"It was a fruitful day," noted SCISL Commissioner Alvaro Ludueño in his after-action report on Thursday's thrill-packed first day of activity in the first-ever SCISL Varsity Championship Tournament, which comprised the first half of round robin play.
It was just that some of the fruits came out in unexpected and unusual shapes.
The rest of the round robin competition is slated for today (Friday), weather permitting, with the championship and consolation contests coming Saturday morning. (See schedule in right-hand column.
Girls Volleyball
The marathon, three-set victory by the International girls varsity volleyball team in the final contest of the day, combined with Christian Learning's almost equally as drawn-out three-set victory over International, threw the standings in girls volleyball into a cocked hat.
Any one of the three teams could wind up in the championship game, and, by the same token, any could wind up in the consolation game.
Cambridge had an excellent chance to mess things up even further, and to also be in championship contention, in its match against christian Learning. The Knights won the first set handily, and were up by eight points in the second, before undergoing a mysterious psychological collapse that enabled them to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.
The scores:
Cooperative d. Cambridge 2-0 (25-19, 25-16)
Christian Learning d. International 2-1 (19-25, 25-21, 15-11
Christian Learning d. Cambridge 2-1 (13-25, 25-23. 15-8)
International d. Cooperative 2-1 (27-25, 22-25, 15-8)
Boys Soccer
The Cooperative boys varsity soccer team steamed on its undefeated way, though it faced a strong challenge from International, and got more than token opposition from Cambridge.
The surprise was that Christian Learning, which finished second in the regular season, lost to both International and Cambridge. The Cambridge game was perhaps the most exciting of the day, with the Knights scoring three times in the last five minutes to win 4-2 in a superbly played match.
To qualify for the championship game the Eagles must defeat the unbeaten Jaguars in their game today, and even that might not be enough.
The match to watch will be International against Cambridge. Cambridge, which hasn't won a game all year (though it tied International once) could make the championship game by winning.
The scores:
International 3, Christian Learning 0
Cooperative 4, Cambridge 1
Cooperative 2, International 1
Cambridge 4, Christian Learning 2
Boys Volleyball
No surprises in the early skirmishing in this division. The unbeaten Cooperative boys volleyball team easily defeated Christian Learning in straight sets.
The International-Cambridge three-set donnybrook was a most entertaining match, with the Griffins rallying nobly to win by the narrowest of margins, but it remains to be seen whether either of these two also-rans (who nonetheless played exceeding well against each other) can give Cooperative any trouble today.
If Christian Learning can beat both of these two opponents they will most likely earn the coveted rematch with Cooperative.
The scores:
Cooperative d. Christian Learning 2-0 (25-13, 25-11)
International d. Cambridge 2-1 (22-25, 25-15, 15-13)
Girls Soccer
The big news in girls soccer is that the Cooperative girls varsity soccer team can no longer claim in its list of sobriquets "unscored-upon." Christian Learning put the ball into the Jaguars heretofore chaste goal twice during their game.
It wasn't enough, however, The Jaguars still prevailed 5-2, and still claim to be "unbeaten and untied."
International defeated Cambridge 1-0 in a defensive battle, the only other content played Thursday.
The scores:
International 1, Cambridge 0
Cooperative 5, Christian Learning 2
