It’s a good bet that a crosstown rivalry game between George McDougall and Bert Church will be a competitive contest no matter the sport. The Tier II final of the Rocky View Sports Association’s (RVSA) junior girls volleyball season was no different.
The Bert Church Chargers lost a close, five-set match to the George McDougall Mustangs to claim the Tier II silver medal. For the Chargers, their goal heading into the game was simple.
“I wanted them to play hard,” said Chargers Head Coach Mike Sera.
“It was our last game of the season and we wanted to finish on a high note.”
It was a fight to the finish for the Chargers. It lost the first set to George McDougall only to rebound the take a 2-1 lead heading into the fourth set. Sera said the middle sets were the best the team had played all season.
“We were hustling to loose balls and giving ourself an opportunity to return and attack. We served great and everything we’d been working on all season long clocked. They showed the potential they had all season long.”
However, complacency may have been to blame in the fourth and fifth, deciding set as the Mustangs stormed back to win the match and the gold medal.
“We were excited and duly so,” said Sera.
“We’d won those two sets and we took a step back and gave them an opportunity to come back.
George Mac knew what was at stake and they stepped up in those games. They cleaned up the errors they were making previously.”
The team finished with two points in the regular season, but Sera said the player and team promise bodes well for next season.
“I was most happy with our progression,” he said.
“I hope they learned a lot. There’s potential down the road and it’s there if they work hard and continue to stay with it. They should be proud of how they played their last game of the season.”
