The Northern Chill 16U Girls are hoping for a carry-over from their end-of-day performance into the new year as OVA (Ontario Volleyball Association) tournament action commenced late last month in Barrie.
Some early season rust was evident as the Chill posted an 0-2 mark in pool play, beaten by both the Markham Unity (18-25, 27-25) and the Aurora Storm Avalanche (12-25, 14-25).
Unfortunately, that seeding matched the locals up against the eventual tournament champion Leaside Lightning Red, as the Chill were downed 7-25, 7-25.
Now on the consolation side of the draw, the Sudbury girls would hit the win column, defeating the Aurora Storm Fury in straight sets (25-15, 25-23), doing the same in a rematch with Markham (25-11, 25-23) and securing a fifth place tie with Leaside Lightning White.
Not too surprising, the individual performances mirrored that of the team, Sydney Koehler* grew increasingly comfortable with her bump sets, and Dara Desrochers and Jayden Rivers garnered more and more confidence on the attack, recording some key kills.
The 2016-2017 edition of the 16U Chill team welcomes the participation of Mallory Frantz, Jaime Schweyer, Isabelle Moreau, Ryann Hudson, Milenna Gigliotti, Erin Gaffney, Sydney Koehler, Dara Desrochers, Jayden Rivers, Isabella Adams, Geneviève Gauthier, Kate Dugdale and coaches Joanna Castonguay and Claudette Loranger.
The team is back in action, in terms of their OVA tournament schedule, on Jan. 14 in Markham, host to the Challenge Cup Championship “C” event.
*An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated Sydney Koehler was a setter.
