The Crescent Heights Vikings varsity girls volleyball team captured the 3A South Zone championship on Saturday with a five-set win over the Monsignor McCoy Colts, punching a ticket to provincials for a second-straight season.--Submitted Photo
newsdesk@medicinehatnews.com
The Crescent Heights Vikings varsity girls volleyball team will head to provincials after a nail-biter of a Zones win.
The Vikings beat the Monsignor McCoy Colts in a five-set South Zone final on Saturday at McCoy school, capturing a second straight 3A South Zone championship. They’ll head to provincials in Grande Prairie on Nov. 29 as the No. 1 ranked 3A varsity girls team in Alberta.
“At the beginning of the season we set one of our goals as getting to provincials this year,” head coach Marshall Armstrong said. “This group of athletes worked so hard in order to accomplish it. Including one of the most exciting volleyball matches I think I have ever seen in the zone final against McCoy. They earned this with their hard work and dedication to each other.”
The Vikings girls team is made up of nine athletes, seven in Grade 12, with many having played together since Grade 7. The lineup includes Abree Gregory, Danielle Hollingworth, Deija Gehring, Haidyn Soper, Jasmine Holland, Kloe Winter, Madison Pavlovic Yanay and co-captains Kinleigh Haysom and Savannah Armstrong.
“We have coached most of these girls for six years, this season has been an absolute dream,” assistant coach Shonna Barth said. “The athletes. The spirited rivalries. The parents. The fan and school support. A second chance at provincials is the icing on the cake for this special team.”
Armstrong and Barth have coached the group from their first year of junior play through to this final senior season, and look to provincials as a meaningful finish for the coaches and group.
The Vikings were undefeated through seven tournaments this season, earning first place at five events, the Kodiaks event, the Brooks event, the Dig Pink home tournament, the Moose Jaw tournament and the Hat High tournament. They also secured the banners at both the city championship and the South Zone championship for the second consecutive year.
“Teams always underestimate the Vikings,” co-captain Haysom said. “We have always been underdogs, likely because we are not so tall and often our warmups do not look as intimidating as others, but what they do not understand is the importance of the chemistry within our team. This team has gone undefeated in our season. I knew from the start of this season it would be one to remember, but I had no idea it would look the way it has, and I could not be prouder of our team.”
