The season started in early September, with tryouts for the team.
The team was made up of mostly Grade 12s, who were returning players, with a few Grade 11s in the mix. Play days were mostly against teams from Howe Sound Secondary, Pemberton Secondary, and Chatelech Secondary in Sechelt.
WSS always had good close matches against their cross-town rivals, the Pemberton Red Devils. They won their first match against them, but went on to lose the next three meetings. Pemberton seemed to have their number.
The Storm competed in late October at Chatelech’s tournament, where they came across stiff competition from Triple A schools like R.E. Mountain from Langley and John Oliver from Vancouver. They played well and placed fifth out of nine teams after round robin play, but lost in the championship round. Brittany Kingzett received team MVP honours.
It was a super tournament for them to see what they needed to come home and work on in preparation for their home tournament and Zone Playoffs.
Whistler Secondary played host to six other teams from the Lower Mainland in early November, including a few teams they would face in their Zone Playoffs later on in the month. Richmond Christian and Pemberton Secondary were both going to be tough competitors at Zones so it was crucial for the girls to play good matches against them.
Our Storm girls did not make it to the finals at home, but did play against their Pemberton rivals in the Bronze Medal match. Pemberton took the first game, but Whistler battled back to beat them the next two games to win the bronze. R.E. Mountain from Langley went on to beat Richmond Christian in the championship match. Carly Depatie was named team MVP for this tournament.
The Provincial Zone Playoffs took place at Mulgrave Secondary in West Vancouver on Nov. 19. Five teams fought for a berth to the Provincials: Richmond Christian, West Point Grey Academy, Mulgrave, Pemberton, and Whistler. The Storm faced a tough match right off the bat by playing against Richmond Christian, narrowly losing to them. In their next match against West Point Grey, they lost a pair of close, well-fought games.
Pemberton was next on the schedule. The Storm girls rose to the occasion and beat the Red Devils in two games. WSS’s Provincial hopes were not promising given their 1-2 record, and they knew they had to beat their last opponents, Mulgrave, if there was any outside chance of them making the Provincials. And that they did, convincingly in two straight games. Richmond Christian beat West Point Grey Academy to go on to the Provincials.
The team had a great season. Coaches Sue Oliver and Georgina Titus had a rewarding time coaching this wonderful group of ladies. The graduating girls hope to continue playing volleyball and the Grade 11 girls are already looking forward to next year.
The team members were Lilli Baker, Jordan Kobelka (Captain), Alix Browne-Munz, Christine Inniger, Brittany Kingzett (Captain), Meagan Lande, Carly Depatie, Emily Macalister, Caitlin Rempel, Mia Daniels and Lisa Horst.
