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The Great Plains College SunDogs mens volleyball team celebrate their PAC Provincial Championship in Swift Current Saturday (Photo: Brad Brown)

 

For the second time in three years, the Great Plains College SunDogs are the Prairie Athletic Conference men’s volleyball champions. The SunDogs claimed provincial gold for the first time since 2009 with a four-sets win Saturday over the Bethany Eagles (25-14, 22-25, 25-15, 25-12) at Swift Current Comprehensive High School.

Winning the final proved easier than getting there for the host SunDogs, who received a bye to the semifinal as a result of finishing first in the regular season. The Saturday morning semifinal against the Millar Edge saw the SunDogs fall behind 18-14 in the first set and 21-15 in the second set. But SunDogs coach Travis Cuthbert rallied his troops during a pair of timeouts and the SunDogs went on to sweep Millar 25-20, 27-25, 25-16.

SunDogs left-side hitter Darby Zacharias was named the men’s playoffs MVP, adding to the SunDogs’ weekend trophy haul that also included coach of the year (Cuthbert), two league all-stars (Dallin Martin and Ty Vandersteen), and the league MVP honours (Martin).

“It feels great,” said Cuthbert, whose team won 11 of 12 matches and 33 of 42 sets during the regular season and playoffs. “The guys played with great energy – it was basically on a plateau the entire weekend. They didn’t get too high and they didn’t get too low.

“I don’t know exactly what to expect at Westerns but from what I saw here this weekend, we should be able to hold our own against any of the teams there.”

The SunDogs women also came in with momentum on their side, but failed to win a game. They opened provincials Friday with a straight-sets loss to Millar (25-16, 27-25, 25-19) and fell in three sets to the Eagles (25-15, 25-13, 25-14) Saturday in the B-side semifinal.

Bethany went on to beat Millar in four sets for bronze. The Kelsey Amaruks beat the upstart Woodland Wild in straight sets in the men’s bronze medal game.

“We didn’t get the results that we wanted but the girls played hard,” said SunDogs coach Morgan Halyk. “They came together as a team, and we’re really looking forward to ending our season on a high note at Westerns.”

Over 150 fans were in attendance for the men’s final, and more than 300 others tuned in online over the course of the day as Great Plains streamed six games live, including the men’s and women’s championship games.

Both SunDogs teams will represent Great Plains at the Western Canadian College Open Volleyball Championships, scheduled for Friday and Saturday in Olds, Alta. The SunDogs men captured silver at that event in 2010.