MUENSTER, HUMBOLDT, ANNAHIEM — The Muenster School senior boys volleyball team went undefeated en route to a historic 1A provincial championship.
In the provincial finals last Saturday in Fox Valley, Muenster fell 25-15 in the first set to No. 1 ranked Rouleau. It bounced back to prevail 25-22 and 15-10 in the next two to claim the championship. It was the first provincial title for the Muenster School boys volleyball program.
“This win was an entire group effort,” Muenster School coach Joel Taphorn said. “Every one of the players had a key moment in the tournament that contributed to our success.”
Taphorn said he has coached for a long time and never experienced a final like this one. The first set was close early on, but Rouleau went on a run to win, 25-15.
“Between sets, we had a quick talk, refocused and treated the fans to one of the best sets of volleyball I have seen,” Taphorn said. “It was back-and-forth action. We would put a ball down, Rouleau would answer with a kill of their own.
“Rouleau made one mistake. After getting a point against us, with the score tied at 18, the Rouleau player celebrated the point directed at one of our players. Unfortunately for him, that lit a fire in two of our Grade 12s, who put ball after ball down. During a timeout called by Rouleau, we met on our sideline and without me saying anything, one of our Grade 12s said, ‘Mr. T don't worry, we got this.’”
Muenster took the second set, 25-22. In the third and final set, the level of play remained high.
“With the motivation provided to us by the Rouleau team, our boys pulled ahead by a score of 10-6,” Taphorn said. “Rouleau got two quick points, and after a great back row attack from another of our Grade 12s, we pulled ahead 11-8.”
Muenster won 15-10 to win the 1A provincial title. The team included four Grade 12, one Grade 11 and four Grade 10 student-athletes. Aside from winning, Taphorn said the players were “great ambassadors for our school and community throughout the tournament.”
“I couldn't be more proud of them for this,” he said. “The ability to win with class speaks to the character of these boys, their families and our community. And because of this approach, they became fan favorites in the final. The Fox Valley fans were cheering loudly for every point we got.”
On the first day of provincials, Muenster beat Medstead, 2-1; Beechy, 2-1, and Ogema, 2-0. Taphorn said the team battled hard for its 3-0 first day record, but it did not play close to its potential. On the second day, Muenster wrapped up its pool play with a 2-0 victory over Fox Valley in Maple Creek
“Our boys shut down a very strong offensive team in Fox Valley,” Taphorn said. “This was a whole team effort. Our defence created opportunities for us to transition to offence, where we didn't make any mistakes.”
In the quarterfinals, which were played in Maple Creek, as the top seed from its pool, Muenster faced Vanguard, who Taphorn said “by any stretch was not a fourth-place team.” Muenster trailed in both sets, but prevailed 25-23 and 26-24.
“The second set we were down 22-18, when one of our bench players came into the game and rattled off seven points,” Taphorn said. “This was the turning point in our day.”
In the semifinals, Muenster faced Medstead for the third time in less than a week. Taphorn said the team was much improved from when the squads met at regionals. Muenster won, 2-0, and went on to win gold.
Annaheim Wins Bronze
The Annaheim School senior boys volleyball team won the bronze medals at the 1A provincials. The squad beat Medstead, 2-0, in the third-place game in Fox Valley.
Annaheim was 2-2 in pool play. It fell to Rouleau, 2-0, and Lafleche, 2-0, before beating Vanguard, 2-0, and Yellow Grass, 2-0, to advance to the quarterfinals. In the quarterfinals, Annaheim fell 25-22 to Fox Valley in the first set but went on to triumph 25-18 and 15-11. Facing Rouleau in the semifinals, Annaheim lost 2-0.
HCI Senior Boys
A young Humboldt Collegiate Institute senior boys volleyball gained valuable experience last weekend at the 4A provincials in North Battleford. The 13-member HCI squad had only two Grade 12 players. Ten players had not played senior volleyball before this season, but the squad made it all the way to the provincials.
“Provincials this year was an eye-opening experience for our young players as none of them had played senior volleyball prior to this year, let alone provincials,” coach Braeden Ager said. “So, when we initially got to provincials, they were a bit overwhelmed by the intensity of the matches but were able to rebound after slow starts. Being able to experience that intensity and high level of volleyball will definitely help us out in upcoming years as our players will know what to expect going into provincials and what it takes to win games there. So, while we are thrilled to have made provincials with such a young team, we expect to raise the bar next season and push to be in medal contention again.”
HCI went 0-4 at the provincial event. However, Ager said the team was competitive in all of its games, even against teams that medalled. For example, it lost a set 25-20 to eventual bronze medal winner Central Collegiate Institute of Moose Jaw.
Ager said he will remember this group as the team that has grown the most during one individual season.
“We've had better teams in previous seasons, but no team has shown more growth in one season than this group of boys,” he said. “The majority of the boys on our team had never played senior volleyball before due to COVID, and they were able to push themselves to make up for that lost year while still having fun. They never gave up in any game and made sure every opponent we faced had to play hard for a win against us.”
