Tonight's grudge match against the Bev Facey Falcons will show the Paul Kane Blues how good they really are in high school women's volleyball.
The first clash this year between the 4A provincial contenders starts at 6:15 p.m. in Sherwood Park.
"We're all super, super excited to play that game. We've been waiting for it all season. It's going to be a great match. I can't wait," said Jill Tymko, a Grade 12 power hitter for the defending metro Edmonton premier champions.
The Blues are 8-1 in premier after sweeping the St. Francis Xavier Rams in three sets Monday at Paul Kane. Facey is undefeated in 10 matches and 30-5 in sets won and lost.
"We know they've got great hitters. They know how to swing. Their serves are awesome too. We've just got to come out hard and hopefully we can push through it," Tymko said.
In the third edition of the provincial rankings, Facey is listed sixth as the second Edmonton zone team in the top 10. Strathcona Composite from the Edmonton public league is ranked number one for the second time in a row.
The Blues shockingly dropped from a third place tie to honourable mention status.
"It happens. You can't do anything about it," Tymko said. "It just means we have to work harder and push forward and win it all. We've got to work towards our goal and hopefully we'll get there."
Tymko, 17, is one of five players back from Paul Kane's 13-9 overall record in league play, playoffs, zones and provincials in 2010. The eighth-place finishers at provincials have their work cut out this year despite the team's winning record and two third-place showings in three tournaments.
"Last year we were more on top. We kind of pushed through. This year we're kind of at a lower level than we were before so it's going to be a bigger challenge for us but I think we've learned to handle the challenges better this year," Tymko said.
Close call
The Blues survived a stiff challenge by the Rams (5-4) to stay within striking distance of Facey. Scores were 26-24, 26-24, 25-14 against the silver medallists at the 17th annual Lions Western Canadian Challenge last weekend in St. Albert and Morinville.
"They're a really good team and it's just awesome we played them and beat them," Tymko said.
The Blues took last weekend off instead of defending their WCC crown as the two-time defending champions and the layoff showed during an uninspired opening set. The Rams started the match with six points and led 18-11 before the Blues willed their way back to knot it at 22-all. They ended the set with three straight points off a couple of hitting errors by the Rams and a serve by Grade 10 Emma Cunningham that was too hot to handle.
Power plays at the net by Tymko, captain Whitney Follette and the heavy-hitting Maddi Agius also sparked the comeback.
"We really struggled in the first set to get going," Tymko said.
In the second set, after giving up five points in a row, the Blues crawled back to tie it at 10 apiece. After a massive spike by Follette pulled the Blues even at 17, the Rams rattled off four consecutive points en route to a 23-21 lead. Follette put the Blues in front with consecutive points off a mammoth block, a tricky serve and a shot that floored a defender.
The Rams eventually bowed out in the third set as Follette ratcheted up the attack. The most feared volleyball hitter in St. Albert tortured the ball for several points. Hailey Lutz was instrumental in setting the ball perfectly for the Grade 12 middle to smoke.
The Blues also racked up the points in the last set through the serving of Larissa Kirdeikis and Agius.
Tymko and Cunningham also played prominent roles on offence and defence as the Blues overcame a shaky start to sweep the Rams.
"The fact that we came back and pushed through it was really good for us. It's really difficult sometimes for girls' teams to do that so it's really a positive thing for us. It shows that we're a pretty good mental team this year and it's really going to help us push towards our goal of hopefully winning it all," Tymko said.
WCC results
In the gold-medal final Saturday at the WCC tournament, the Ardrossan Bisons swept the Rams 25-13, 25-18 to finish on top of the 24-team's women's draw.
The St. Albert Skyhawks won the women's consolation final with a 25-21, 20-25, 15-11 decision against the Bawlf Wildcats.
The Sturgeon Spirits finished fourth overall in the 24-team men's draw. In the semifinals they lost a hard-fought 16-25, 25-19, 15-17 match to the Peace Wapiti Academy Titans of Grande Prairie and in the bronze-medal final fell 21-25, 25-20, 13-15 to the Edmonton Christian Lions.
The Titans swept the Barrhead Gryphons 25-22, 25-15 for the gold.
Visit www.mchs.gsacrd.ab.ca/wcc/ for the complete results.
