On Saturday, March 15, the Â鶹ÊÓƵeast Vipers, based out of Arcola hosted a home tournament.
The volleyball team consists of nine local players from Midale, Arcola, Carlyle, White Bear, and Manor including Hailey Bachorcik of Midale, Jaida Schutz, Kayla Nelson, and Jordan Gudmundson of Carlyle, Carlie Standingready of White Bear, Shelby Rose of Manor, as well as Tiarah Hoey, Jordan Johnston, and Alannah Bryce.
They are coached by Eugene Brown, Eric Brown, Teresa Johnston, and Kelly Running.
The tournament on March 15, brought in young teams and ladies teams to compete including Kipling Chaos, Arcola Nitro, Langenburg Screaming Eagles, Estevan KPC, and the Vipers.
The five-team round robin saw Langenburg and Estevan finish in the fifth and fourth positions respectfully, which led Kipling and the Vipers to a playoff match determining who would go onto the final.
The Vipers would earn victory over Kipling and face Arcola Nitro in the final game of the day. The heated battle would see great effort exerted on both sides of the court, but as the ball was exchanged Nitro would gain the upper hand taking the match in two sets.
Throughout the weekend the Vipers, however, showed great skill and finesse as they battled each team. Big hits came from Gudmundson and Standingready, while the quickness of Bryce in the back row saved the team from giving up a number of points.
With many players going on serving runs, parents, family, and friends were loud in the crowd cheering them on.
The Vipers have now been playing together since the beginning of December and have shown potential placing 12th in the first Sask Cup, while later beating the team which had ranked fifth at the first Sask Cup in a tournament held in Regina.
The girls will now await a tournament in Langenburg and will be hopeful of a good showing at Provincials in Saskatoon in April.
Having dedicated much time and effort into their season so far, the young athletes will be continuing their journey this season as they will work towards placing well at Provincials.
