State League Men defeated Rossmoyne 3-1

Move up to 2nd spot

The boys were down a few players this weekend with Mitch Lewington away. Mitch Collins joined the team as setter and played extremely well. The first set was a little shaky but as they found their connection and confidence, the boys played the high level volleyball they are capable of. Some huge defensive plays together with pressure serving was too much for the Raptors. The boys won the following 3 sets and now have secured the 2nd spot on the table. Very proud of the fight shown by the young team and solid performance by some of the senior players.

​

State League Women defeated Southern Cross 3-0

Stay in 2nd spot

SLW got back to their winning ways, closing out Southern Cross in three sets. The team welcomed setter Jackie Tamburri back from the US, but were still short two players who are with the Women's Volleyroos in Thailand for one more week, and so Matilda Hamer and State League debutant Amy Gilbert came up to help the ladies get across the line.
The game was won in three reasonably comfortable sets, with the ladies learning from their difficult loss to Rossmoyne last week and holding their focus and structure for long stretches of this game. After a quieter week for the middles last week, MB Mae Stoddart had a big impact on the game, making some points from the net including quick ball kills, some great blocking decisions to keep the pressure on the other side of the court, and a big bounce off an overpass!

The ladies have a repeat game vs Southern Cross next weekend, before a tough double header vs Reds and ECU the following weekend

​

State League Reserves Men lost to Busselton 0-3

Drop to 5th spot

After losing the first set convincingly, the Balcatta SLR team made a late run in the second set with a great serving run from Jahuy Nguyen which wasn't quite enough to win the set. The third set was much closer with Busselton unfortunately pulling away at the end of the set. The boys battled hard given a bunch of late position changes were forced when Goran Trpcevski was injured in the 2nd set.

​

State League Reserves Women defeated Rossmoyne 3-1

Move up to top spot!

Todays vibe was very slow due to an improper warmup. First two sets began with the girls playing not their best volleyball being very up and down throughout but still got the job done 27-25, 25-22. Third set came and they went down 1-6 to begin but they fought back to take a league of a couple of points and was close until scores were even at 20-20 then the girls dropped a set 20-25. Fourth set began on the level of the end of the third with the girls losing a couple of points, after a quick time out the girls switched back on and played a higher brand of volleyball that their capable of and won the set 25-18. The girls ended up winning 3-1 and taking 1st spot on the ladder with a 5-1 w/l for the season. The girls had great serving pressure and played some amazing defence being the the staple for the team this season so far. A standout today was Sarah who played a outstanding game.

​

Division One Men lost to Virsa 1-3

Drop one spot to 7th

The boys shot to an early lead in the 1st set with runs of points and fast side outs. Virsa came back towards the end and both teams rallied point for point with us taking the set 29-27
Unfortunately, after giving it their all in the first, the guys ran out of steam and allowed an easy second set win to the opposition.
We came out stronger in the 3rd and held a 3-point lead for most of the set until errors started to creep in. The set turned around with a series of lost points that saw us fall behind unable to catch up.
Unforced errors on our part and the oppositions’ ability to get everything back wore us down in the 4th and we took a heavy loss.
The guys will be working on mindset routines, as well as core skill repetition and consistency at training to reduce the large number of errors that cost us points. We look forward to improving as we head into the second round.
Best player today was Dan Bendotti who played consistently in all aspect of reception, defence, serve and offence. Mention goes out to James Bourke for never hesitating in hitting the floor in defence while trying to fire the team up.

​

Division One Women defeated Red Junior 3-1

(25-14, 25-8,24-26,25-10)

Maintain top spot!

Once again Div 1 played very well. Every game has been a lesson to learn and improve, every training session has a strong commitment to get better. First 2 sets we did our job with no pressure from the other team. 3rd set we tried to change some positions to get Kadri setting, we had our chance to finish the set but unfortunately Reds had a good service and we couldn't finish. 4th set was great for both teams, some good rallies but we didn't give a chance to the other team.
Everyone deserves the POTW but Kadri today had really good hits for the first 2 sets, after that she played as a setter and was impeccable, she also had a very good service.

​

Division Two Men defeated Busselton 3-1

Move up 2 spots to 7th

Had a great start to the game going on a 10 point streak, ending the first set very quickly at 25-16. Busso came out firing in the 2nd set taking an early lead. We were able to claw back to only a couple points down at 20-22. Sadly a few errors lost us the set 23-25. The boys didnt make the same mistake in the 3rd and 4th set, going on some good serve runs. We had the most players show up to the round that we have had all season, which made it hard to have similar rotations with giving players fair time on court. The boys adapted very well to the changes and proved they’re a solid team. Player of the match goes to Xander Intervencion. Both his defence and attack were on point today. Ive told him to hold back on his spike approach slightly which had made a big impact on his attacking game.

​

Division Two Women defeated Reds Junior 3-2

Stay in 4th spot

A fantastic win today in an important match as it was 4th vs 5th on the ladder. It went down to the wire in the fifth and we came away with the win 3-1 in the final set as time ran out.
The team was very rushed as it was another new venue for us and we only had 5 players with 4 minutes left of the warmup. So it was a shaky start but we took the set comfortably 25-18.
The Reds Junior girls warmup up and pushed us in the next two sets which we lost both 23-25.
We picked up our passing and really put pressure on the opposition through strong serving in the fourth set. Some excellent serving by Caitlin Northmore took us to a comfortable lead and we closed the set out 25-19.
With three minutes left to play for the 5th set, we started off losing the first point, but then a great sideout brought Caitlin back to the service line. Serving a crucial ace followed up by another great serve that Reds Junior couldn't control gave us the lead 3-1. Then the time was up and we won the match. A great win with a still undermanned team due to Covid. I couldn't be more proud of how the girls fought through the flat patches and continued to work for the win as a team. Great work girls.
POTW nomination for Caitlin Northmore for her amazing serving under pressure that was a key factor in our team win today, consolidating our position in the top 4.

​

Division Three Men lost to Reds 2-3

Stay in position 7

Hard fought game, only had 6 players due to two middles and the libero being out this week. The team had to readjust to new positioning and defence strategies, but it wasn’t enough to bring home the win with the fifth set, losing 9-13.
Stand out player would be Josh, with some strong hits and passes, especially considering he’s not normally in the back row.

​

Division Three Women defeated Murdoch 3-0

Stay in 6th spot

It was a tough game throughout, with sets being very close, and the final set being 27-25. The players were struggling a bit in the first set so we decided to switch setters, and the players really adapted well to the changes, especially with a new rotation and players playing out of position
A stand out player to me was Kate Fields, a junior player. She hustled for the ball whenever she had to, even jumping through a bin and the score desk chasing a ball
She’s a very consistent all rounder and her play stood out to me and everyone watching

​

Division Four Men defeated Reds Junior in 3 sets

Stay in 4th spot

Had a rocky start to the game, only 5 players had turned up, so I had to suit up to avoid the forfeit. The first set was pretty even, with the help of a couple of good serving runs the lads pulled clear and took the set comfortably with at least an 8 point buffer. 2nd set was a bit more of a challenge, with a fire lit under the junior reds team and slight rotation change for us, the lads still took the set, but with a lot less smaller margin. 3rd set our rotation went back to the 1st set, and the lads switched a gear and won the 3rd set 25-11. As I've never coached this team before, I would have to say they all showed adaptability in playing in positions they aren't usually in.

​

Division Four Women defeated Northern Stars Blue 3-1

Stay undefeated and in top spot

The players had a bit of a rough start in the first two sets going 1-1 in two very close sets, a lot of points were given due to our own errors, however, in the third and fourth set the girls clicked and were a very confident team, winning both very comfortably
It really is clear that the team is coming along, not only in individual skill but they are becoming very coherent as a team, knowing each other’s strengths and weaknesses and it really is showing on court with everyone looking out for everyone
I had two stand out players today, firstly, Chloe Campbell, she kept playing consistently even throughout the slumps and kept herself level headed and the team morale up
The other stand out player is Dani Sokil who has been out injured for the past few weeks and it was her first time starting as a Pass Hitter, and she surprised everyone with her determination and just overall go getter attitude was a real stand out to me

​

Division Five Men lost to ECU White 1-3

Stay in 6th spot

It is a tough game, 2-3 players didn't come/ couldn't make it for the game... main setter was out, so we ran 6:2 Max did a good job, stepped up as one of the setters. But lots of serves and hitting errors...First set was 23:25, very close, but the second we lost 9:25, players not mentally strong and some lost focus during the game.... We were back on track in the third set and won 25:21. I left b4 the forth set, due to my own game... but the boys said lost due to the same errors as in first and second...
Yasir did a really good job, as a libero, passed well and picked up a lots of tips today.

​

Division Six Men lost to ECU 1-3

Stay in 11th spot, bottom of the ladder :(

This was the best these boys have played. They were so happy with themselves that they managed to take a set of the team 2nd on the ladder. The hardest part of the game for them is playing smart when they are down- something within these boys tells them it’s always a good idea to swing as hard as you can so this game was a way to slowly ween them off that mindset. In the third set they managed to give the ball back to ECU enough times for them to make their own mistakes earning the boys lots of free points.

Best player was Julian Tate with some excellent hustle and long chases. Best serve receive I’ve seen from him.