© 2025 Hometownplay.ca
Wildcats bring home WOSSAA silver
West Elgin falls to Woodstock CI in senior girls 1A volleyball gold match
February 22, 2024
By Rob J. Ross
WOODSTOCK, Ont. - A Cinderella-like run ended one victory short of advancing to OFSAA.
The West Elgin Wildcats lost to the Woodstock Collegiate Institute (WCI) Red Devils, three games to one, in the Western Ontario (WOSSAA) senior girls 1A volleyball, February 21 at WCI.
"Both teams played very well. Both teams hit well. Both passed well. The difference is maybe, they served us tough and they mixed their serves up. Short, deep, moved us around. We haven't played a lot of teams that do that," Wildcats coach Dave Burke said.
WCI captured gold on home court, winning 25-23, 21-25, 25-21,25-21, for a spot at OFSAA.
"We were very much the underdogs. No one expected us to be here, but we came to win," said Wildcats co-captain Karlee Miller. "We played our hearts out and it's just a great end of the season to be here and with all these amazing people (teammates)."
Not predicted to go far in the Thames Valley (TVRA) playoffs, the Wildcats upended higher ranked 1A teams on their way to the WOSSAA final.
"We never expected to get this far. The girls turned it around. They just knew what to do and did it themselves," Burke said. "I never had a team where I didn't really say a lot, because they kept in the flow. They talked about what sets they want to run. They talked about where they want to serve the ball. I got to sit back and enjoy the ride."
Teams that had beat West Elgin earlier this season, now were playoff victims of the Wildcats.
That included the St. Marys Salukis in the WOSSAA semifinals, a match the Wildcats won three games to none.
West Elgin won the TVRA Central Division title, defeating London Christian, coming back from down two games to none, taking the gold match in five games.
More images on Instagram - hometownplay