Senior Rebels headed to OFSAA after GHAC victory

It turns out that next week's trip to the provincial high school girls' volleyball championships for the Georgetown senior Rebels should be just like another Halton league away match as this year's Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations AAAA tournament takes place in Waterdown. About a half-hour drive away, the Rebels decided that they'll save the cost of staying in a hotel for the twoday tourney, which begins Tuesday. Along with the comfort of sleeping in their own beds instead of bunking four to a hotel room, Georgetown's seniors have the confidence of going undefeated in Halton this season and boasting a 35-3 mark overall. "It's a special group of girls and even before the season started there was a feeling that we could play with any team in the province if we bring our `A' game, and I definitely think this team is peaking at the right time," said coach Kyle Stewart. "They have the potential to get a medal at OFSAA. It's up to them now." Where the Rebels are seeded amongst the 16 teams who have qualified has yet to be determined. A formula is used that factors in league records, tournament play and recent OFSAA appearances and since it's Georgetown's first trip to the provincials in five years, the path to the medal round could involve facing the top seeds. "It's tough to say. I feel we should be in the top ten but then we haven't seen a lot of the teams that will be there," Stewart added. "We won gold at two tournaments and lost in the semifinals of two others. The only two teams we've played are Waterdown, who we beat in the final of the Sheridan College tournament, and we lost to Lucas (London) in the semifinals at Oakville-Trafalgar. It's a real toss-up where we'll stand." The Rebels left no doubt about the outcome in the Golden Horseshoe Athletic Conference (GHAC) championship match on Tuesday in Hamilton, cruising past host Cardinal Newman 25-18, 2624, 25-17. Joanna Meltzer and Jessica Partridge provided some scoring hits and Katie Banks helped co-ordinate the GDHS passing attack. It's literally been a banner season so far for Georgetown's girls' volleyball program as the junior squad also didn't lose all year on the way to claiming the Halton AAAA title last week at Sheridan College. As well, the midget side has swept through the competition and took top spot at a recent junior-aged tournament in Brampton.

As well as earning the Halton AAAA senior girls' volleyball championship last week at Sheridan College (pictured above), the Georgetown Rebels qualified for the 16-team provincial playdowns by beating Hamilton's Cardinal Newman on Tuesday in three straight sets. Members of the team (front, from left) are: Chandra Massey, Katie Banks, Laura Haynes, Janine Witton, Brittany Cubitt, Emma Schreiber. Back row: Jessica Partridge, Joanna Meltzer, coach Kyle Stewart, Megan Shantz, Cat Skirrow, Kodi Veenstra.