Inverness Oran Sports

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Inverness wins first high school girls volleyball title in 10 years

Let the celebration begin! The members of the Inverness Rebels jump for joy after the last point is scored to win the NSSAF Division 3 girls volleyball championship – the school’s first in 10 years. (Oran photo by Lindsay MacIsaac-Ryan)


-by Bill Dunphy

It was a long time coming...but well worth the wait.
    After a decade of near-dormancy, girls’ volleyball is alive and well again in Inverness following a spectacular performance by the Inverness Rebels to win the 2019-20 Nova Scotia School Athletic Federation Division 3 provincial tournament in Pomquet.
    “I’m trying to think of a better word than ‘awesome’ but I can’t,” said Rebels’ coach David MacIsaac.
    The Rebels defeated Hants North 25-12, 25-22 in Saturday’s final, while the NDA Aigles won bronze by defeating Pomquet 25-20, 25-23 in the consolation match.
    Both Inverness County teams finished first in their pools.
    In Pool B, both Inverness and Hants North finished with 2-1 records, but the Rebels took the top spot by having defeated Hants North 25-17, 25-20 in the round-robin. The Rebels also defeated Truro 25-20, 25-13 to start the tournament, and lost 17-25, 20-25 to Drumlin in the final round-robin game knowing they had first place locked up.
    The NDA Aigles, meanwhile, finished 3-0 in Pool A, defeating Pomquet 25-21, 25-13; Sacred Heart 25-12, 25-12; and East Antigonish 19-25, 25-7, 15-13.
    This set up Saturday’s semifinals, with Inverness getting to the final by beating hometown Pomquet in three sets and NDA falling to Hants North.
    MacIsaac said losing to the SAERC Saints in the league final made the Rebels better prepared for provincials, especially when it came to playing Pomquet in the semifinal.
    “Playing the home team in their home gym with a large, noisy crowd of supporters is always, always difficult. We won the first game and got down 8-1 in the second, got it back to 19-19 but ended up losing it. But we’ve been resilient in third sets all along and we were in control all along for a 15-10 win.
    “We played very good defence this weekend and prevented other teams from making runs on their serve. I think they learned a valuable lesson against SAERC and we concentrated on our serve/receive and defence all week in practice.”
    Assistant coach Norma MacKinnon said the girls showed great poise against Pomquet. “The semifinal game was very intense and was more like a championship game. The girls battled hard and kept calm despite losing the second set.”
    MacKinnon said Inverness and NDA were rooting for each other all weekend.
    “NDA and (coach) Gerry Cormier were just as excited as we were to see Inverness win. It was a highlight for me, as a coach, and I have so much respect for Dave and Gerry,” she said.
    “When I look at both of these coaches, what they have done for volleyball I feel so grateful to have them in our communities. And Dave, to be with our program for only two years and guide us to a provincial championship, that is a true testament to him. He has taught these girls so much more than the game of volleyball, many life lessons along the way. We are very lucky.”
    MacIsaac first started coaching volleyball in 1978 at SAERC and in that time won 12 NSSAF championships and 11 silver medals. His last gold was in 2011-12. In 2010-11, SAERC defeated Inverness in the final while in the previous year, 2009-10, Inverness beat SAERC.
    “I never once talked to those girls about winning. We talked about ways to be successful, but the emphasis was never on winning. Put the ball in play, keep the ball in play, and you’ll have a smile on your face at the end,” he said.
    MacIsaac said the team’s achievement was the culmination of several things.
    “The core of that group is grade 10, so when they got to grade 11, I thought they’d have a chance to win provincials, and when they got to grade 12, they’d have a good chance to win again.
    “From my perspective, the community support has been fantastic. This group brought the vibe back to the school and the community. The pep rally was amazing and it was fantastic to have the support of (principal) Peter Goosens and the school administration.
    “My message to the girls is always to be a leader in school and try to be a leader in your community. As an adult, that’s a really good thing to see.”
    So, after 40 years and a failed attempt at retirement, would MacIsaac come back to Inverness again?
    “As long as the good Lord is willing, and I have my health and the support of my family, and the opportunity presents itself, I would love to come back and work with these kids again.”
*****
    At the Division 2 girls’ tournament hosted by SAERC, Millwood defeated Par-en-Bas 25-16, 26-24 in the gold medal match.
    Sommet defeated Digby for the bronze, 25-23, 25-23.
    And in Division 2 boys’ competition at Middleton, both the Dalbrae Dragons and Cape Breton Highlands Huskies finished out of the crossovers.



 

 

 


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