Junior National League U19 Playoffs

Sunday march 16th was another wonderful day for JNL volleyball.  Wishaw Sports Centre was once again the venue for the playoffs and teams were due in for a 10am start. 

The new format for playoffs once again saw the boys on court first.  Glasgow Mets were up against City of Edinburgh and won a very close first set 25-23.  City of Edinburgh then used tough serving and great defense against the powerful Mets side to take the remaining 2 sets 25-16, 15-10, earning them a spot in the final.   South Ayrshire faced Belmont Academy in the other semi-final.  The hard hitting of South Ayrshire proved to be too much for Belmont as they took the sets 25-13, 25-19 to take the remaining position in the final.

Then the girls took to the court in their semifinal games.  South Ayrshire faced Fife Olympiad and used excellent teamwork to battle to a straight set victory 25-19, 25-19, putting them through to the final.  On the other side defending champions Marr College used tough serving and consistent game play to see off East Lothian Falcons 25-14, 25-16 to once again earn them a trip to the final.

It was a very close ¾ match for the boys.  Hard hitting and excellent defense from both teams made this a very enjoyable game indeed.  Glasgow Mets eventually got the better of Belmont, but not by much!  Mets managed to edge out Belmont in 2 straight sets 27-25, 25-23 to place them in 3rd.

The girls ¾ game also saw 2 very evenly matched teams.  Fife came out strong and took the first set 25-16.  East Lothian then battled back to take the nest set 25-20.  In the 3rd and final set East Lothian picked up some momentum and took 3rd place 15-8.

On Sunday April 27th Volleyball National Finals day will feature;

Boys:  South Ayrshire v. City of Edinburgh

Girls:  South Ayrshire v. Marr College

A huge thank you to all those teams involved in JNL this year, all your hard work is much appreciated.  A special thank you to Steve Scott who coordinates the JNL results all year long, your help is vital.

Another thank you, once again to Steve Scott and also to Brian Gaw for all their hard work refereeing.  Thanks to all the parents and friends who came out on the day to support the teams.

Jenni Lloyd