Cyclone split as OFSAA volleyball opens
Olivia Jones set the tone early for the E.L. Crossley Cyclone Monday.
The 16-year-old, Grade 11 student reeled off 11 straight service points to begin Game 1 as the Cyclone topped Mentor College of Mississauga 25-7, 25-16 at the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) AA girls volleyball championships played before a packed gym.
Jones, who suits up at the club level for the Niagara Rapids, loved playing with so many enthusiastic fans in the stands.
“It’s really cool, it’s really great,” she said. “If we had it somewhere else, it just wouldn’t be the same. It’s a different vibe and it makes you want to play harder. With everyone cheering, it was great.
“I think it’s really good for the older girls, the seniors, to have OFSAA at Crossley for their last year.”
The victory was crucial for the Cyclone who dropped a 21-25, 17-25 decision to Kingston Secondary School in their opening match of the day.
Crossley coach Michelle Gibson felt it was imperative not to drop two games on Day 1.
“We did not want to do that,” Gibson said. “We played OK this morning. We had tough competition. We couldn’t get our serves in and we just couldn’t put it all together but there were lots of good rallies and lots of great energy.
“We love playing here at the school but we knew going forward we needed to get a win today.”
Gibson said Jones’ proficiency serving came at a perfect time.
“It showed what happened this morning when we couldn’t serve and how much it can change the outcome of the game,” she said. “Getting those serves in is so important. We talked about that and looked at strategies for improving it for this game and they absolutely went out and did that.”
The Cyclone are ranked 11th out of 16 teams.
“We had lunch meetings everyday and we talked about the goals we wanted to set,” Jones said. “We wanted to have a good attitude going in and place high, but if didn’t, it was OK because we wanted to meet our own personal and teams goals.”
With OFSAA cancelled the last two years due to the COVID pandemic, Crossley went above and beyond to put on a good show as the school’s jazz band played, the cheerleaders were out in full force and a promo video for the team was put together.
“It’s amazing to have it here at Crossley, to showcase our school,” Gibson said. “It’s amazing to celebrate this group of athletes because they have missed out so much and the banquet last night was so beautiful — Sir Winston is doing an amazing job (as host).”
Pool play continues Tuesday from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Churchill, E.L. Crossley, Governor Simcoe and St. Catharines Collegiate. The championship quarter-finals will be played at all four sites at 6 p.m.
For updated scores and schedules, check https://www.ofsaa.on.ca/championship/volleyball-girls-aa/schedules-results/competition-schedules/
Dear reader. If you liked this story or one of the 4,900 other stories found on our website, please consider hitting the Support Us button on the right-hand side of our home page and making a PayPal contribution to our website. Your support would be much appreciated. If you are a business owner, please consider advertising on our site. Our rates are reasonable and we provide plenty of exposure for your business. Contact bpotrecz@outlook.com for more information.
