Heritage Park Middle School’s grade nine girls’ volleyball team won the silver medal at the 6th Annual BC Grade 9 Girls Volleyball Provincial Championship on Saturday (Nov. 19) at Lord Tweedsmuir School in Surrey.
The Highlanders came into the tournament as the two seed following a first-place finish in the Eastern Valley playoffs. They lost their opening pair of matches in pool play but bounced back to defeat Burnaby Central in three sets. They finished third in their group and had no margin for error in the playoff round, facing a win-or-go-home scenario.
The squad played through the medal round, defeating the Hugh McRoberts Secondary School Strikers from Richmond in the round of 12, Walnut Grove Secondary from Langley in the quarterfinals in three sets, and Vancouver Christian in the semi-finals in three sets. They lost a tight match to the number one seed St Thomas Aquinas Regional School from North Vancouver in the gold medal match.
“The girls played their hearts out and left everything on the court but ultimately fell just short of their goal. They finished the tournament as the second-best team in the province and should feel extremely proud of their achievement,” head coach Ken Kleindienst said.
Heritage Park’s Allison Hale was named a first-team all-star for her efforts throughout the weekend.
“Dedication, teamwork, and resilience from the entire team helped make this such a successful and rewarding season, with notable contributions from Madison Kleindienst, Kenzie Twele, Allison Hale, Cora Hart, Avery Woll, and Victoria Raffan,” Kleindienst said.