OVER the AFL grand final weekend, from September 27 to 29, our South Gippsland juniors, coaches, managers, and parents hit the highway, heading up North-West for the Volleyball Victoria Junior Country Championships in Horsham.
For many, both young and old, it was their first time visiting this agricultural hub, known as the Cosmopolitan Capital of the Wimmera, nestled along the banks of the Wimmera River with the stunning Grampians (Gariwerd) National Park just a stone’s throw away – definitely one for the bucket list.
The weekend was jam-packed with action, stretching from dawn to way beyond dusk.
Our club entered two teams into the tournament:
The U19 boys:
Coach: Liselott Webster.
Assistant coach: David Fuller.
Manager: Shelley Churchill.
Team: captain Jeffrin Mathew, Vice-Captain Jacob Churchill, Erik Webster, Sebastian Laughton, Cabram Chilver, Joshua Clarke, Callum Niven, and Matthew Churchill.
Despite limited experience playing together in tournaments, the boys grew in confidence and strength over the weekend. They found their rhythm, finishing on a high with a thrilling five-set final match against the home team, Horsham, holding their heads high after such a stellar performance.
The U17 girls:
Our Golden Girls came home wearing gold, and we couldn’t be prouder.
Determined to bring home victory from the very beginning, they did not disappoint.
Coach: Tamara Miller.
Team manager: Anna Gloria.
Statistics: Jessica Sanders.
Team: captain Natalie Churchill, vice-captain Georgia Mills, Casey Slater, Ayoshe Herbert, Jessica Churchill, Yasmin Gloria, Amelia Hams, and Georgia Scarce.
The girls faced a tough competition, playing both early and late games to secure their place in the gold medal match on Sunday against Horsham.
With incredible support from club members, parents, and spectators who travelled to Horsham for the long weekend, the girls stayed laser-focused.
Friday saw the girls clinch two straight-set victories, first against Wimmera (25:4, 25:11, 25:13) and then Geelong (25:15, 25:6, 26:24).
On Saturday, they faced the host team, Horsham, securing a 3-1 win (25:12, 18:25, 25:17, 25:23).
The final group match against Mildura Academy was another solid 3-0 win (25:19, 25:18, 25:3).
Their semi-final, which started late at 9.45 pm, did nothing to dampen their spirits.
The team, along with coaches and supporters, was just as determined as ever, pulling off a semi-final win in a record time of 36.3min (25:6, 25:9, 25:6) to guarantee their spot in the gold medal match.
On Sunday, our girls went head-to-head with Horsham for the title.
Focused and relentless, they raced to a spectacular 3-0 win (25:4, 25:19, 25:14), bringing home the trophy and gold medallions for the South Gippsland team.
Congratulations to our junior players named in the prestigious All Star 7’s teams, at the conclusion of the tournament: Natalie Churchill, Yasmin Gloria and Jeffrin Mathew and special mention to Yasmin Gloria for an All Star 7, best setter accolade.
Special mention needs to go to two of our junior players who managed to secure gold at both the Open (Div 3) and Junior Country Championships, in the same year – a rare and outstanding achievement – congratulations Natalie Churchill and Georgia Mills.
With songs of victory echoing through the journey back home, the team celebrated their triumphant weekend.
A huge congratulations to everyone involved – from the hosts in Horsham, to Volleyball Victoria, to all the players, coaches, statisticians, team managers, parents, and supporters.
What a moment to cherish!
Yeah, Souths!