U13 Chill girls play a hot hand at provincials

The first medal of the provincials for the Northern Chill Volleyball Club would come courtesy of the youngest members of the Chill family.

The Northern Chill U13 girls claimed silver medals in Tier 3 of the Division II playdowns, held in Waterloo last weekend, falling just short of gold in their grouping. The local team opened with a split, dropping three straight sets in game one to the Oakville Thunder - Blue (11-25, 8-25, 16-25).

The team bounced back quickly, taking down the Kitchener U12 Predators (25-15, 25-20, 17-25) and being re-pooled for day two of the competition. It was a better start on Saturday, as the Chill swept the PVB Patriots of Toronto (25-11, 25-16), but could not sustain the momentum into the afternoon.

Losses at the hands of the Markham Stingers - Gold (25-23, 22-25, 9-15) and Brant Youth Volleyball Club of Brantford (20-25, 18-25) settled the northern girls into Tier 3 play on Sunday.

The Chill cruised through quarter-final play, eliminating Pegasus Blue of Kingston (25-19, 25-20) and booking a trip to the finals with a 25-16, 25-16 triumph over LVC Fire Fury of London.

The victories would pit the Sudbury girls against the Markham Stingers for a second time and while they were more than competitive, the Chill came up short, falling 22-25, 22-25.

Meanwhile, the U17 Chill girls looked very strong through the first two days of their tournament, winning four of their first six matches, but sent home early on Sunday after qualifying in Tier 1 of the Division II bracket.

The Chill set the tone quickly, bouncing the Niagara Fury (25-14, 26-24), Galaxy Eclipse 16U of Toronto (17-25, 25-19, 15-13) and Ottawa Fusion (22-25, 25-21, 16-14).

The local Grade 11 girls extended their win streak to four the next afternoon, freezing the Richmond Hill Fusion (19-25, 25-16, 15-10), but were unable to hit the win column again.

Ms Pakmen of Mississauga handed the 17U Chill their first loss, outscoring Craig Thomson's crew 25-13, 25-23, with the Durham Attack Red following suit with a 25-23, 21-25, 15-4 performance.

The Chill couldn't snap the skid on Sunday, falling 22-25, 21-25 to the Oakville Thunder - Blue.

The OVA Provincials close things off this weekend (April 24-26), with the Northern Chill 18U and 14U ladies making the trek to RIM Park in Waterloo.