Another wrap-up from yesterday’s play at Nationals.

18U Men’s Division I Saturday Wrap-Up
By Heather Badenoch and Andrew Bucholtz

Building on three straight wins Friday, the top-seeded Bison Gold (Winnipeg, MB) 18U men’s squad continued their quest for Division I supremacy Saturday in the power pool portion of the 17U/18U Canadian Open Championships. The Bison Gold started their day at 7:30 this morning with a 25-10, 25-16 win over the Canada West Cash (Calgary, AB). They went on to record a 25-18, 25-13 defeat of the Canuck Stuff Black (Calgary, AB), and pulled out a 25-12, 25-8 win over the Fraser Valley Volleyball Club White (Langley, BC) in their final match of the day. The Bison Gold will continue their pursuit of the gold Sunday at 11 a.m. in a quarter-final game on the showcase court in Norm Fenn Gymnasium (Carleton Court 10), facing off against the winner of the 7:30 a.m. game between the RVC Stubble Jumpers (Regina, SK) and Bam (Calgary, AB).

The Toronto Boys will try to challenge the Bison Gold for the Division I title. They were fourth-ranked heading into the tournament and won all three of their original pool matches, only dropping one set. They started the day Saturday with a surprisingly easy 25-20, 25-15 triumph over a strong Fraser Valley Volleyball Club Blue (Langley, BC) team that was ranked second overall going into the tournament. They then defeated Les Voyageurs (Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec) 25-16, 25-17 and beat MAC (Hamilton, ON) 25-21, 25-19, claiming the top place in their power pool without losing a set.A dark-horse contender is the Winnipeg Strike team, who emerged victorious from a tight power pool by virtue of a tie-breaker: they finished at 2-1, as did Bam (Calgary, AB) and the Durham Attack Black (Oshawa, ON), but prevailed based on the head-to-head set record between the three teams. Ranked ninth coming into the tournament, the Strike started their day with a 25-16, 25-17 win over Carcajou (Saint-Jerome, Quebec). The Strike then went on to defeat the Attack Black 25-19, 25-21, but lost 25-21, 22-25, 15-17 to Bam. Tomorrow, they will play in a quarter-final game against the winner of the intra-club showdown between the Fraser Valley Volleyball Club (Langley, BC) Blue and White squads, which takes place at 7:30 a.m. on Court 1 in the Field House (Carleton Court 3). The Strike’s quarter-final will take place at 11 a.m. on Court 3 in the Field House (Carleton Court 5).

The only remaining local hope in the 18U men’s competition is the Ottawa Maverick Mustangs. The Mustangs, ranked twelfth going into the tournament, won their first power pool match 20-25, 25-21, 15-10 Saturday morning against the RVC Stubble Jumpers (Regina, SK). The Maverick Mustangs then recorded a 25-18, 25-22 victory against the Kelowna Killjoy 18U (Kelowna, BC), and pulled out a tight 21-25, 25-23, 15-12 win in a battle against BVC (Brandon) to finish the day undefeated and claim the top spot in their pool. They will face the Pakmen (Mississauga, ON) tomorrow in an 11:00 a.m. quarter-final match on Court 2 in the Field House (Carleton Court 4).

The men’s 18U Division I semifinals will be played at 1:30 p.m. One takes place on the main showcase court at Alumni Hall (Carleton Court 2), while the other takes place on the showcase court in Norm Fenn Gymnasium (Carleton Court 10). The final will take place at 4:00 p.m. in Alumni Hall.