Steveston-London Sharks and Richmond Christian Eagles turned in solid showings in their respective tiers at last week’s B.C. Boys Volleyball Championships at the Langley Events Centre.
Reaching the tournament was a significant accomplishment for both programs as the Sharks faced somewhat of a rebuilding year after winning provincial bronze in 2013, while the Eagles were competing at the AA level for the first time.
Steveston-London placed a 11th in the 20-team AAA tourney and even managed to take a set from the eventual champions.
The Sharks went 2-1 in power pool play to earn the 15th seed, thanks to wins over North Peace (2-0), Prince George (2-0) and a narrow 3-2 loss to Lower Mainland rival David Thompson. That set-up a round of 16 match-up with No. 2 seed Earl Marriott.
The Richmond champions hung tough with the South Surrey powerhouse, falling 25-19 and 25-18 in the opening two sets, before surprising the Mariners with a 25-22 win. Marriott closed out the match with a 25-16 victory and went on to defeat No. 1 seed Kelowna in the final.
The Sharks moved onto consolation play where they outlasted Belmont in a five set thriller (24-26, 25-20, 22-25, 27-25, 15-13) and also beat Van Tech. An impressive season ended with a loss to Nanaimo’s Dover Bay.
Up against schools with significantly higher enrollment numbers, Richmond Christian more than held its own.
The Eagles went 3-0 in power pool play to earn the 13th seed for the championship round. They produced wins over Ballenas (25-23, 25-13), Smithers (25-23, 25-8) and Parkland (25-16, 19-25, 15-8). It was then off to the round of 16 against No. 4 Woodlands where Richmond Christian fell in three games (25-20, 25-17, 25-19).
The Eagles closed out the championships with a loss to WL Seaton before defeating Parkland and Selkirk to finish 13th.
At the provincial “A” girls championships in Kelowna, Richmond Christian reached the quarter-finals before falling in three sets to eventual gold medal winner Immaculata.
