Women's Volleyball National Championship Recap
Gold Medal Match: VIU Mariners - 3 vs. Élans de Garneau - 1
The Vancouver Island University Mariners are 2016 Women's Volleyball National Champions after besting the top ranked Élans de Garneau in the finals. The Mariners defeated les Élans in four sets, in a tough fought match, to end the 2016 CCAA Women’s Volleyball National Championship.
VIU got off to a quick start in the first set, going up three early. Garneau battled back to close the gap briefly, but couldn’t hold the Mariners off for long and they took the set 25-18. The second set was back and forth for the entire set, with neither team being able to establish any kind of lead. It stayed like this until VIU gained a slim two-point lead and didn’t let it go, eventually winning the set 25-22.
After dropping the first two, the top ranked team came out in the third set with energy and quickly jumped out to a quick lead. Their strong play continued throughout the set which they eventually took 25-20.
The fourth set was intense, with both teams trading points back and forth. Both teams struggled to gain a lead until the Mariners stepped it up, and started playing lockdown defense. Once the defense was set, there was no stopping VIU and they cruised to a 25-19 set win and the national title.
Megan Rosenlund took home player of the game for the Mariners, with nine kills and four digs. Taking home the honour for les Élans was Anne-Sophie Tanguay, who had a game leading 20 kills.
The First Team All-Stars for the Tournament were: Samantha Zacharias (Briercrest), Thalia Hanniman (Humber), Megan Rosenlund (VIU), Anne-Sophie Tanguay (Garneau), Chantal Cummings (VIU) and Maud Chapleau (Garneau).
The Second Team All-Stars were: Sydney Foy (Holland), Keri Alcorn (King’s), Alley Newman (Humber), Mikayla Wagner (VIU), Jocelyn Van Ryk (King’s) and Deborah Mitchell (Humber).
The 2016 CCAA Women’s Volleyball National Championship Most Valuable Player award went to Tylar Turnbull from VIU.
Bronze Medal Match: Humber Hawks - 3 vs. Briercrest Clippers - 1
The Humber Hawks won bronze at the CCAA Women’s Volleyball National Championship after defeating the Briercrest Clippers three sets to one.
Both teams came ready to play in the first set, but it was the Clippers who jumped out to an early lead. The Clippers held off a late surge from Humber and took the set 25-22. In the second set it was back and forth, with neither team being able to get the upper hand on one another. After a few costly misplays by Briercrest, the Hawks were able to pull away and win the set 25-23.
The third set was similar to the seconduntil Humber began to pick up their game late and pull away with it, winning the set easily 25-17. The fourth set was the most closely contested of the match. The teams traded points all set, with neither of them being able to get on a roll. In a dramatic finish, Humber serviced an ace to win the set, match and bronze medal.
Player of the game for Humber was Alexandra Newman, who had nine kills. For Briercrest, player of the game was Ashley Zacharias, who had four digs and a kill.
Match 9: Humber Hawks - 3 vs. Holland Hurricanes - 0
The Holland Hurricanes fell to the Humber Hawks in the bronze semi-final and were eliminated from the CCAA Women’s Volleyball National Championship. The Canes lost the match in three straight sets to the second ranked Hawks, who advanced to the bronze finals.
Things didn’t start great for the Hurricanes, as Humber jumped out to an early 4-0 lead. The Hurricanes battled back to close the gap briefly, but couldn’t hold off the Hawks, who took the set 25-19. In the second set it was the Canes who got off to a good start, going up 4-0 early. But, Humber didn’t quit and battled back to regain the lead late in the set. After a few costly plays by the Hurricanes, the lead was too much to overcome and they lost the set 25-18. The third set was much of the same; Humber got an early lead and the Hurricanes tried to battle back. But, yet again, they were no match for the second ranked Hawks and dropped the final set 25-19.
Player of the Game for Hawks was Thalia Hanniman, who had 11 kills and six digs. For Holland College, the honour went to Sydney Foy, who had nine digs and also had a team leading nine kills.
Match 10: Briercrest Clippers - 3 vs. The King's Eagles - 1
The Briercrest Clippers advance to the bronze finals of the CCAA Women’s Volleyball National Championship after defeating the King’s University Eagles. The second ranked Clippers only needed four sets to win the match against the fifth ranked Eagles.
The first set started intense, with both teams giving it there all, but it was King’s who jumped out to an early lead. They held onto the lead, and escaped a late charge from the Clippers, to win the set 25-19. Briercrest rallied after the first set loss, and came out in the second and third set ready to play. They won both sets 25-23 and 25-21. In the fourth set, the Clippers gained an early lead and never looked back for most of the set. Until, King’s University started to battle back, to close the gap and tie the game at 18-18. A late push from the Clippers was all they needed, as they held off the Eagles, and took the final set 26-24.
Player of the game for Briercrest was Kathleen Bruce, who 10 kills to go along with four digs. Taking home the honours for King’s was Lauren Jensen, who had two kills and five digs.
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