Another banner season for Earl Marriott Secondary junior girls volleyball team

The Grade 9/10 Mariners swept six games at the junior girls provincials, including the finals against Vancouver’s Crofton House School, to take home the 2022-23 banner. Photo by Kara Partovi.

For the second straight year, the Earl Marriott Secondary junior girls volleyball team has won provincials, capping off a stellar season at 47-1 and winning four tournaments and two additional championships along the way.

In a repeat of last year’s Grade 9 Girls B.C. Provincial Championship, the Grade 9/10 Mariners once again entered this year’s championship as the number one seed, sweeping six games, including the finals against Vancouver’s Crofton House School, to take home the 2022-23 banner. Their championship win on the court comes a week after EMS’s Grade 8 girls volleyball team won their provincials, with the school’s senior girls volleyball team headed to AAA provincials this Thursday through Saturday.

“We focused the girls on working hard, improving their individual skills and contributing to the team so that the team would achieve its ultimate potential,” said EMS Mariners head coach Rob Stevens. “Ultimately, if they did that, we knew they had a good shot of doing well at the end of the year.”

With the provincials hosted locally at École Salish Secondary, the team bested Okanagan Mission Secondary 25-21 and 25-16 in the quarterfinals, followed by Vernon Secondary 25-14 and 25-21 in the semifinals before facing Crofton House. Despite feverish competition throughout, EMS fended off the Vancouver team in the finals, coming out on top 25-20 and 25-21.

“Crofton was close, we hit a couple quick kills in the first set and didn’t relinquish the lead, but in the second set, they got up to a quick start and we fell behind. But the girls fought back and ultimately won the match and won the banner.”

Leading up to provincials, the team had an outstanding season, not only repeating wins at the SSSAA Surrey Championships and South Fraser Valley Championships, but also winning the Women’s National Team Tournament and tournaments at Victoria’s Spectrum Secondary, South Delta Secondary and EMS.

With four new Grade 9s on the team, Stevens credits the October trip to the Vancouver Island tournament as a bonding experience that brought the girls together, on and off the court.

“After that trip, they were a unit. They supported each other tremendously and it really was a complete team effort.”

Outside hitter Mia Stevens and middle blocker Sydney Schierbeck were named MVP and All Star, respectively, for the second year in a row. Fellow blocker Talia Partovi also earned the title of All Star, and Stevens also praised setter Natalia Phillips, opposite hitter Julia Christie and outside hitter Isla Stock for their work on the court, noting the entire team was instrumental to their overall success.

In other provincials news, Elgin Park Secondary also won the Junior Boys B.C. Provincials and Clayton Heights Secondary won the Senior Girls Volleyball Tier II Provincials.

Now, with the EMS senior girls volleyball team on their way to AAA, Stevens said he’s eager to see how they perform this weekend.

“It’s pretty unique to have all three teams go to provincials, and I think our senior girls have a good team,” he said. “They’re going to compete hard and we hope to have good results.”