesday, December 9 in the Devildome. (Jeff Tribe Photo)

Jeff Tribe, Echo Correspondent

The roadmap to Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) championships is a familiar one for the Woodstock CI Red Devils senior girls’ volleyball team.

But this year’s route will feature considerably more AA traffic than they were used to at their previous A level.

“The path will be a lot harder,” said coach Pauline Schubert of her squad’s 2025-2026 transition. “But we’re certainly going to give it our best."

Schubert looks forward to having three experienced navigators on this year’s squad, middle Kate Booker, power Kaiden Martin and power-turned-setter Ava Bickell.

“She’s very versatile,” credited Schubert of the latter’s conversion.

The three are among the returnees from last year’s Red Devils squad which reached OFSAA A quarterfinals in Toronto, continuity in terms of experience and an expectation to compete, regardless of opponent and outcome.

“They are just very motivated,” said Schubert, proud of her team’s effort against an extremely strong London Christian squad the previous Friday. Although dropping a 25-18, 25-19 tournament semi-final decision, coach and players were pleased with their performance.

“It was like, ‘We did so good,’” said Schubert. “When you’ve left it all out there, you can’t be disappointed with the result.”

The Red Devils also benefit from Ontario Volleyball Association players on the roster, a level of experience allowing Schubert to quickly move beyond rotation basics into broader strategy.

“We can start off right away with higher things.”

An athletic season being as much or more about the journey than the destination, the Red Devils took a step forward on their Thames Valley Regional Athletics Southeast path with a 25-15, 25-15, 25-18 homecourt victory over the visiting Woodstock College Avenue Knights Tuesday, Dec. 9 at Woodstock CI.

The Knights have height and athleticism, on this day however, the Red Devils were more consistent, setting up their offence from the serving line and with a transition from strong defence.

That win and a Monday, December 15 sweep of Woodstock Huron Park gave WCI a 5-0 record on the young season, a strong start, albeit one without facing 5-0 Ingersoll DCI or 4-0 St. Thomas Parkside and St. Thomas St. Joe’s. What was expected to be a challenging back half to the TVRA Southeast campaign was scheduled to open Tuesday, December 16 with the Parkside Stampeders visiting the WCI Devildome.

“I think that will really show what level we can compete at for the year,” said Schubert.

The Knights, falling to 1-2 with the loss, were scheduled to finish out their pre-Christmas schedule with a Tuesday, Dec. 16 home date against the St. Thomas Central Elgin Titans.