In more than 35 years of coaching, Ritchie Mallari has never seen a team come together the way the R.E. Mountain junior girls Eagles volleyball team has.

A newly-formed team with little previous experience in playing organized, top-level competitive volleyball, the Eagles finished their second season undefeated at the 91原创 district level, took silver in the Valleys regionals and finished fifth province-wide.

鈥淚t was 91原创enal,鈥� Mallari remarked.

鈥淥ne of the top seasons I鈥檝e ever had.鈥�

He described the Eagles as a 鈥渢ruly good鈥� defensive team, with a 鈥渇un and potent鈥� offensive capability.

鈥淢any times teams did not know where attacks were coming from,鈥� Mallari recalled.

He described how there would be moments in a game when it would look like the Eagles were in trouble, and they would come through.

鈥淚t was beautiful to watch,鈥� Mallari enthused.

鈥淭hey could be down 15 points and still come back.鈥�

READ ALSO: Mud, sweat, and tears in 91原创 high school鈥檚 Tough Eagle

READ ALSO: COMMITTED: to family, kindness, and each other

After their first season, when Eagles had a fourth-place district finish and didn鈥檛 make it to the Fraser Valleys, the team set its sights on achieving specific goals for the season.

Included on the list was qualifying for the provincials, finishing top four in the Valleys regional competition, finishing top two in the district.

One by one, they checked off every one.

They didn鈥檛 lose a set during district play, won silver at the Valleys and finished fifth provincially.

As Grade 10 players, the team has two more years of competition before they all graduate.

Mallari is looking forward to the 2020 season.

鈥淚t鈥檒l be a fun year.鈥�

dan.ferguson@langleyadvancetimes.com
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter