Reds can't be beat | BP Sports Niagara

The Denis Morris Reds remain perfect.

The Reds defeated the Notre Dame Fighting Irish 23-25, 25-15, 25-22, 25-22 to capture the Niagara Catholic Athletic Association senior girls AAA volleyball championship on their home court Tuesday.

The Reds, who went 7-0 in regular season play, now advance to the Southern Ontario Secondary Schools Association (SOSSA) AAA championship at Orchard Park Secondary School in Hamilton Thursday.

“We lost our very first set in our very first game because we didn’t have much practice time before the season and after that we didn’t lose at all,” DM coach Brianne Crnkovic said proudly. “This is my third year coaching these girls and we’ve had incredible seasons, but not up to par with this season.”

Crnkovic chalked up team chemistry as a big reason for the Reds’ success.

“They work incredibly well together,” she said. “They have a lot of fun and even though they are incredibly competitive, they really don’t get down on themselves if something goes wrong. They are able to pick it back up and still enjoy the sport, which makes a huge difference.”

The Reds have played the Irish the last two years in the NCAA final, but came up short.

“These girls have played together for the last three years and have done really, really well but in their Grade 12 year this was the goal,” Crnkovic said. “We’ve had one loss (in each of the last two seasons) and it was to Notre Dame, so our goal was to continue to the whole season and be undefeated and then go as far as they can.”

DM captain Bleona Demiri was one of the first to go over and grab the championship trophy when it was all over.

“It was really exciting because we’ve never made it to SOSSA so we’re really excited and we’ve never come first in NCAA,” the 17-year-old, Grade 12 student said.

Crnkovic singled out Demiri for her leadership.

“While she’s on the court she’s able to see where maybe everyone needs to go,” Crnkovic said. “She’s able to pump everybody up if something goes wrong.

“She truly is a captain on and off the court. She’s been awesome.”

Demiri, who plays at the club level for the Niagara Rapids, can’t wait to get to SOSSA.

“We go there and we want to have fun and whatever happens, happens, but we’re hoping for the best,” she said. “We’ve played some of those girls before and it will be tough competition.”

Other members of the winning team are: Melanie Altamirano, Lexxus Bell, Alexia Benoit, Michelle Caro, Anna Emond, Samantha Horvath, Marina LaFratta, Trinity Learmond, Isobel McKay and Natajah Selman.

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