Barrhead Composite junior volleyball girls finish fourth

BARRHEAD - The Barrhead Composite High School (BCHS) Junior varsity girl Gryphons finished fourth in a recent tournament hosted by Westlock's St. Mary School on Jan. 24 and 25 at the Spirit Centre.

Garry Frederickson, who coaches the team with his daughter and BCHS teacher Jessica Mayen, said the tournament was only the team's second of the season. Westlock's R.F. Staples Secondary School hosted the first two weeks earlier.

It should be noted that the Gryphons did play in one other tournament in Camrose, but the squad was missing a substantial part of its roster, so Frederickson said it did not give an accurate indication of the team's abilities.

"We've really played only six games. The rest [including the tournament in Camrose] have just been practice," he said.

In those six games, the Gryphons have a 3-3 record.

Gryphon's last game was against Drayton Valley's Holy Trinity Academy, which they lost in a lopsided affair at the previously mentioned St. Mary School tournament.

"We have a good group of kids and work very hard," he said. "They ran their butts off in that game, but we ran into a cold shooting spell, where we got a lot of good looks and shots, but they rolled around and did not drop, but that's basketball."

Frederickson said that going into the game, they knew they would be tough as they did not match up well against them physically.

"We have a small team, and [Drayton Valley] had two or three big kids, and it is tough to match up against those long arms," he said.

He added to compensate, the Gryphons have to play more of a full-court game and look for opportunities to steal the ball.

Frederickson said the JV Gryphons are a fairly young team. Their roster consists mostly of Grade 10 players, with two Grade 11s.

While that isn't in itself unusual, he said, they have three or four Gryphon players who came into the season totally cold.

"The Grade 9 kids come in with some experience, but if they did not play last year, there are definitely some catching up, and they are doing that," Frederickson said.

In the end, he added that the purpose of junior varsity is to prepare the players for the next step: playing for the Senior Gryphons.

"It's all about personal growth," Frederickson said. "They're all great kids who work hard and are willing to learn, and as a coach, there isn't much more you can ask for."

Barry Kerton, TownandCountryToday.com