Jayde Marchand, of the Capers, sets a ball as teammates Amber Keating and Valerie McCarron prepare for the attack during Super Series One action in Port Hawkesbury on Friday.
-by Bill Dunphy
Local teams drew lots of positives from the first round of two elite club volleyball tournaments held in Port Hawkesbury on the weekend.
The Under-16 Port Hawkesbury Saints won the six-team Tier 2 U16 tourney; the Tier 1 Cape Breton Capers finished second in the eight-team Tier 1 and 2 U18 event; and the Tier 2 Margaree Wave burst onto the scene with a sixth-place finish in their first tournament together.
The two tournaments, held at the SAERC and Tamarac Education Centre gyms, were the opening round of Volleyball Nova Scotia’s Super Series. There are three such events to be staged across Nova Scotia, leading up to provincials for each age group and tier.
David MacIsaac, who is the head coach of the U18 Cape Breton Capers, said they are actually a Tier 2 team – being a new club and not having won a tournament yet. But he believes by the end of the season they will be classified Tier 1.
“The U17 teams (who also played in the U18 tourney) will have to decide at which level they’re going to play. Although we’re Tier 2, if we win the next tournament, we’ll be Tier 1 then. I think we’re going to get there,” said MacIsaac.
The Capers, comprised of players from across Cape Breton, including Cheticamp, Port Hawkesbury, Richmond, Coxheath, and Sydney, made it clear from the get-go that they intend to play at the Tier 1 level.
In Friday’s opening match, the Capers defeated the Sydney-based Cape Breton Attackers 25-14, 25-13.
Undefeated through the rest of the round-robin, the Capers beat the Highland Patriots in the crossovers and met the Dartmouth DVC Simmons in the championship game, losing 23-25, 25-22, 10-15.
“In a way I blame myself,” said MacIsaac. “I’m still getting to know these players, so I altered the lineup going into the third game. Hindsight is 20-20, but if we won the second game, why didn’t I leave the lineup the same in the third game? As it turned out, it got away from us, down 3-10 but managing to get it to 10-15.”
The Capers are in Antigonish next weekend for a Tier 1 tournament.
“Overall it was a good weekend and we learned a lot about ourselves,” said MacIsaac. “We need to block a little better, pass a little better, and play a little better on defence. This is a very skilled group and they will only continue to get better.”
The Highland Patriots ended up defeating Fall River Fury U17 in the 3rd vs. 4th game.
In the 5th vs. 6th match, the Richmond Rize defeated the Margaree Wave 25-22, 25-20.
It was the first time on the court in a competitive match for Margaree, who opened the tournament with a 10-25, 13-25 loss to the tournament champion Dartmouth.
“We started out as nine little islands trying to come together, and by the end of it we were playing like a team and it was lovely to watch,” said Margaree coach Sean Murphy.
He and his daughter Molly hope the Wave is the start of something bigger for Margaree and the surrounding area.
“Through this, we’re going to make some waves,” Murphy said, pun not intended. “We are a strong contender for developing a club that will include U15 and/or U14 girls and possibly a boys team.
“Right now there’s no spot for them to go, and you can’t get a gym unless you’re affiliated with a club.”
The Wave beat the Halifax Hurricane U17 in the round-robin to advance to the 5th vs. 6th match. “Our back-court work was better, now it’s learning how to play the front court,” said Murphy. “All the girls have strong skills, they can hit the ball, but it’s knowing when to move back and communicating with each other.”
And in the U16 tourney, the U15 Port Hawkesbury Saints defeated the U16 Cape Breton Attackers in the final, having lost to the Sydney team in the round-robin.
The Patriots defeated the Fury for third place and the Antigonish Stoirm Navy defeated the Antigonish Stoirm Blue in the 5th vs. 6th match.
