Mixed results early in season for court teams

The Muskies’ four court teams have invoked almost every emotion possible thus far.
Despite the fact the black-and-gold only have been competing for two weeks, the various coaches have felt everything from elation to disappointment to frustration.
The following is a breakdown of how each of the four squads has fared so far this season:
< *c>Junior Girls’
< *c>Basketball
Coach Dan Bird was extremely optimistic heading into the junior girls’ basketball season due primarily to a strong group of returning second-year players.
Two games into the season, Bird’s optimism appears well-founded.
The black-and-gold hoopsters are off to a perfect 2-0 start and appear to be gaining momentum as the season progresses.
The Muskies destroyed the Kenora Broncos 43-16 in their home-opener last Wednesday after kicking off the season with an easy 29-19 win over the host Eagles two days earlier.
Lauren Gurski, last season’s Most Valuable Player, led the Muskie onslaught against Kenora by pouring in 18 points.
< *c>Senior Girls’
< *c>Basketball
Defence was never going to be a problem for the Muskies’ senior girls basketball squad.
In their first two games of the season, the black-and-gold have shown they are more than capable of defending their basket, allowing just 37 and 22 points against the Dryden Eagles and Kenora Broncos, respectively, last week.
But offensive production most certainly was a worry in the mind of co-head coach Ian Simpson leading up to tip-off.
And Simpson’s fears were justified as the Muskies have managed only meagre offensive outputs—26 and 16 points in their opening two games—en route to an 0-2 record.
< *c>Junior Boys’
< *c>Volleyball
It’s been a frustrating start to the season for junior volleyball head coach Greg Ste. Croix.
Despite a talented roster, the Muskies are 0-2 in league play.
But things may be looking up somewhat as the Muskies won their first two sets of the season this past weekend while competing in a tournament in Kenora.
Ste. Croix believes that come the end of the season and the start of the playoffs, the black-and-gold should be right where they need to be.
“We’ll just keep practising and keep playing,” he said. “By November when the games count, I think we’re going to be right there.”
< *c>Senior Boys’
< *c>Volleyball
The Muskie senior boys’ volleyball team’s early-season performance is best described as erratic.
The black-and-gold have a great deal of talent adorning the roster but they’ve yet to translate that talent into a win—instead languishing at 0-2 a quarter of the way through the NorWOSSA season.
The Muskies’ match against the Kenora Broncos here last Wednesday is perhaps the best example to illustrate the team’s early-season inconsistencies.
Fort High hung tough in the first set before losing 25-19.
However, the same team that had competed hard a set earlier failed to appear in the second one as the Muskies were blown out 25-12.
Fort High rebounded in the third set, winning 25-21, before losing the fourth one 25-15 to drop the best-of-five match 3-1.
All four Muskie court teams are back in action here tomorrow (Oct. 5) starting at 3 p.m.