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Belmont Bulldogs senior girls volleyball team ranked number one in province

After winning first two tournaments and league game, team looks to stay hot
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The Belmont senior girls volleyball team won back-to-back tournaments to start the season and are now number one in the province. (Photo courtesy of Johanna May)

The Belmont Bulldogs senior girls volleyball team is off to a hot start this season winning two tournaments without a loss and winning their first league game of the season on Sept. 26 against Oak Bay.

The Dover Bay tournament in Nanaimo saw the Bulldogs win all six games to capture the tournament title. And last weekend the girls defended their title at the UBC Mizuno Invitational and again went undefeated in tournament play (7-0).

The team also now holds the number one ranking in the province.

Head coach Mike Toakley noted the girls are no strangers to winning.

“Last year, the girls as a Grade 10 and 11 group won the provincial championship in what they call the high school quadruple A,” Toakley said. “Last year, when they won the provincial title they were coming off winning the junior provincial title the year before that. They are a really strong group and are comprised of a number of players that have been playing at the provincial level in both indoor and beach volleyball. They’re an extremely dedicated group.”

Toakley said many of the players have the goal of playing in post-secondary and two players have already declared their intentions to play for institutions.

He also said it’s exciting to see his players succeed. “It’s extremely rewarding of course,” Toakley said. “They are playing at a really high level in the early stage of the season, in large part because they’ve been together as a team, many of them at least, for the last five or six years.”

The group had a good look at a couple of teams from their past tournament at University of British Columbia and even though they’re ranked number one in the province, they are aware that it could be difficult to repeat. “We’re definitely the favourites,” Toakley said. “They haven’t looked nervous. They’re used to being ranked very highly. Every time we play anyone this year, that team will be essentially the highlight of their season even if they come close to beating us. There is a long way to go but hopefully the girls can remain healthy. That is a key factor.”

The girls will be in action in Nanaimo this weekend for a tournament at Vancouver Island University. They will also be competing at a Camosun College tournament the following weekend. The team has their sights on completing the triple crown which would consist of winning UBC, VIU and Camosun.

jessica.fedigan@goldstreamgazette.com