The volleyball and basketball courts inside Fanshawe College hosted some very important high school games on Wednesday. The single A schools in the Thames Valley Regional Athletic Association’s Central division faced off with the city championship on the line.
The Westminster Wildcats and North Middlesex Marauders are the only single A teams in the Central division; meaning they were on a collision course to meet in the final no matter what happened in the regular season.
The senior girl’s volleyball final was the first match of the day. The Wildcats looked to be the favourite as they entered the game with a 7-3 record. Good for 2nd place in the Central division while the North Middlesex Marauders were in 7th at 3-7.
None of that would matter on Wednesday.
If the Marauders were supposed to be the inferior team they did not play like it. The North Middlesex girls took the first two sets by scores of 25-18 and 25-20. The third didn’t bring any luck to the Wildcats as they found themselves down 17-7 in the do or die set. The best they would do the rest of the set was get within six points as North Middlesex finished off the straight sets victory 25-18 and take the city title.
Despite the upset loss, one Wildcat player in particular had some good Valentines Day fortune to make the day worthwhile.
“My boyfriend decided he was going to prom-pose before the game. He themed it around volleyball too. The poster had volleyball puns mixed in and he also wrote ‘Prom?’ on a ball” said Alissa Bear who wears #6 for Westminster.
“I started crying because I was so happy and I obviously said yes!”
The day was an emotional roller coaster for Bear “the prom-posal made me really happy before the game, but then the game happened and everything kind of twisted.”
North Middlesex’s Jr girls volleyball team poses with their new hardware.
- The Marauders’ Junior girls team also tasted sweet victory on Valentines Day. They beat Westminster in straight sets 26-24, 25-22 and 25-20.
- Senior boy’s basketball brought North Middlesex a third Central division title on the day. They cruised past Westminster 63-50. The win was their first on the season and it came when they needed it most.
Jr boy’s Central division A champs!
Westminster did not go home empty handed. Their junior boy’s basketball team secured a berth in the upcoming Western Ontario playoffs. The 7-3 Wildcats played a very complete game scoring timely baskets and showing solid team defense as they cruised past the 2-8 Marauders 47-31.
