Foothills had an ace up its sleeve at the Volleyball Alberta provincials. In their first year playing out of the Crescent Point Field House the Aces capped off the season in style with the U14 girls posting an undefeated mark en route to the Division III provincial championship last month in Edmonton. “It’s fantastic for the community, fantastic for the Foothills division and a great way to promote and grow the sport in the community,” said Foothills Aces technical director David Wildman. Foothills finished in top spot through the round-robin and cruised through the playoff round to a gold medal showdown with the Rhinos Volleyball Club out of Bonnyville. They clinched the title in a three-set seesaw tilt over the Rhinos after dropping the first set. “I would love to say there is one standout player, but volleyball truly is a team game,” Wildman added. “They’ve worked hard for that one tournament, they’ve played in tournaments all season, but the focus was to peak at the optimal time, the provincial championships.” Foothills, with six teams playing out of the field house, did it with a team largely new to one another under the guidance of head coach Tammi Archer – a teacher at Heritage Heights School. “This is the first year Ace has been in Crescent Point, in the Foothills, so this was a brand new established team for this year,” Wildman said. “It’s a first year team and hopefully a lot of positive things come from this in future years, based on the result.” New to the Foothills, and boasting divisions in Calgary, Lethbridge and the Fraser Valley, the victory is priceless for a club still establishing itself in the community. “Being a new team they have a lot to prove,” Wildman said. “A lot of people look at Foothills volleyball and see it as second rate, obviously we don’t, we promote competitive club teams. A lot kids come into this thinking a lot of people overlook the skill that we actually have and we’re here to prove people wrong, to silence the naysayers. “This is great for opportunity for the sport to grow in Foothills and Okotoks and the area. The more kids we can get involved, that’s what to me it’s all about, getting them into the sport, getting them to the level of fair calibre and to compete at that level whatever that level may be.” For more information go to acevolleyballclub.ca
