M’CHIGEENG—The Manitoulin Secondary School (MSS) Mustangs junior girls’ volleyball team recently won the North Shore Secondary School Athletic Association (NSSSA) championship.
The team finished in first place in the league standings, losing only one game all season—to Espanola. They then won the NSSSA championship, playing against Elliot Lake in the finals. The games were at MSS and the Mustangs won in three straight games in the playoff tournament held in late February.
At the Northern Ontario championships held earlier this month at Confederation in Val Caron, the Mustangs only won one of their four matches but were within reach in every match, said coach Sherry Thirkill. “Every player got to play in each match, which is very unusual, but they all got us there so I felt that they all deserved to play.”
“It was such a treat to coach this team,” stated Ms. Thirkill. She praised the efforts of Delaney Campbell, Jo Debassige, Derrick Debassige and Peter Kategiannis for helping out with practices and sharing their wealth of knowledge.
“And thanks to all the supportive parents who drive the kids to tournaments and cheered the girls on throughout the year,” added Ms. Thirkill.
The Mustangs team was made up of coaches Sherry Thirkill and Neil Debassige, manager Leah Carrick and players Darci Debassige, Jordan Bailey, Sienna McGraw, Madison Skippen, Amber Wiwchar, Dakota Mishibijima, Ayriel Nodecker, Autumn Deschenes, Whittier Dwyer-Gauthier, Chloe Peltier, Naomi Naokwegijig, Hailey McGillis-Prior and Sophie Hietkamp.
