The ECS Elecs' senior boys' volleyball squad made it to the final at the 5A regionals in Yorkton on Saturday.
They lost in straight sets to Yorkton Regional, 25-17, 25-20, but it was enough to qualify for provincials for the eighth year in a row.
The final defeat was the only loss of the tournament for the Elecs, who now head to provincials at Prince Albert Carlton this weekend.
The fourth-seeded squad kicked off the tournament with a tune-up against Balgonie, winning 25-13, 25-12.
Next up were the No. 1 ranked Central Cyclones. The Elecs pulled off the upset in straight sets, but they had to work for it, grinding out two sets that both required more than 25 points.
The final was 28-26, 27-25 for Estevan.
The Elecs' third and final round-robin match was against A.E. Peacock and ECS would be forced to rally after dropping the first set 28-26.
They managed to win the next two sets by much wider margins, taking them 25-13 and 25-16.
A 3-0 round-robin record gave the Elecs a bye into the semifinal, where they edged the Weyburn Eagles 25-22, 26-24.
With the top three teams advancing to provincials, the victory over Weyburn was enough to secure a berth for the Elecs, who enter provincials ranked eighth out of 10 teams.
Weyburn (ranked 10th) earned the third southern spot at provincials after defeating Central in the bronze medal match. Yorkton enters the tournament ranked fifth.
The other squads in the provincial tournament include northern qualifiers Prince Albert Carlton, the hosts (ranked ninth), Prince Albert St. Mary's (second) and North Battleford Comprehensive (third). St. Mary's is the two-time defending champion.
Regina is represented by city champion Campbell Collegiate (first) and runner-up Balfour Collegiate (sixth), while Saskatoon sends city champion St. Joseph (fourth) and runner-up Bishop James Mahoney (seventh)
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The ECS senior girls' squad wasn't as fortunate at their 5A regionals at A.E. Peacock in Moose Jaw on Friday and Saturday.
The team did not place in the tournament and will not advance to the provincial championship.
The girls started off against the Swift Current Ardens, losing the split in three sets, 22-25, 27-25 and 25-27. They faced the Yorkton Regional Raiders next, winning the match in three sets, 19-25, 25-10 and 25-22.
The team ended the round-robin with a loss to the favoured Peacock Toilers, 26-24, 25-13.
"The girls fought hard and played one of their best, if not the best, game of the season but were unable to finish with a win," said Elecs coach Caitlin Fowler.
Unfortunately for the Elecs, they tied the Raiders in the standings and lost the tie-breaker on points, resulting in a fourth-place finish and missing the playoffs.
Fowler said the team battled injuries all year and that the season was one to be proud of, with two second-place finishes and a handful of thirds and fourths.
"We kind of beat the odds this year; right from the get-go we had injury after injury, three of which resulted in players missing out on the majority of the season," she said. "We didn't go a weekend without an injury, but we also never gave up. Many of the girls are graduating this year, so this is not the way they wanted to end their season, but hopefully they are able to look back at their last high school season and smile. We had fun, we played hard and we persevered."
-With files from Tonaya Marr
