ACAC Women's Volleyball Championship Day Three Recap

Game One:  

Ambrose Lions took the first serve in the consolation game to start off the final morning. The Lions went ahead by a slim margin, 5-4, before the Kodiaks managed to tie it up at 5-5. However, the Lions pulled ahead 9-5. The Kodiaks managed to keep the Lions in check and came back with some good blocking, closing the gap to 9-7. While the Kodiaks kept pushing back against the Lions' lead, the Lions managed to stay in the lead 14-11 until the Kodiaks pushed through with a flurry of points to tie the score at 15-15. At that point, the two teams had a rapid back-and-forth in an effort to take the lead as they tied up at 16-16, 17-17, 18-18. Neither team was giving an inch as they pressed further to the winning points, keeping the game tied at 22-22, 23-23, when the Kodiaks called a timeout. However, the Lions gave the set one last push of energy and took the win 25-23.  

Jeena Johner took the first serve of the second set for the Lions. There was more inching forward as the teams battled it out at 2-2, 3-3, and 4-4 before the Lions managed to pull ahead and give themselves a difference of three against the Kodiaks. The Kodiaks called a time out as the Lions took the lead 9-4. However, the Lions seemed to be their own worst enemy as they hit the ball into the net several times on the return hits, but still managed to overcome the frustration by staying ahead 13-7. The Kodiaks called another timeout as the Lions kept forging ahead at 16-9. The Kodiaks were struggling to receive the ball and did finally make their way into a double digit score as the Lions made it 20-11. The Kodiaks gained some momentum and pulled within five of the Lions, at which time the Lions called a time out. The Kodiaks continued to work to put pressure on the Lions, however it wasn't enough and the Lions took the second set 25-19. 

Kaya Mikado started off the serving for the third set for the Kodiaks as the Lions quickly pulled ahead 3-0 and despite some pressure from the Kodiaks, the Lions kept their lead, widening it to 6-2. Not to be deterred, the Kodiaks managed to tie it up 6-6 and kept within a point or two of the Lions to keep the team on their toes. The Lions still kept their lead as they went up 12-10 and then 16-13. The Lions forged ahead and created a sizeable gap as they pulled ahead 21-14. From there, the Kodiaks did their best to close the distance, but it wasn't enough. The Lions took the third set 25-19 to win the game 3-0. 

 

Game Two: 

The bronze medal game saw the Red Deer Queens face off against the Kings' Eagles. The Queens took an early lead, going ahead 4-2 and then doubling the gap to 8-4. The Eagles tried to put pressure on the Queens, but not enough to make the Queens sweat too much as they pulled ahead 12-7. At that point, the Eagles called a timeout, but to little avail. The Queens led 16-8 and continued to keep their strong lead heading into the final few points. The Queens pulled ahead 20-9 and looked to comfortably take the first set. The Eagles called their second timeout as the Queens led 22-11. The Eagles seemed to be struggling with dealing with the Queens' blocks. Eventually, the Queens easily took the set with a final score of 25-15. 

The Queens took the first serve and looked to continue on their run from the previous set. They took the lead 5-2 and then widened it to 8-3. The Eagles called a timeout, but it wasn't enough to push the Queens off their game as they continued to forge ahead and led 12-8 and then 14-8. The Eagles looked like they might push through as they closed the gap to 14-10 and the Queens called a timeout. The Eagles continued to push their way closer, closing the gap to 14-13 and starting to put more pressure on the Queens. The teams reach a tie at 17-17, to the delight of the fans in the stands. The Eagles push ahead for their first lead of the day at 19-17, however the Queens tie it up shortly. There's more back-and-forth between the teams as they inch forward: 20-19, 20-20, 21-20. 21-21. The Eagles called a time out as the Queens took the lead once more, ahead 22-21. A ball into the net by the Eagles put the Queens within a winning position at 23-21 and they eventually take the win 25-23. 

Ahead 2-0, the Queens looked to finish the game quickly, taking a swift 3-0 lead in the third set. The Eagles pushed through and tried closing the gap, making it 6-4 and then 6-5 against the Queens, and doing it again at 7-6 and tying it at 7-7, eventually taking over the lead at 8-7 against the Queens. Both teams fighting to get in the lead as the score swings back and forth to 8-8, 9-8, 9-9. Once again, the Queens prove to be slightly superior and pulled ahead 13-9. The Eagles still worked hard to stay in the game, closing the gap at 16-14. The Queens continued to keep pushing and the Eagles called a time out as the Queens led 22-18. With some more back and forth, the Queens headed closer to game winning points, eventually taking the game in three sets with a final score of 25-18 and claiming a bronze medal in the ACAC 2018 Women's Volleyball Championships. 

 

Game Three: 

The Briercrest Clippers opened up the serving, but it was the Lakeland Rustlers who took the lead, going ahead 3-2. The Clippers kept the Rustlers on their feet as they dodgedly kept within two and three points of the national champions. The Clippers eventually called a timeout as the Rustlers led 13-9. Within a few minutes, the Clippers were within two points of the Rustlers once more and then trailed closely at 13-12. However, the Rustlers forged ahead and managed to put some more breathing space between themselves and the Clippers with a 17-14 lead. They continued to lead towards the end of the first set, comfortably widening the gap to 21-16. A final spike from the Rustlers gave them the first set with a final score of 25-17. 

The Clippers were the ones to take the lead in the second set as they went ahead 3-1. The Rustlers worked quickly to tie it 3-3 and then the two teams fought it out with neither one wanting to be the one to drop the lead. The game stayed within limbo as the teams went 4-3, 4-4, 5-5. The Rustlers managed to pull ahead for a few minutes with a 7-5 lead, but the Clippers quickly caught up to tie and it was 7-7 and 8-8. The Rustlers managed to push themselves out in front once more and the Clippers called a time out as they trailed 14-10. However, the timeout seemed to work and the team earned themselves three points to close the gap and then tie it once more: 14-14 and 15-15. There was some amazing energy from both teams, and the fans, as they went back and forth, trying to get in the lead. The Rustlers capitalized on some Clippers' errors and pulled ahead 17-15 but the Clippers fought back, tying it 17-17, 18-18, and 19-19. The Clippers manage to pull back in the lead once again and the Rustlers called a time out as they trailed 21-19 and came back to tie it. With more ties and more time outs, fans were unsure of which team would manage to grap the second set as the game tied up at 24-24 and 25-25. However, the Rustlers were the successful team who pulled ahead enough to win the set 27-25. 

Becky Garner took the first serve for the Clippers and both teams started out the game strong, with points going back and forth: 1-0 for the CLippers, 2-2 tied. 3-2 for the Rustlers and then tied again at 3-3. The Clippers managed to pull ahead 5-3 but the Rustlers caught up and both teams ended up tied at 6-6. After the Rustlers struggled to receive the ball, the Clippers took a short 8-6 lead before the Rustlers came back and both teams fought hard: 8-8, 9-9, 10-10. Finally the Rustlers pulled ahead once more and the Clippers called a timeout as they trailed 13-10. The Clippers struggled to catch up to the Rustlers at that point as the other team took the lead 14-10 and then 16-12. Eventually it was evident that the Rustlers were the ones who were hungry to claim this win as their own as the Clippers called a time out as they trailed 21-15. They grabbed a few more points, but were unable to dominate the play as they had previously over the tournament and the Lakeland Rustlers won the third set with a final score of 25-18, subsequently winning the gold medal match 3-0 over the Briercrest Clippers.