Mustangs match expectations
The Saint Michael Mustangs senior girls volleyball team captured the Niagara Catholic Athletic Association AAA championship recently with a 3-0 (25-17, 25-11 and 25-14) victory over the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
“Notre Dame did an amazing job of digging and covering the floor. Just when we thought we had a point, they would scoop it up and send it back our way,” Saint Michael coach Amanda DiCarlo said. “Both teams definitely played with a lot of grit and never gave up.”
The Mustangs began the year with high expectations.
“We were excited to begin the season in November as it seemed like things were returning to normal,” coach Karen Buckley said. “From our first tryout, we knew we had a very talented team and looked forward to going very far with this group of athletes.”
There were a number of things which made the team special.
“This team showed up to play every single game. It was a great group of girls that were genuinely friends on and off the court which made it fun. There’s a certain quality of resilience that you see in championship teams,” DiCarlo said. “They always seem to rise above the challenge no matter what the challenge may be. Between the challenges and sicknesses that COVID brought and the season being put on pause halfway through, these girls were able to overcome all of that and have an undefeated season. We are very proud of them.”
The team was thrilled to get to play a season with such an amazing group of talent. Senior tryouts started after the junior team and the seniors received an unexpected boost when Grade 10 player Julia Breen, who had never played high school volleyball before due to the pandemic, decided to try out for the team. The six footer could serve, block, hit, was very coachable and a coach’s dream.
The team was excited to get back on the court again in February after the pandemic pause. Early in March, it won a tournament featuring all eight NCAA schools.
“It was a great team-bonding experience and it was great to see all the girls playing and having fun,” DiCarlo said.
Having the season put on pause by the pandemic after everything seemed to be returning to normal was a tough pill to swallow.
“Omicron came on strong in December and shut us down again,” Buckley said. “When we played at Notre Dame in Welland in December, we only had eight players due to illness.”
The Mustangs would have loved to have had the chance to compete at the Southern Ontario Secondary Schools Association championships and beyond but they were cancelled.
“We wonder what could have been with this amazing group of athletes from Saint Michael,” DiCarlo said. “From the very beginning, there was a collective talent here to take us all the way to an OFSAA (Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations) championship, but we will never know. We will always wonder how far we would have gone.”
Saint Michael’s starting lineup was made up four Grade 12s, one Grade 11 and one Grade 10.
Key players were: the aforementioned Breen; captain Ava Colisimo, a reliable setter, team leader with serious talent, who knew the game and understood it well; Marianela Irwin, small in stature but possessing powerful hits that were hard to recover and boasting a near unstoppable jump serve; Zylyn Leyrit, who provided a great serve, covered the court and provided lots of energy and team spirit; Jaime Manlow, a strong starter who will be a powerhouse next season; Sydney Carter, who always gave a consistent, solid performance; and, libero Mia Aiello, who was confident and strong in the back row.
Other players contributing to the championship were Rayna Hall, Olivia LeRose, Serenity St Angelo, Faith Pharand, Jordan Howcroft and Kalista Elliot.
