Volleyball for Life!!!

Just because you’ve moved on from competitive youth volleyball and on to the post-secondary adventure doesn’t mean you stop loving and playing the game!!!

For four of our BYVC alumni, they’ve gone on to the University of Guelph and joined others from clubs around Ontario to play as a team in the Ladies Intramural Volleyball League.

This past weekend the team competed in the finals and took first-place! Congrats to Jordan Webb, Abby McNamara, Grace Segato, and Maddy ONeill!!!

Volleyball for Life!!!

Brantford Sport Council, Sports Recognition Finalists and Winners for BYVC!!!

The Brantford Sports Council held its 17th annual awards and recognition celebration on Saturday at the Sanderson Centre, handing out awards to winners.

Founders Rick and Sandy Beedham were recognized by winning the George Jones Memorial Award – Lifetime Sports Volunteerism for their tireless dedication, passion, hard work and commitment to their sport community for over 25 years!!! 

Rick and Sandy founded the Brant Youth Volleyball Club to give youth volleyball players in the Brantford-Brant community the opportunity to play and love the game. We are very fortunate that even today, 25 years later, we are continuing to see their direct and indirect impact on the greater volleyball community.

Congratulations to you both!!! Well-deserved recognition for everything that you have done and continue to do for our club and community.!!!

Also, congratulations to our Tina Hedley for being a finalist for The George Churchill Memorial Award. This award is given to an individual who has demonstrated commitment to volunteering for our athletes. Tina, our Club Administrator, is meticulous, conscientious, and unwavering in her support of the club and all its programs. While Tina was not a winner this year, she’s still a winner in our eyes!!!

Co-Ed Developmental Beach Volleyball Programs are Open for Registration!!!

BYVC is pleased to announce the 2023 Co-ed Developmental Programs are now open for registration!!! Click HERE to see additional information. Registration is first-come, first-served. There are participant limits so sign up early!!

All sessions will be at Green Lane Park in Paris on Wednesday nights and run for 6 weeks. There will be 2 waves – Wave 1 will be from May 17 to June 21.  Wave 2 – from July 5 to Aug 9. Each wave will have 2 sessions – early from 6:00 to 7:00, late from 7:15 to 8:15.

Programs available:

Wave 1 Early – Parent Child. Cost will be $105. Click HERE to register for Parent Child

Wave 1 Late – Spikes. Cost will be $115. Click HERE for Spikes.

Wave 2 Early – Junior Rec House League. Cost will be $120. Click HERE for Junior HL.

Wave 2 Late – Senior Rec House League. Cost will be $125. Click HERE for Senior HL.

Brant Tornadoes – 17U Girls – Bugarski Cup

On Saturday, March 4th, the 17U Tornadoes had their final event of the regular season at the Bugarski Cup – Trillium in Simcoe.

The Tornadoes battled hard and showed hustle throughout the day to secure their 5th place finish. There were big contributions all around that kept the team competitive all day. Offensively, there was strong serving from Emily, and big swings from Kimberlee, Scarlette, and Kyleeya. Defensively, Lizzy and Katie took control in the back row. All around, Coach Andrew was happy to see a fighting and persevering spirit from the team today from the first match all the way to their last.

Game Results:

Pool Play
L vs Simcoe Xtreme Thunder (21-25, 25-20, 12-15)
L vs LVC Flare (17-25, 11-25)

Playoffs
W vs Simcoe Xtreme Avalanche (18-25, 25-23, 15-13)
L vs Chatham Ballhawks (20-25, 11-25)
W vs Simcoe Xtreme Thunder (25-19, 25-19)

Players of the tournament: Lizzy Woodhouse, Scarlette Roney, Katie Slater. Honorable mention for their efforts today: Kyleeya Johnson and Emily Hall

Brant Tornadoes – 6V6 – Bugarski Cup, Bronze Medal!!!

The BYVC 6v6 team capped off their regular season series of tournaments with a bronze medal finish at the OVA’s Bugarski Cup Trillium tournament in London.  The team showed their determination and desire by winning games when it mattered the most.  Three out of five matches for the day went to tiebreakers and each time they buckled down and prevailed in a tight score.

In pool play they defeated London VC Fire 25-18, 14-25, 15-12 and lost to the #2 seeded St Thomas Express 18-25, 19-25.  This set them up for a quarter-final match up with the #4 seeded London Forest City Maples.  After dropping the first set 14-25, they rebounded to win the next two sets 25-14, 17-15 to advance to the semi-final.

A 22-25, 22-25 loss to the top seeded Guelph Jr Gryphons sent them to the bronze medal match where they would meet the Stratford Stingers.  The bronze medal match was a re-match from their last tournament which Stratford had won in 2 straight.  After dropping the first set, 18-25, the Tornadoes regrouped to win the next two sets 25-18, 18-16 and capture the bronze medal.

The team looks forward to continuing to work hard in practice and taking their positive attitudes to Provincials at the end of April.

Team members in picture below:

Front row (left to right) Alaina Fazari, Macey Matthews, Grace McDougall, Sienna Liu
Back row (left to right) Coach Maddy Eelkema, Emma Reynolds, Emma Marie Bocas Laurence, Megan Reeder, Alexis Teet, Ema Naveas, Coach Rick Beedham

Brant Tornadoes TLS Vortex – Bugarski Cup

On February 25th, at the TLS Bugarski Cup – Championship B in Georgetown, Brant TLS Vortex started the tournament strong, resulting in a first-place finish in their Pool.

The afternoon looked different with the Tornadoes dissipating with energy leaving the day with a 9th-place finish.

Game Results:

Pool Play:
W vs. Lakeside Billao (25-27, 25-23, 15-9)
W vs. Georgetown Impact Invasion (25-7, 25-22)

Results from playoff rounds not submitted.

Brant Tornadoes 18U Girls – Furlani Cup – Championship Division

This past weekend, the 18U Brant Tornadoes made their way to the Niagara Falls Convention Centre for the 18U Furlani Cup – Championship Division.

After finishing 2nd in their pool, the girls started their playoff run with a 2-set loss to Twin Bridges ThunderStruck in the quarterfinals before finishing the day in 5th with a victory against Chatham Ballhawks Glide. Their fifth place finish will keep the girls in the Championship division for the Bugarski Cup, their last regular season tournament.

Until then, coaches hope that the team will rise to the challenge together and will continue to put in the hard work required to compete and achieve their highest potential.

Game record:

Pool Play:
W vs Chatham Ballhawks Glide (25-21, 24-26, 15-9)
L vs. Scorpions Telsons (19-25, 22-25)

Playoffs:
L vs. Twin Bridges ThunderStruck (11-25, 21-25)
W vs. Chatham Ballhawks Glide (25-7, 25-18)

Players of the tournament: Athena Hedley, Anna Carter, Sarah Lawlor.

Brant Tornadoes TLS Synergy – Bugarski Cup, 4th Place Finish

The 14u Synergy team completed the regular season portion of their schedule on a high note by capturing a fourth-place finish at the Championship level of the Bugarski Cup held in Kitchener. 

Starting the season in the Trillium Division, they earned a promotion to this Championship level tournament with a second-place finish in their previous event.

 
They started the day seeded ninth out of nine teams in a pool with #3 seed Chatham Ball Hawks and #4 seed St Thomas Express Rockets.   The seeding held true for pool play as Synergy dropped two straight to Chatham 15-25, 18-25 and ended up on the short end of a 10-25, 25-15, 3-15 decision versus St Thomas.
Things took a turn for the better in playoffs.  Synergy used scrappy defense, aggressive serving, some timely hits and a couple of key blocks to win their first two matches of the playoffs.  They opened with a straight set win vs KW Predators Apex 25-22, 25-11. 

Next up was a match vs KW Predators Valkyries who had upset the tournament’s #1 seeded Niagara Rapids Torrents in pool play to grab the top place in Pool A.  Undeterred by their opponent’s lofty seeding, Synergy earned a spot in the medal round by winning 25-23, 10-25, 15-7. 

Those two wins would be their last of the day as they dropped a semi-final match versus Essex South County Bandits 11-25, 18-25.  Their day ended with a 19-25, 20-25 loss to Niagara Rapids Torrents in the bronze medal match.

 
 

Athletic Association of Brant, Haldimand & Norfolk Counties (AABHN) Finals

Brant Tornadoes were well represented Thursday night in the Athletic Association of Brant, Haldimand & Norfolk Counties (AABHN) Finals. The match saw Pauline Johnson CVS face off against St. John’s College but ultimately it was the undefeated St. John’s Eagles who took the title.

Congratulations to both teams and to our BYVC athletes: from PJCVS – Lizzy (17U) and Kelsea (17U). For SJC (pictured from L to R), Lucia, Sarah, Anna, and Quinn who are all from our 18U Tornadoes.

Best of luck to both PJCVS and SJC squads as they move on to represent their schools at CWOSSA in the AA and AAA divisions, respectively.

Brant Tornadoes TLS Vortex – Exhibition Game

After their last tournament and gold medal finish at the TLS McGregor Cup – Trillium Division, Brant VORTEX is currently ranked #55 of 166 teams in TLS standings.

On Sunday, the team participated in an Invitational Exhibition Tournament in London. The team split every game against teams are currently ranked higher than them. The respective rankings and scores of the tournament are listed below:

Game 1 vs FCVC Evergreen (#33) 12-25, 25-23

Game 2 vs Chatham Ballhawks Fly (#48) 18-25, 25-19

Game 3 vs St Thomas Express Rockets (#51) 25-27, 25-19

Game 4 vs FCVC Banyan (#45) 25-21, 23-25

Coach Zandra reflects on her team’s performance: “VORTEX is progressing nicely through the season, we are working hard and improving every step of the way. Well done girls 👏”

Brant Tornadoes 17U Girls – McGregor Cup

The 17U Tornadoes competed in the OVA McGregor Cup, Trillium division on Sunday Feb. 5th in Simcoe.

High energy and strong serving led to a first place finish in their pool over Niagara Rapids (St. Catherine’s) and Jr. Gryphons (Guelph) but after a long lunch break, the team had a slow start in their quarterfinal dropping to Xtreme (Simcoe).

In their game for 5th/7th, the team dropped their last two sets to the Vipers (Grimsby).

Although it was not the results that the team would have liked, we are happy to see the huge progress and skill development since the beginning of the season. The team is looking forward to working hard to have a strong showing at our next tournament, the Bugarski Cup.

Results:
W vs Jr. Gryphons (25-13, 25-17)

W vs Niagara Rapids Ignite (25-20, 19-25, 15-10)

L vs Simcoe Xtreme (15-25, 20-25)

L vs Grimsby Vipers (25-13, 25-18)

Players of the Tournament: Kelsea Peckham, Lizzy Woodhouse, Kimberlee Nicholson

Brant Tornadoes – 4V4 – McGregor Cup

Our 4v4 teams travelled to Milton to compete in the McGregor Cup on January 28, 2023. Both teams saw success with Whirlwind winning 8/12 sets and Tsunami winning 4/12. Both teams had lots of close sets and Tsunami even had a game go to 29-31.

For Whirlwind, Bridget did a great job of digging up the balls and leading cheers on the court. Ella was a force at the tip with excellent setter dumps and leading cheers. Riley did an awesome job serving deep scoring lots of ACEs. Avery’s overhand serve was hard for teams to pass up and scored lots of points. VasiLisa did a great job keeping her hands up at the net and blocking balls. Marlo developed her overhand serve for this tournament and saw lots of success.

For Tsunami, Ada had great defence and was an excellent server. Emmy was a great setter and had a great attitude all day. Sloane was a strong hitter and had good defence on the net. Violette had good serves and cheered her team on all day. Bella was a very strong passer and went from passing free balls over the net to hitting balls for strong offence. Mya’s passes were very consistent and she was a force to be reckoned with at the net.

We look forward to seeing what else these girls can do at their next tournament!

Brant Tornadoes – 6V6 – McGregor Cup

The 6v6 team competed in the OVA McGregor Cup, Trillium division on Saturday Feb 3.  They improved on their performance from the previous tournament by reaching the medal round and finishing fourth.  Using team enthusiasm and new defensive and offensive schemes they powered to a first-place finish in their pool and won their quarter final to put themselves into the medal round.
 
Pool play:
W vs Oakville Defensa Purple 25-12, 22-25, 15-9, W vs Stratford Stingers Attack – 25-14, 25-20
 
Playoffs:
W vs Norfolk Chaos Climb 15-25, 25-20, 15-7, L vs Stratford Stingers Wasp 11-25, 14-25, L vs Niagara Rapids Storm 21-25, 15-25
 
The team looks forward to improving their defense and being more consistent on offense at their next event.

Brant Tornadoes 6V6 – Challenge Cup

The 6v6 girls team loaded up their vehicles and followed the 401 westbound as far as you can to the city of Windsor for their second tournament of the season.  They ended up in a really competitive pool that produced the gold and silver medalists.  The Tornadoes fought their way to a 5th place finish out of 9 teams.

Pool play opened against the Essex South County Bandits Teal team (eventual gold medal winners). We managed scores of 21-25 and 19-25.  The 40 total points we scored were the most they allowed all day.  Second pool play game was against the Chatham Ballhawks 31 team – scores were 25-18, 16-25, 10-15

After losing the opening playoff game vs Essex South County Bandits Black 3 team via scores of 22-25, 15-25, the Tornadoes finished the day on a positive by winning their last two matches.  They defeated Sarnia Twin Bridges Thunder 25-14 and 25-18 and defeated Essex South County Bandits Black 2 team 25-16, 25-21.

The team successfully worked at consistently using 3 touches to generate quality attacks.  We also served really well with only a few misses.  Our team defense improved as the day went on.   The team and coaching staff are looking forward to their next opportunity to show their quickly improving individual and team skills.

Brant Tornadoes 4V4 Girls – Provincial Cup

Our two 4v4 teams, Tsunami and Whirlwind competed on Sunday at Paris District High School in their second tournament of the year. Since the tournament was local our cheering section was louder than ever and lots of spectators got to come out that wouldn’t normally be able to make it. The players had a lot of fun showing what they have learned these past 3 months.

For Tsunami: Riley played amazing at the net had some great tips. Avery’s overhand serves showed great power and precision. Ella had some amazing passes with excellent serve receives. Emmy was strong and consistent all around. Mya’s serves and passing were consistent we missed her in the morning! Violette surpassed her goal for service over the net showing great improvement from last tournament.

For Whirlwind: Bridget did a great job getting under the ball to set and passing up to the setter. Ava had some rockets with her overhand serve and did a great job digging up balls. Bella was consistent all around and won a blocking joust at the net. Sloane’s deep serve scored a lot of points. Marlo did a great job passing up the freeball so the team could get 3 touches.

Brant Tornadoes 6V6 Girls – Provincial Cup

The 6v6 team from BYVC kicked off their competitive season on November 20th, at Holy Trinity Catholic High School in Simcoe, by finishing 3rd out of 10 teams at the OVA Provincial Cup tournament with an overall record of 6 wins and 3 losses.
For 9 of the teams’ 10 girls this was their first competitive OVA experience, and they represented the club well.  Each player had at least one sparkling moment and the team consistently tried to use 3 touches in their rallies.
They had numerous “gold star” plays – a pass, set and kill the first time the ball crossed over the net to them.
Game scores:
W vs Norfolk Chaos Climb 25-22, 25-17
W vs Hamilton MVC Athabasca 25-11, 13-25, 15-13
W vs Norfolk Chaos Blast 25-22, 25-22
L vs Grimsby Vipers 5-25, 11-25

Brant Tornadoes U17 Girls – Provincial Cup

On November 19, 2022, the 17U Tornadoes competed in the Trillium Division at their Provincial Cup in Windsor, ON.

Pool Play:

Their first match of the day was against Rose City United White (Windsor). The Tornadoes won both games of their first match (25-18, 25-11).

Their next match was against LVC Flare (London). A close match saw the Tornadoes split this match 1-1 (23-25. 25-18).

The last pool play match was against a tough LS Hammerhead Shark Frenzy (London). This match also ended in a split (25-21, 10-25).

With a set record of 4-2, the 17U Tornadoes finished 2nd in their pool.

Playoffs:

In the playoff round, the 17U Tornadoes had a slow start after lunch against South County Bandits Select (Essex County). The 17U Tornadoes lost to the tournament hosts (18-25, 15-25).

Rebounding after their playoff loss, the 17U Tornadoes played again against Rose City United White (Windsor) with a 2-set win (25-15, 25-21).

The team then played against LVC Flare (London) losing in a tough 3-setter (21-25, 25-13, 8-15). The 18U Tornadoes finished 6th in the tournament and will remain in the Trillium Division for their next tournament, the 17U Challenge Cup (Dec. 18, 2022).

Players of the Tournament: Angelina Bobby, Taya Melanson, Lizzy Woodhouse.

Brant Tornadoes U18 Girls – Provincial Cup

On November 12, 2022, the 18U Tornadoes competed in the Championship Division at their Provincial Cup in Thorold, ON.

Pool Play:

Their first match of the day was against EVP Bodanis (Oakville). The Tornadoes won their first match in a 3-set victory (25-17, 12-25, 15-9).

Their next match was against the #1 seeded FCVC Methuselah (London). It was a close match which ended in a 0-2 Loss for the team (20-25, 10-25).

With this record, the 18U Tornadoes finished 2nd in their pool.

Playoffs:

In the playoff round, the 18U Tornadoes had a strong start against FCVC Magnolia (London) but lost 0-2 (25-27, 7-25).

Rebounding after their playoff loss, the 18U Tornadoes played against Scorpions Telsons (Cambridge) finishing their day off with a 2-set win (25-19, 25-16). The 18U Tornadoes finished 5th in the tournament and will remain in Championship for their next tournament, the 18U Challenge Cup (Dec. 3, 2022).

Players of the Tournament: Quinn McLeod, Emily Hall, and Athena Hedley.

Brant Tornadoes Whirlwind and Tsunami 4X4 – Provincial Cup

4v4 volleyball is for our youngest competitive players.

They are a team of 12 that breaks into 2 teams of 6 for tournaments. This weekend the 2 teams competed in Smithville as Whirlwind (blue jerseys) and Tsunami (orange jerseys).

Both teams showed off what they have learned in practices and saw success on the court. It was a jam-packed day as there was 7 teams present and both Whirlwind and Tsunami played 5 games each.

Whirlwind won 7/15 sets and Tsunami won 3/15. Both teams had lots of very close sets, Tsunami had 4 sets that went above 15 due to the win by 2 rule.

We look forward to seeing what else these girls can do at their next tournament!

Brant Tornadoes Synergy 14U Girls – Provincial Cup

Congrats to the Tornadoes Synergy 14U Team who finished with a 2-2 record in their first-ever tournament on Saturday, Nov. 5th, in Windsor! Great work and improvement seen by the whole team!!

Game Results:

L   1-2 vs. Oakville EVP Eagles
W  2-1 vs. South County Bandits Black 3
W  2-0 vs. St. Thomas Express Spikes
L   2-0 vs. South County Bandits Black 4

Next tournament will the Challenge Cup, December 17th!!