The Tribune

By Tenajh Sweeting

tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

THE C R Walker Knights and C V Bethel Stingrays will face off in the Government Secondary Schools Sports Association (GSSSA) senior girls volleyball championships.

Both senior girls teams brought home playoff wins for their respective schools yesterday at the Anatol Rodgers Gymnasium.

The first-seeded Knights faced off against the fourth-seeded CI Gibson Lady Rattlers in a matchup that only featured two sets.

In the first set, the Knights showed why they were the top seed for the senior girls. They opened with an early 7-3 lead on the Lady Rattlers.

Although the opposing team fought hard, they were no match for the Knights who claimed set one 19-5. Set two went underway with both teams switching sides of the court but it did not make a difference for the Knights. The senior girls team opened the second set with an early 10-2 lead and never took their feet off the gas.

The Knights brought home the victory after winning the second set in convincing fashion 19-3.

Aikia Rose, volleyball coach for Knights’ senior girls, talked about how it felt to dominate and advance to the championships. “We worked hard this season so I am happy that they made it there, I am hoping that when they go to the championships they play the same and it leads to a victory,” she said.

Rose added that her message to her team throughout the two sets was to stay focused, always be ready to hit the ball and do not just wait for the ball to come, just be ready. The head coach expects the team to be ready for the CV Bethel Stingrays as long as they continue what they have learned in practice.

In the day’s second matchup, the third-seeded Stingrays upset the Anatol Rodgers senior girls team in a competitive bout that featured three sets. The first set saw both teams evenly matched as the playoff game went underway. The teams opened 3-3. However, after fifteen minutes of volleyball action the Timberwolves were able edge out the Stingrays to take set one 19-16.

Despite the back and forth battle in the first set, the Stingrays regained their composure in the second. The team opened set two with an 11-3 lead and never looked back. The Stingrays claimed the second set 19-4.

Glenda Gilcud, volleyball coach for the Stingrays, talked about her message to the team after the first set.

“They came out a little flat because there is no way we were supposed to go into three sets but thank God it was a wakeup call. I told them to stay focused and to do just what they do in practice and everybody came around today,” she said.

The coach was right as the Stingrays rode the momentum of set two all the way to a win. After twelve minutes of play they closed out the Timberwolves at their gymnasium 15-7 to punch their ticket to the GSSSA senior girls volleyball championship.

Gilcud said she expects that the championships will be tough but she believes the girls are a bit more comfortable and settled which can lead to a win.

The GSSSA volleyball championships will kick off once again at the Anatol Rodgers gymnasium this evening at 4pm.