A round-robin showing that carried hope for good things to come ended up meaning as much to the Muskie senior boys’ volleyball team as political promises during an election campaign.
After finishing fourth with a 5-5 mark in the preliminary round, including a 2-0 sweep over Atikokan, the Muskies dropped a 2-1 decision to that same squad in their opening playoff match at last weekend’s invitational tournament in Dryden to get bounced from further contention.
Game scores were 25-16, 16-25, and 18-16.
“It was our third match in a row,” Muskie coach John Gibson said about his team being unable to rediscover their earlier touch against Atikokan. “We were tired and hungry. Our lack of endurance showed.
“We came out flat, and then took it to them in the second game,” he added. “We lost it on our court coverage. We weren’t getting to their tips at the net.”
Along with the preliminary round victory over Atikokan, the Muskies also blanked Sioux Lookout 2-0 and split with the Kenora Broncos 1-1. They lost 2-0 to the Dryden Eagles and 2-0 to Dennis Franklin Cromartie (Thunder Bay).
“In the round-robin, the guys looked real good,” said Gibson. “Everyone got [playing] time, and we tried to play different players with each other to see how they worked together.
“They had good fundamentals in the round-robin, especially with their passing and hitting.”
Gibson said the team’s solid overall play, especially the split against Kenora, was crucial with only two NorWOSSA matches left before the league playoffs in two weeks.
“We got a lot of games in, and it was really important to watch how they played against Kenora,” Gibson remarked. “The only game we really didn’t play well in was against Dryden.
“But to get the split against Kenora should give us confidence.”
Fort High also got both good and bad news on the injury front this week. On the bright side, veteran Cullan McGinnis returned from a back injury.
But in an almost unbelievable stroke of repeat bad luck, setter Ryan York rolled his ankle and had to sit out the rest of Monday’s practice after finally returning during the weekend from a broken wrist which had kept him out of the last few weeks of action.
The senior Muskies (0-6) and their junior counterparts (1-5) host the Dryden Eagles in NorWOSSA action tomorrow, beginning at 3:30 p.m. at Fort High.
The two squads then close their regular-season schedules here against the Kenora Broncos next Tuesday (Nov. 4).
In related news, the juniors are slated to head to Thunder Bay for a tournament this weekend.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
