History was made this weekend when the U15 girls brought home gold from the OVA's Challenge Cup Championship East Division tournament. They are the first girl's team from North Bay to ever take the top spot in Championship Division. This win secures them a place in the Premier Division on February 25th, 2012 where the top 8 teams in Ontario will face off to battle for top seeding going into the Ontario Provincial Championship in April. Ranked last going into this weekend's Championship Division tournament, the Wildcats knew they would have to be in top form if they were to avoid being knocked down into the Trillium Division where the majority of Ontario's Club teams compete. Focusing on playing a smart defensive game, the Wildcats were successful at thwarting the strong offensive attacks from their opponents, blocking well at the net, and digging up the balls that made it through. Frustrating their opponents with their ability to attack out of all positions, the Wildcats were able to force their opponents to handle the ball and make mistakes. Finishing second in pool play, having suffered a loss to Ottawa's Maverick Stampede, the Wildcats won their quarter final against the Markham Stingers 25-23; 25-13, before meeting the Northumberland Breakers in the semi-final. The girls had a strong start with a decisive 25-10 first set win, then faltered in the second set losing 19-25 . Rebounding in the third set, they won 15-9 to move on to the final gold medal game against the Maverick Ambush. The Wildcats won the first set 25-17, then dropped the second 22-25. Down 5-1 in the third set, the girls fought back hard to take the set 15-10 and claim gold.
