Women's Volleyball Huskies salute Kaminski in final home games, keep focus on playoff push
Seeing their losing streak extended to six games wasn’t exactly how the Keyano Huskies Women’s Volleyball team had expected to close off their home schedule, but there’s still life and belief in the team’s playoff hopes.
“We definitely did some good things, and I thought [Saturday] we had a pretty good mindset,” Head Coach Tommy Sloan said. “We showed that in the sense that we won [the opening set].
“Then you have a fifth set where you have a lead and then a few unfortunate bounces don’t go our way. We knew that this semester was full of quality opponents all the way through. We’ve got to find a way to get a couple wins.”
Hosting the University of Alberta – Augustana Vikings, Friday 3-1 ((25-14, 14-25, 25-18, 25-19)) and Saturday 3-2 (25-27, 25-18, 18-25, 25-17, 16-14) losses dropped the Huskies’ record to 10-7 with two games remaining.
In a poetic way, they’ll battle for their playoff lives this coming weekend in Edmonton against The King’s University Eagles, needing two wins to secure their place in the Alberta College’s Athletic Conference’s (ACAC) second season. The Eagles
While the hierarchy in ACAC Women’s Volleyball can sometimes lead to predictable weekends in both the wins and losses column, these two games against the Vikings and two five-set losses against the NWP Wolves were the grey-area weekends, determining how easy the Huskies’ path to the post-season would be.
“It’s continuously reminding ourselves that the loss feels a little bit tough right now, but it’s not the end of the season,” Sloan continued Saturday. “We do have an opportunity to go and not only make playoffs but finish second still honestly.
“We’ve got to keep our eyes focused on the right thing and I think this group gets that.”
It’s also an opportunity for growth with a roster that didn’t face too much adversity in the first half, jumping out to a 10-1 record.
“We’re not that young on the starting lineup, but we are somewhat inexperienced still in terms of how much experience our athletes have in big moments and big points,” Sloan commented. “I think there’s still a learning curve. Learning how to win is a very real thing. When you’re in a little bit of a slump like this right now, you want to try not to forget the success you had in the first semester.
“We’ve got to work to find that spark we had that got us those 10 wins and try to bring that back.”
Huskies salute Kaminski
The lone graduating Huskies recognized this weekend was none other than team captain Karlene Kaminski. Totaling 28 kills, 26 digs, and three blocks, Kaminski continued to improve her stance as the program’s all-time leader in both kills and overall points scored.
“She’s everything,” Sloan said of the fourth year outside hitter from Regina, Sask. “Her impact is felt in ways that people see on the court, but also in holding this group together off the court.
“She’s got a good finger on the pulse of this team and knows who needs help, when they need it. So many of the things that she does will go unnoticed by most people, but she’s an incredibly special person. We want to go get some wins for her.”
The Huskies will take on The King’s University Eagles Friday, February 14 and Saturday, February 15. First serve Friday is scheduled for 6:00pm with a 1:00pm first serve Saturday.