Marauders to Host 5A Provincial Boys Volleyball After Strong Tournament Showing
Prince Albert, SK - The St. Mary Marauders secured a berth at the 5A Provincial Boys Volleyball Championship, earning the second seed in their pool after a competitive tournament weekend. The Marauders will host the provincials at St. Mary Gym and the saskatchewan Polytechnic gym, beginning Friday, November 14th.
Despite a tough loss to the eventual tournament champions, the Barons, the Marauders demonstrated meaningful progress and resilience. ”We got really excited about the Carlton game and maybe had a little bit of a letdown,and we weren’t able to recover in enough period of time,but that’s high school volleyball,” explained the team’s coach. “We are going to have to learn how to recover quickly after matches, emotional matches.”
The team finished round robin play with a 1-1 record, opening with a decisive 25-6, 25-16 victory over Martensville on Friday night before falling to the Barons 21-25, 25-18, and 15-7. This qualification marks a step towards redemption for the Marauders, who missed out on provincials last year after winning the Provincial Championship in 2023. The coach noted the team was able to avenge a loss to Carlton, who eliminated them from contention last year.
Carlton High School also qualified for the provincial tournament, finishing frist in their pool with a 2-0 record. They defeated North Battleford Vikings 25-14, 25-12 and the Warman Wolverines 25-22, 25-14. The Crusaders advanced after winning the third-place game 25-18, 25-12 over Warman.
The Marauders open the 5A Provincials on Friday, November 14th at noon against the Saskatoon Aden bowman Bears at St. Mary Gym. They will then face Regina LeBoldus at 3:15 p.m. at St. Mary Gym, and conclude Friday’s play against Estevan at 6:15 p.m. at St. Mary Gym. Their final round robin game is Saturday at 11:15 a.m.against Saskatoon Walter Murray.
Carlton opens play on Friday against Lloydminster at Saskatchewan Polytechnic at 1 p.m.,followed by a 3:15 p.m. match against Regina Miller at Saskatchewan Polytechnic. They conclude Friday’s play against Swift Current at 6:30 p.m. at Saskatchewan Polytechnic and play Saskatoon Holy Cross at St. Mary Gym on Saturday at 9 a.m.
Playoffs begin Saturday at 12:45 p.m. at St. Mary Gym, culminating in the finals at 5:45 p.m. at St. Mary Gym. The team’s composition includes seven Grade 10 players, signaling a promising future for the program. “But first to qualify there on their own speaks to how much the level these kids are playing before we can get to the next two or three years with this group,” the coach said.
