Defending champions Montreal University Carabins and the University of British Columbia showed their class on Thursday night to book their places in last night’s finals of the VolleyBarbados championships at the Wildey Gymnasium.
While Columbia continued their unbeaten run throughout the tournament by defeating the University of Calgary 25-20, 25-15, 25-12, the Carabins’ appearance in the finals proved to be almost fairy tale like.
The Carabins, who are in a rebuilding stage, had failed to win a game in the preliminaries.
However, a quarter-finals victory over the local double-crown queens, Flow Sentry Brokers Insurance Deacons, saw the visitors coming from two sets down in the semi-finals to hand the first and most telling defeat on the Brandon University. Carabins won 21-25, 25-27, 25-13, 25-18, 15-10.
The early attack of Brandons’ Mary Thompson and some stifling blocks on Carabins’ big hitter Vicky Savard suggested a clean kill for Brandon. However, coach Olivierre Trudel demonstrated the guts missing from local coaching by banishing Savard to the bench.
With Sophie Bergeron-Leblanc and Marie-Sophie Nadeau maintaining the fight for the Carabins, Brandons still seemed on course to win in straight sets. However, Savard was reintroduced in the second half of the second set to unleash a brutal and unstoppable attack that stunned Brandons and ensured the Carabins would defend their title.
Both teams gave a tutorial in setting, sensible attack and outstanding back court defence that was wasted on the too few spectators present in the Gym. That poorest turnout for the tournament was probably a result of home-side Flow Sentry Brokers Insurance Deacons playing for the fifth and sixth spot.
Deacons ended rock bottom as they were thumped for that fifth spot by Bois-de-Boulogne College 26-24, 25-16, 25-19. Last night, Brandon would have battled Calgary for the third spot before the Carabins faced off against Columbia in the final.
