It was never easy – the Assumption College Lions just made it look that way.
The top-seeded AABHN junior girls volleyball team took on a streaking Brantford Collegiate Mustangs squad that had won six in a row for the North Division crown on Monday afternoon. With their perfect season on the line and a packed house watching inside the St. John’s College gym, the Lions put an exclamation point on their campaign with a 3-1 (25-13, 25-23, 21-25, 25-10) victory.
“We worked really hard, we were really good playing together, we all hustled around the court and in the end, it worked out in our favour,” said Lions captain Jordyn McGarr. “BCI did a great job; we just really wanted it more than them and played really well together.”
Before finishing the year with a sparkling 14-0 record, the Lions were forced to erase an 11-5 second-set deficit.
In the third, BCI got off the mat with a triumph the likes of which Assumption hadn’t suffered since dropping a set in their final regular season outing on Feb. 5 versus McKinnon Park. The Lions responded by sweeping the Blue Devils one week later in their playoff semifinal contest and put forth a similarly dominant response on Monday by getting ahead 10-2 in the fourth and cruising from there.
“We all struggled with certain things in the third set, and it gave us a setback,” said Assumption’s towering middle Kara Fennema, who put the finishing touches on the second set with a kill from the middle of the court. “In the fourth, it was just a fresh mindset; everyone went out there and did their best.”
In trying to knock the Lions off their perch, the Mustangs – winners of six straight going into the final – hadn’t scored more than 20 points in a set against ACS all season. They accomplished that feat more than once on Monday in an effort that the group could be proud of, despite the result.
“We did have some ups and downs, but our bench kept the energy really high, and our players were always supporting each other,” said BCI middle Mckenna White.
“It’s all about energy and like participation from everybody.”
The Lions will move on to the CWOSSA AAA tournament at RIM Park in Waterloo on Friday. After the match, longtime Lions coach Rae Ferraccioli said this year’s group was the best team she’s coached.
“I think we have a good shot of doing pretty well,” Fennema agreed. “We’re just going to keep working hard.”