The St. Mary Marauders senior boys volleyball team went undefeated at regionals this past weekend. (Submitted Photo/Rene Quintal)

By Rob Mahon

Volleyball Regionals & Provincials

Marauders sweep weekend to earn provincial berth

Nov 15, 2021 | 5:00 PM

Their opponents didn’t make it easy on them, but the St. Mary Marauders Sr. A boys volleyball team rattled off four wins in a row over the weekend in Lloydminster during regionals. They went undefeated and earned a spot in the provincial tournament this coming weekend in Saskatoon.

“I thought when we played our toughest opponent of the weekend, we really showed up to play and did a really good job with our block defense,” said team head coach Rene Quintal. “We did a good job slowing down the other team’s attack.”

The teams Quintal and his team beat out were no pushovers either. There tends to be an ebb and flow of dominance in high school sports, and at various times all of their opponents have been tough outs.

“At the regional level, I would say all the schools in the north have qualified for provincials in the past twenty years,” Quintal said. “Traditionally, we’ve had really good games with PA Carlton, with Lloydminster Comprehensive in the past few years since they’ve moved in from Alberta. Everyone has been a legitimate contender.”

One by one, however, St. Mary knocked off those legitimate contenders and punched their ticket to provincials. The mood among the team is confident heading into the weekend.

Court proceedings

'The impact of this trauma will echo for generations': court case surrounding La Ronge woman's death reaches conclusion

5h ago

Going Global

P.A.'s Zablocki named to Team Canada for U18 Women's World Championships

5h ago

Election 2024

Birch Hills staff won't share election decision

6h ago

“I think the kids were pretty excited to win, knowing that we had to overcome quite a few injuries here in the last three or four weeks,” Quintal said. “So we had to change our lineup slightly just based on the health of our team. We had some players in some new positions, and we were still able to play at a pretty high level.”

They’ll need to maintain that high level against some tough competition next weekend. Their pool includes the top-ranked team Swift Current, who Quintal said have been undefeated this year, the city champions from Regina, Saskatoon Centennial who have been a tough opponent for them this year, and PA Carlton.

“I think every match it’s going to be difficult to score points,” said Quintal. “Every team there is going to have a good serving system, a good defensive system, and we’re going to have to play really well in order to win a match.”

Despite the quality of competition ahead of them, the team feels ready to compete. Part of that readiness comes from their experience.

“I would say this is our most experienced team we’ve had,” Quintal said. “We have 11 Grade 12s. Definitely our team has played together quite a bit in the past at the school level. We do have some older players so hopefully that experience will help us be successful this weekend.”

Boys provincials in the 5A division will be Nov. 19 and 20.

—-

rob.mahon@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @RobMahonPxP