The Central Cyclones and Vanier Spirits now know what they’ll be up against at the 4A high school girls provincial volleyball championship in Nipawin this coming weekend.
The Cyclones -- who finished second in the Moose Jaw city championship and were runners up to Lumsden in their regional playdown -- are the third seed in Pool B for provincials. They open their run against Meadow Lake on Friday afternoon before taking on Humboldt and Nipawin to wrap up the first day of preliminary round action. Central closes out their round robin against Melfort on Saturday morning.
The Spirits lost in the city championship semifinal and finished third in regionals, and as a result are the fourth seed in Pool A. They face North Battleford John Paul II, Martensville and Lumsden on Friday followed by Tisdale in their final round-robin game Saturday
The top four teams advance to the quarter-finals beginning at 12:30 p.m. Saturday, followed by the semfiinals at 3 p.m., bronze medal game at 4:30 p.m. and gold medal game at 5:30 p.m.
Central and Vanier will also be in action at the 4A boys regional playdown hosted by Yorkton Sacred Heart on Saturday.
The city champion Vikings will take on Melville and Humboldt in their round robin, while the city semifinalist Cyclones will do battle with Lumsden and Yorkton Sacred Heart in their preliminary round games.
The top two teams from each pool advance to the semifinals, with the winners there taking two of the three provincial berths. The semifinal losers will play for third place and the final provincial spot.
The Assiniboia Rockets will look to build on their runner-up showing in the Moose Jaw city championship with a solid performance at the 3A boys regional in Outlook. They’ll be joined by Briercrest Christian Academy at the event, who they’ll play in their first round-robin game Friday.
Assiniboia and Briercrest Christian will also face Biggar and Kindersley in their pool, while Unity, Outlook, Shaunavon and Rosetown make up Pool A. As the provincials hosts, Assiniboia has an automatic berth in the title tournament, meaning the top three teams in addition to the Rockets will advance to provincials.
The Cornerstone Christian School Falcons will take the floor at the 2A regional playdown in Eston. The Falcons will face Eston and Ogema in their round robin, with the top two teams from each advancing to the playoff round and the finalists moving on to provincials in Gull Lake.
Be sure to keep an eye on www.shsaa.ca for all the latest scores and updates from the weekend.
