Another year, another Foothills Falcons senior boys volleyball title.
The Falcons won their sixth consecutive Foothills Athletic Council championship when they downed the Strathcona-Tweedsmuir Spartans 3-1 in the final Thursday at the Crescent Point Field House near Aldersyde.
Although the Spartans were underdogs, they were like an annoying toy poodle nipping at your heels — they just wouldn’t go away.
STS surprised the Comp by winning the first set 25-22, before losing three straight (25-10, 25-18, 27-25).
“I think we underestimated them, we took them too lightly,” said Falcons middle Mason Sheen. “We just wanted to come back and play our game. (Coach Corey Cowper) told us he wasn’t too worried. If we just played our system, we would be okay.”
Okay, the Falcons were downright frightening in the second set.
“They opened up their eyes and went after it in set 2,” said Spartan head coach Dale Roth.
The Falcons steamrolled to a 25-10 victory in the second stanza, highlighted by Sheen slamming a ball straight down on the Spartans side of the net for a commanding 10-1 lead.
“We had a lot more energy and lot more desire to win that set,” he said.
The Falcons coasted to a 25-18 victory in set 3, and were on Easy Street in the fourth set with a six-point lead.
Then they got a change of address.
The Spartans took a 25-24 lead and were serving to force a fifth-and final set.
The Falcons rebounded and took a 26-25 lead when power Liam Hall showed his soft touch by hitting the corner of the court with a set.
Foothills won the title when Sheen blocked a Spartan Harrison Hart spike that dropped on the STS side of the court.
“I just went up and Tyler (Falcons outside hitter Tyler Ziehl) was right beside me and closed things up,” Sheen said. “The ball just went straight down.”
Although moral victories are about as satisfying as porridge, Roth said the Spartans will learn from the FAC final loss.
“I told the guys every time we face adversity you learn something you can use in the future,” Roth said. “Pushing back after set 2, rallying after being down in set 4, that’s adversity that will help us in the future.”
Falcon setter Josh Clutterbuck said the team got a wake up call in the first set loss.
“I don’t think there was pressure on us, but we can’t take them lightly like we did in the first set,” said Clutterbuck, who has been back in action for about three weeks due to a summer rugby injury. “They are pretty scrappy, they get to everything.”
The Falcons will now play the George McDougall Mustangs in the best-of-three zone 4A South Central zone championship.
Cowper said being tested by the scrappy Spartans will help them as they go into zones.
“This was a good message as we go into zones, because if we play like we did tonight we won’t be going to provincials,” Cowper said. “It should be a good motivator to work a little harder as we prepare the next week for zones.”
History backs up Cowper’s words. The Mustangs stunned the Falcons last season at zones.
The first match is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 17 at the Comp with match 2 going on Nov. 19 at George Mac in Airdrie, both games are at 6 p.m. If a third match is needed it will go Saturday Nov. 19 back at Foothills at 2 p.m.
The Strathcona-Tweedsmuir Spartans will go to 2A zones at Oilfields High School in Black Diamond on Nov. 20-21. The Spartans are hosting 2A provincials on Nov. 26-28.
Holy Trinity Academy will be at Highwood High in High River Nov. 20-21 for 3A zones.
