Big Black Runs Winning Tournament

It took a strong team and family effort to both host and win the 18U Bugarski Cup tier 1 tournament this past weekend in Bowmanville. Affectionately know as "Big Black" due to our team cheer, our 18U girls' play improved throughout the day and they played solid semi-finals and final matches, winning both in two straight sets to claim their fifth straight tournament victory of the season. With three OVA tournaments, the Outtahand tournament and the Niagara Can-Am, Big Black is five-for-five.

And the parents and families also ran a "winning tournament". Thanks to the efforts of Sherri who organized it, and Janice who was our convenor, it was perfectly planned and it ran like clockwork. Every match was professionally scorekept and the OVA officiating staff were very happy with the quality of support they had on each court. It even finished early!

A huge "Thank You" to the many volunteers outside our team who came out to help us: Trey, Bobby and Matt from 15u boys; Val from 14u Red boys; Trish & Cassidy, Tami & Eric from 13u girls; Matt Skelly, Trevor Cook and Brock Craine; Emma, Riley and Max from Henry Street. And to our friends from Aurora offered to help keep score if we wanted a break. And of course to all of the parents who spent half of their day at the scorekeeping tables. It was a real family affair.

Pool Play

We started out on a bad note, in the first warm-up. Ali Goc strained her knee and it was bad enough that the coaches decided to sit her for the day. [Rest up Ali, cuz we need you healthy for Dayton next weekend.] Since we were now short an outside hitter, and Tayler Mitchell is out for the rest of the season, I saw quite a few coaches whispering about maybe today being the day they would take down Attack Black. The sharks were circling, but they really don't understand the depth we have in our line-up.

But we started out slow and in the first match Peel Selects 91 took us to three sets. We pulled up our socks in set three and won the tie-breaker 15-7.

Second match in our three team pool was against MAC, and we won that one 25-14, 25-18.

After that I'm sure the girls took a break and had some lunch... but we were kinda busy all day, keeping score and running errands, getting ice for injuries and things, so I have to admit much of it is a blur. Kinda like what you remember from your wedding. Everybody was there but you were running all over the place and never really got to see anything.

Quarters

We drew Titans Synergy for the quarters, a great 17U team that is always a challenge. I did the scorekeeping for a couple of their matches in the morning, and they played really well. It seemed like they ran out of energy when I did one of their matches in the afternoon. It drives home how important the physical training is; it is a long day and you need to keep up the intensity the entire day. We took the quarters 25-17, 25-11.

Semis

We faced Ms. Pakmen in the semis. They had just come off a 2-1 win over Forest City in the Quarters. Though they played well they just couldn't keep up with us. This one was under control, 25-15, 25-17.

Finals

So again for the second straight tournament we faced Aurora Storm in the finals. I was at the scorekeeping table closing out the previous match when Merv came to get line-up cards and told me "I'm taking three." And last time we met they pushed us to the limit in three sets at Brock. But this time it was a very even match, back and forth, but we were solid and composed and consistent and never got in a hole, always pushing a bit ahead. It was a very close match but we were able to win it 25-21, 25-22. Aurora is a great team, and many of the girls have some good friends there from over the years. We wish them well and will meet again.

Looking Back

It was another good win for Big Black. Again this year, every team we play has nothing to lose, has everything to gain, and is pumped to beat us. I used to worry about the girls feeling the pressure, but I don't anymore. They are somehow immune to it (though us parents aren't.) Lauren says "It was so much fun, you don't understand, that final match." They seem to thrive on the competition and the pressure, and they have always been able to use it in a positive way, to take their play to the next level.

And I think that is because of our coaching staff over the years, but especially this year. They seem stronger mentally this year. Evan, Lindsay and Ian - you are doing an amazing job with the girls, both technically, and with the soft skills.

And our physical training is second to none. As a scorekeeper I saw exactly how some teams performed throughout the day. Many faltered physically in the afternoon. But I think our girls got stronger every match, and despite playing multiple high school tournaments and multiple high school games in the preceding week, they were still strong enough to perform at their peak to the end of the tournament. Mike - I think we owe that to you.

Happy Birthday Steph and Kellie!!!

Next Weekend

Next we are off to Dayton for the President's Cup, which will be the strongest competition we've faced this season. A great road trip for the team and the parents. If the Vegas Classic in Feb '08 is any indication, the girls will turn a lot of heads and will be neck and neck with the top teams in the U.S. Stay tuned.

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