Taber WHAM finishes in bronze medal position

By Cole Parkinson
Taber Times

Taber WHAM was back in action this past weekend as they hit the road for the third premier tournament of the year. This time, the team was in Spruce Grove as they looked to claim another gold medal. 

In Pool D with SPVC Green, Aviators, and Fairview Force, WHAM was able to collect wins over SPVC Green (25-16 and 25-19) and Fairview Force (26-24 and 25-17). Aviators were able to win in two straight sets over WHAM 25-23 and 25-20. 

In the playoff round, WHAM first faced off against the Calgary Raptors. Taber was able to win the first set 25-10 before dropping the second. 21-25. In the third and final set, the team was able to take it all with a 15-10 win. 

The second round saw the team matchup against the Camrose Raptors. In a close first set, WHAM was able to secure a 27-25 victory. After a close first, the second set saw Taber come out firing as they punched their ticket to the semi-final with a 25-16 win. 

In the semi-final, WHAM was up against a tough FOG Marauders. WHAM, despite a great effort, fell in two straight sets — 25-18 and 25-18. 

With that loss, they moved to the bronze medal game where they took on Ace Cochrane. Taber was able to rebound nicely as they took it to Cochrane Ace with two straight-set wins for the bronze — 25-19 and 25-11. 

With back-to-back medal appearances, WHAM has now jumped up two divisions — from Division IV to Division II. 

“There are four divisions in our age group, 16 teams in each division. Starting the season in Div. IV, we won the last tournament and moved up to Div. III, and by earning a bronze, we were able to move up another Div to Div II,” explained coach Derry Kolody. “To make this jump is difficult to do with the formatting of the tournaments nowadays.” 

Over the past two weeks, the coaching staff has been thrilled with the progression they’ve seen. Provincials are on the horizon and the entire group is hoping their best volleyball is still ahead of them.

“I am so proud of the girls,” continued Kolody. “We’ve been an underdog in every game we played. Passing, scrappy defence, and consistency from our setters were keys to our success. We are very excited to be playing in provincials in three weeks in Div. II. We are set to compete in Kalispell in two weeks.” 

Provincials are set for May 4-5 in Red Deer.