Another tournament that 15U Girls Purple will add to its list of character-building experiences!  The first part of the trial-by-fire was against a strong Stingers Black team from Markham.  Though final scores of 23-25 and 18-25 did not go in our favour, the girls held a number of tremendous rallies and produced some powerful, well-placed serves.  At one point in the second set, Purple narrowed a deficit from nine points to just three.  Next was the Storm ICE, whose strength and consistency lead to wins of 6-25 and 12-25. 

Exchanging sets with the 14U Stingers Gold, Fusion came up with some impressive digs and a few aces in a 25-22 victory before going down 15-25 and then coming back to take the tiebreaker in a 15-13 nail-biter.  The win was a welcome boost and proof that Purple can, indeed, stay in the hunt!   Advancing past pool play, 18-25 and 10-25 losses to the DRVC 14U came partly as a result of hard and consistent service on their side.  The Northumberland Breakers also took consecutive sets (16-25 and 23-25), but not before Purple demonstrated improved passing and communication, some great hits by Shahar and Emika, and impressive blocks by Sabrina.  

Once again, the girls had their work cut out for them, but with Deb holding the fort and Amanda off the injured list, the lessons learned were valuable.   We all know that success comes before work only in the dictionary, and time and hard work will surely yield the results for which Purple is aiming.  All are anticipating a full bench (upon Emily’s return) and a stronger showing as the season winds up and we head to Provincials next month.  

GO PURPLE!