Rebels girls make deep run at tourney

By Greg Price
Taber Times
gprice@tabertimes.com

The W.R. Myers Rebels varsity girls volleyball team has already had some trials and tribulations to its season, but has bounced by quite nicely in a tournament at Lethbridge College this past weekend.

The team tied for third place after finishing first in pool play and falling to Lethbridge Collegiate Institute Clippers in one of the semifinals.

“LCI is pretty good, they are one of the better programs in the league this year for sure,” said Sam Bennett, head coach of the W.R. Myers Rebels varsity girls volleyball team. “We were playing in the quarter-final against Cardston and we beat them in three sets, it was a real tight match beating them 16-14 in the third set. We had to play back-to-back and the girls were so emotional and on edge. Our first set (against LCI) was sort of a wash and we didn’t play well. Our second set, we played really well and were beating them, but they ended up pulling it out in the end.”

In pool play, the Rebels split with Catholic Central, but won the overall scores and won the pool which also featured Picture Butte (Queens) and St. Mary’s (Auroras).

The Rebels are trying to refocus after receiving devastating news after its pre-season tournament that saw a vital cog go down with a season-ending injury.

The first match of the pre-season tournament for the Rebels saw Caroline Steinborn suffer a knee injury, tearing her MCL.

“It was really nice to see the girls play well together considering our loss. She is a league all-star, our Grade 12 leader and our captain,” said Bennett of Steinborn’s top-end play for the Rebels. “It was a huge hit and will be hard to replace for sure. But, I was impressed with how the girls played and we are starting to work more as a team and it’s coming together I think. It’s still early in the season, but it was a hard loss for sure.

The Rebels will be playing in a Southern Alberta Girls Volleyball League with more parity in its teams according to Bennett.

“Chinook was beat out in the semi on the other side. The top teams are not as dominant this year,” said Bennett. “I’d say the top six teams on any given night anybody can beat anybody. It will be a fight this year. Our girls have been working really hard and getting better and I’ve seen a ton of improvement already. They are willing to learn and try new things.”

The Rebels looked to get some revenge in league play with a Tuesday road match against the same LCI Clippers with results unavailable at press time. On Sept. 23, the Rebel shave a home match against Winston Churchill Griffins. Junior varsity starts at 6 p.m. with varsity to follow.