When it comes to volleyball, Kim Or doesn’t believe you can have too much of a good thing.
The Moscrop Panthers senior girls volleyball coach saw just that during tryouts, where so many players tried out that he created a second Panthers roster.
Getting bumped in last year’s Burnaby-New West semifinals, after posting a 5-1 record in league, won’t provide much motivation as all but two on this year’s A team – which Or has labelled Team Blue – are Grade 11s.
Of the team’s Grade 12s, only Mari Wong played last year; incoming senior and starter Camilla Di Vito is a transfer student from Italy.
In fact, the biggest experience most players bring to the court was a strong 8-0 run last year that took them to the Vancouver & District junior final.
“This group I’ve had since Grade 9, coached them in school and club, and Grade 10 last year we won the whole thing,” recalled Or. “This year we take on another challenge – let’s qualify for the provincials and go for it. These girls are unbelievable. Good kids – the culture is really good.”
Team Blue jumped into the thick of the Bur-West league on Wednesday with a season-opening 3-0 win over New West, and already has a pair of tournaments under its belt to bolster a B.C. No. 5 ranking.
They opened up by sweeping the Seaquam tourney, with victories over Delta, Argyle and McRoberts, before taking down Semiahmoo in the semifinal and beating No. 6-rated South Delta in the final. At UBC last weekend, they finished a respectable 18th despite missing three key players.
“All of a sudden they put us fifth in (B.C.), right off the bat. We managed to tough it out (at UBC) and finished 18th out of 44 teams, which is pretty good, with just seven players at the end of the tournament,” said Or.
They were in a pool with 4-A No. 2-ranked Earl Marriott, Lord Byng and Sir Winston Churchill,. This weekend it’s off to the Vancouver Island University tourney, and next week to Kelowna for the University of B.C.-Okanagan Invitational.
Tournament action will go a long way to preparing them for a route to the provincials, with Burnaby expected to host the Lower Mainland championships in November.
“In the Burnaby league, you only have three or four good teams so it’s hard to get that competition, so you worry about it – if they qualify for the provincials, who are they going to be facing?,” he said.
Some Grade 11s are also volunteering with the school’s bantam and juvenile squads, putting in extra time to coach the next wave. They are committed to not only their team, but to the program, he said.
“These girls are actually giving back, as Grade 11s," he said. "I’m living a dream right now, with good kids and good parents. The (school administration) is also so supportive.”
For Or, the start of the regular season is a special time. There’s enthusiasm, high hopes and energy. It’s another reason why he chose to create a second roster, for an exhibition-only schedule.
“It’s just so hard cutting (players). Everyone’s a parent and I hate cutting. You can see they’re happy – a smile, no matter win or lose. They’ll remember these experiences forever,” he said.
Aspiring to compete at the highest level, as they do in club, the players push themselves. Being ranked fifth is a nice bouquet to start the season, but it’s the journey they take and where it leads that will be the memorable part.
““I put my players in a ‘be comfortable in being uncomfortable’ situation,” said Or. “I always challenge them to go harder. If you fail it’s not a big deal. It’s OK to make mistakes. These tournaments are the measuring stick we need, we need to get better every single time.”the measuring stick we need, we need to get better every single time.”
