2009 Sports Performance/Breakers 5 Day Summer Indoor Volleyball Camp August 17^th – 21^st

• The Sports Performance group is recognized as the #1 youth volleyball organization in North America and this will be the first time they will offer their demanding camp program here in Canada.
• There are two streams for the first 3 days which will come together
• This camp is for volleyball players at the high school, collegiate, or club level. The camp has a reputation for being one of the most demanding in North America so come prepared to work hard.
• Please email paul_ley7@hotmail.com or gord.ley@cibc.ca for additional information-click on the links below for printable pamphlet and registration form

2009_spvb_breakers_revised

Sports Performance Camp Registration

“It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish” was Breakers season long motto. Having played in Tier 2 for most of the season and entering the tournament as the sixteenth seed, the U14 boy’s volleyball team exceeded all expectations at the Ontario Provincial Championships. Played in Waterloo over the April 24 weekend, the Breakers finished fourth in the province, narrowly missing the bronze medal. Needing to win one of two games on Day One, the Breakers quickly dispatched of Interclub from Toronto. Having lost to Interclub at the last tournament, the team was eager to prove themselves and dominated every aspect of the game, winning 3 games to none. This victory secured their place in the top tier and maintained the goal of a top ten finish. Breaker’s second game was against the previously undefeated MAC team, winners of every tournament this season. The boys fought hard and eventually overcame a powerful MAC attack to win the third game. The U14s left Day One second in their pool and headed into a tough second day against 3 very strong teams. Day two power pool play is usually very important as it determines a team’s first round opponent in the playoffs. Breakers used Day 2 to hone their skills, practice quicks, step arounds, C and pipe ball attacks. Pakmen, the number two seeded team was the first opponent and Breakers almost defeated them. After winning the first game, Pakmen narrowly won the second and used their momentum to take the tie breaker. The second match was against another Tier One team, the Roos from Ottawa. The Roos played a swarming defense and had a dominating server. Breakers played three very close games but eventually came up short in another tie-breaker. The last power pool match was against the eighth seeded Durham Attack Black. Attack played well, besting the Breakers in two games. Although dropping all three matches Saturday, Breakers played their best volleyball of the season. This Breaker’s team was definitely not out of place against the best in Ontario. Sunday morning was the game…the season hung in the balance as Breakers matched up against the Storm from Aurora. The Storm had bested Breakers in the second tournament of the year, relegating them to Tier two. Breakers wanted revenge! The Breaker team served their lights out…aggressively serving over 94% and including numerous aces. Breakers strong attack and consistent passing overwhelmed Storm, ending their season with a 2 games to none victory. Having won this match and making the quarterfinals, Breakers surpassed their goal of a top ten finish. Next up the quarters. After a 3 hour delay Breakers took to the court to face the Mavericks from Ottawa. This quarter final match saw the boys nervous and playing uncharacteristic volleyball, including inconsistent serving, passing and attacking. Maverick’s took advantage, jumping out to a quick one game lead. The true Breakers retuned in the second game and jumped out to a quick 19-13 lead. But, due to a scoring issue, the officials reset the score to 14-11 for Breakers but gave the service to Mavericks. This cost Breakers several points and swung the momentum in Mavericks favour. After calling a time-out at 22-20 for the Mavericks, the Breakers returned to the court and efficiently took care of business to win the game. In the tie breaker the boy’s played their most inspired game of the season defeating the Mavericks 15-9. Breakers were now a top four team in Ontario. The semi-final match was again against the Attack Black who jumped out to a quick lead. Breakers regrouped and played an enthusiastic second game but came up short. Breakers played the KW Predators in the bronze medal game. This team had only lost one match all tournament, to the eventual champions. The Predators played an almost perfect match with numerous accurate  tips and an awesome display of serving by number 14. The Breakers never gave up and stayed close with scores of 25-21 and 25-22. The Breakers run at the provincial championships came to an end with an unbelievable fourth place finish.

Easter weekend saw the Northumberland Breakers 15U Girls, 18U Girls and 18U Boys teams finish their provincial volleyball competitions at the Ontario Championships in Waterloo, with the 18U Girls team securing a Gold Medal in Tier 2.

The Breakers 18U Girls moved up to Tier 1 in the province in their first tournament of the season in January and competed in two Tier 1 tournaments prior to the Provincials. A ninth and twelfth place finish in the tournaments made the Breakers the eleventh seed going into the 32 team Provincial tournament.

Day one was not the best for the 18U girls as they won only one of three matches. The Breakers opened the day beating lower seed Toronto Royals (25-21, 22-25, 15-6), but lost to lower seed MAC 17U (21-25, 25-23, 12-15) and higher seed Forest City Green (18-25, 14 -25). Forest City went on to a fourth place finish in Tier 1 while MAC finished tie-5^th.

Day two found a re-focused Breakers 18U Girls team in Tier 2 of the Ontario Championship with the Gold Medal their primary objective. The girls established themselves as a contender with wins over Etobicoke Wildcats (22-25, 25-21, 16-14), Georgian Bay Vista (25-12, 25-23) and West Elgin (25-19, 25-11). The win over the Vista was sweet as Georgian Bay had beaten the Breakers the month previously at a tournament in Buffalo.

The final day draw was a 16 team elimination tournament for the Gold Medal. The Breakers started strong handling Etobicoke Titans 17U 25-22, 25-21 and then Toronto 2Strong 25-17, 26-24 setting up a re-match with the Vista in the semi-finals. The team was very aware of their opponent’s strengths and weaknesses and took advantage winning the first game 25-20. The Vista adjusted and took the second 25-22 setting up a third and deciding game. With renewed effort the Breakers took charge and were victorious 15-9 propelling them into the gold medal match against Sudbury’s Northern Chill.

The final was a close match between two very competitive teams. The Chill jumped to a quick 8-0 lead in the first game but the Breakers battled back to tie the game at 24-24 before losing 26-24. The team then knew they would have to dig deeper to win the next two games if they wanted to claim the Gold Medal. The second game was as close as the first but this time the Breakers came out on top winning 25-23. The Breakers started the final game of the tournament with confidence and held the lead the whole way. Northern Chill battled back but fell just short as the Breakers won by two points, 15-13, earning them the Gold Medal. “This tournament was really a team effort with each player shining at different times throughout the weekend,” stated Coach Mark Essak. “We are all very proud of these athletes.”

The Breakers 15U Girls team came into the weekend seeded 24^th and were stacked up against 3 strong teams (2 from Durham Region, and 1 from Peterborough), in the first round of pool play and ended the day 4^th in their pool. The 2^nd day action of pool play saw the 15U girls team hit their stride and came first in their pool winning 2 of the 3 matches against teams from Waterloo, Oakville and Niagara. This moved the Breakers 15U Girls team into the final day quarter final playoffs versus the Acts Elites. After some strong play and great rallies the girls eventually fell to the Elite (0-2) and placed a very respectable 5^th in the tournament.

The Breakers 18U Boys team (seeded 13^th) came up against teams from London, Mississauga and Brantford in the first day of pool play. After some close games and great back & forth rallies the Breakers finished the first day 3^rd in their pool with a 1-2 match record.

The second day of pool play saw the Breakers 18U boys will all 6 of their games to finish 1^st in their pool. They defeated Thunder Bay (3-0) and then took on their rivals the Kingston Pegasus team. The first two games of this match were hard fought and close contests with 2 point margins of victory for the Breakers. The Breakers 18U boys ended up winning the match 3-0 after convincingly winning the third game of the match.

In the quarter-final playoffs the Breakers 18U Boys came up against the Toronto Pakmen 212 team. The Breakers lost the 1^st game by 2points in extended play, then came on to win the 2^nd game again by a 2 point margin. With a hard fought 3^rd game again going into extended play the Breakers eventually fell to the Pakmen 212 team 16-18 (15 pt game) to finish the tournament in 5^th place in Tier 2.

Next up for the 18U Girls and Boy Breakers teams is the Volleyball Canada National Championships in Ottawa May 1^st – 3^rd.

Breakers Competitive 2’s Elite Summer Beach Program Breakdown

*NEW FOR THIS YEAR*

We will be running a special Pre-Nationals Camp August 11/13/18/20 for
those teams who are committed to competing in this years National
Championships. This is exclusively for Elite Program Athletes and will be
at a nominal cost.
We have been approached by Beach Blast from Toronto to have their
National Level Athletes and Coaches work with us this year.
More information will be provided when available.
*********
· Cost: Breaker Athletes – $200.00 or $500.00 Corporate Sponsorship
Non-Club Athletes – $300.00 for non-Breakers
Non Breaker OVA Club Players – $1400.00 ($400.00 credit to athletes
2009/10 indoor program – athletes must commit to play for an indoor
Breaker Club team)
· Coach Athlete Ratio: 1:8
· Practice: 2+ hours per night. Tuesday and Thursday Evenings.
· Practices begin May 12th – August 6th
· Includes: 1 Breakers Beach T-shirt
· Who: All Breaker athletes and athletes who have competitive Volleyball Skills
· Partners: To be determined by Coach, Beach Director and Athletes – if you do not
have a partner we will endeavor to find one for you of equal ability. Athletes may be
asked to play with several partners over the summer based on availability and skill
development.
· Does Not Include: OVA Registration Fee, Beach Volleyball, Tournament
Registration, Indoor Beach Rental (if applicable)
· Must be registered player with the OVA (All Breaker Players currently are)

Registration – March 31st, 2009 at St. Mary’s High School from 6-7pm.

For more information please contact
Gordon Ley (Breakers Beach Director)
at gord.ley@cibc.ca

For the downloadable forms for registration and medical, as well as frequently asked questions, please click on the above link for “Beach”- print them off and bring the completed forms with you to sign-up. See you in the sand!

The Northumberland Breakers 18U Boys team recently completed the indoor tour of 4 tournaments with a Gold Medal win in the Ken Davies Cup held in Brantford Saturday Feb. 28th. The win capped an up and down season for the boys as they managed through injuries and limited rosters for each tournament.

In the latest tournament the boys were missing two of their key starters (Anthony Galonski (setter/power hitter) and Max Dickenson (libero)) but were able to bolster the ranks with 16U call-ups Jared Bihun (libero) and Tyler Scheerhorn (middle).  The team played a strong first match working to adjust to the new line-up and stretching out from the long early morning drive, but lost both sets to the Ottawa Desperados (21-25, 23-25).  However, those were the only sets that they lost that day.  In their second match they met a strong Aurora Storm team, which fell to the Breakers in two straight (25-23, 25-23).  Breakers jumped out to a 6 point lead in the first set but the Storm came back to narrow that to 1 or 2 points throughout the set.  The set was marked by long exciting rallies with some fantastic defensive digs by Callum Mireault (power hitter/setter), blocks by Ryan Elliot (middle) and kills by Jacob Deviney (power hitter).  In the second set of the match the Breakers garnered a lead late in the set with Storm almost succeeding in coming back, but eventually lost to the Breakers by 2 points.

The Breakers advanced to the quarter-finals having finished 2nd in their pool, to meet up with the host Brantford Tornados. The Breakers pulled out to an early lead with Blake Alexander (right side hitter) getting into the game with some key hits and Jared Bihun (libero) providing defensive backup.  The Tornados didn’t give up easily though, coming back several times to keep the games close.  However, the Breakers proved to have too many answers to their attacks and finished the match defeating the Tornados in straight sets (25-20, 25-20).  The Breakers advanced to the semi-final match which saw them face-off against the Windsor Riverside team.  The Riverside team having finished 1st in their pool play came up against the Breakers and went down to defeat 25-20, 25-22.  Although dropping some points at times in each of the two sets, the Breakers continued to play solid volleyball to come up with the wins to guarantee a medal.

Advancing into the Gold Medal match, the Breakers again confronted the Aurora Storm team.  The Storm, having lost earlier to the Breakers, were out to secure a win and the Gold.  However, through some key blocks and hits by middle Tyler Scheerhorn and right side attacker Jeremy Hoekstra, the Breakers continued to score critical points to keep the Storm at bay.  Throughout the tournament setter Brandon Jilesen had kept the other teams guessing with his playmaking and topped it off with some key tips to keep the Breakers in the lead.  The first set went to the Breakers in a back and forth 25-20 win.   The Breakers followed this up with a strong showing securing the Gold medal with a 25-14 win in the second set. Coaches Marc Mireault and Matt Brady were pleased with the win, and felt that the boys demonstrated great volleyball skills and some good mental toughness to finish with no losses after the initial two in the tournament.

The Gold medal in the Ken Davies Championship tier caps off a regular indoor season for the Breakers, and adds to their existing Bronze medal from the McGregor Cup tournament held earlier in the season.  This provides them with some good momentum as they ready for the Provincial Championships to be held in Waterloo April 11-13.

At the recent Ontario Volleyball Association 14-and-under boys’  Hawkins Cup tournament, the host Northumberland Breakers won  what their coach considers to be the most critical match of the day,  and it wasn’t the  gold medal match. Instead, it was the first playoff contest, which is a quarterfinal where teams cross over to play an opponent from the other pool after the round-robin portion of the tournament. The winner carries on as one of the top four remaining teams with the chance to compete for a medal. “That’s always the most important one,” Breakers coach Patti Ley said of the quarterfinal match-up.
In round-robin play, the Breakers earned a sweep over the Toronto Aces, 26-24 and 25-15. They also lost two matches that both went to a third and deciding set. One was to the Vaughan Wolf Pack (25-23, 19-25, 8-15) and the other to the Kingston Cats (22-25, 25-7, 10-15).
Kingston was a team that the Breakers should have been favoured to beat, noted Ley. It was a learning experience for her players. “They learned they could be beat by a weaker team if they’re not focused,” the coach said. “Next game, they were all business.” Northumberland earned a hard-fought win in its quarterfinal match, over the Toronto Boys, in straight sets, 25-17 and 25-22. Ley made sure her players rested and had a small nutritious meal before facing the Boys. “They really do understand that it’s the most important match,” she said. “They answered the call and never gave up.”
In a semifinal match-up, the Breakers lost 2-1 (22-25, 26-24, 9-15) to the Wolf Pack, which Ley described as their toughest opponent at the tournament. A victory (26-24, 25-16) over the Ottawa Maverick Bandits clinched the bronze medal for the Breakers, with the Ottawa Kangaroos winning the tournament with a victory over the Wolf Pack.

The Breakers 16U Girls team had an excellent showing at the Bugarski Cup tournament in Trenton on Saturday, finishing up in 5th place. Starting the morning out against the Stingrays, the Breakers came out slowly and allowed the ‘Rays to steal the first game of the match 25-21 before coming back strong in the second game to win 25-16, and then take the tie-breaker 15-9. In the second match, the Breakers were hitting their stride, beating the Aurora Storm Cyclones two straight, 25-14 and 25-17, finishing first in their pool play.

In the crossover, the Breakers were up against a strong Pembroke Knights team, and it was definitely their best games of the year- the gym was full of parents and players from several teams, with people commenting that the games were the highlight of the days play. The Knights took the first game 25-14, but it was the second game that was so exciting. The two teams almost traded point for point throughout the game, never more than 2 points apart- and even with the Pembroke coach causing constant distractions, the Breakers fought the loud, boisterous team right up until the end, just losing out by a score of 25-23. It was awesome to see the girls working in unison, helping one another, supporting each other, and really coming together as a team.

After such highs and lows from the Knights match, the girls had a much-needed break, relaxed, and then came out solidly against the Chill, winning a close first game 25-23, and then dominating them in the second game 25-16, giving them a 5th place final.

Pool play had the Breakers playing  Durham Attack 13U Red – Breakers won 25-22, 27-25 and 22-25. They then went on to defeat the Ottawa Kangaroos 14U team, winning 25-6, 25-12, 25-14. These results landed the Breakers first in their pool.
Play-offs had the Breakers playing Knights VC, with the  Breakers besting them by scores of 25-18 and 25-19. They then continued on their winning steak by beating the NCVC 14U team 25-18, 27-25, putting them into the gold medal final.
The Gold Medal Match had the Breakers playing Durham Attack Red.  Durham Attack Red was seeded 1st in this tournament, and that was evident by the way they dominated most of the first set before the Breakers slowly started to pull it together.   Breakers did lose the first set 18-25, but dominated the second set (17-2 at one point), going on to win by a score of 25-22.  The tie breaker game went to the Breakers 15-10, a truly amazing win.  Durham Attack Red was stunned, as they did not expect the Northumberland Breakers to win- congratulations to Eric and the girls on their gold medal performance!

Breakers 18U Girls volleyball team went to the first competitive tournament of the Ontario Volleyball Association season seeded fourth and came away with a silver medal.

The Breakers were placed in the Championship Division based on their strong performance last year in the 17U age group. Along with the other 11 teams in the division, the goal was to win or finish second and earn a spot in the top level Premier Division for the next tournament.

Round robin seeding put the Breakers in a pool with fifth seed Aurora Storm Vortex and twelfth seed Etobicoke Titans. The Titans were the first opponents of the day and put up a strong fight, going down in two straight games 25-20 and 26-24. First year Breaker, Amanda Woodburne lead the team with challenging serves and strong power hitting while veteran middle Sherene Einarsson started the team in the right direction with solid defence at the net. After a short rest the Storm, eventual bronze medalists, were also dispatched in two straight 25-19 and 25-14. Setters Brittany Bell and Kelly West made sure all the players were involved with precise sets to every position.

Finishing first in the pool gave the Breakers a bye into the quarter-finals where they played the Ganaraska Wolves from Bowmanville. Ex-Wolf Erika Crocker was eager to play her former team and sparked the team to victory by scores of 25-18 and 25-11. Power hitters Hannah Hubicki and Amanda Egan had numerous kills from the left side for the dominant Breaker team.

The toughest match of the day so far came in the semi-finals against a strong hitting Scarborough Falcons team. Captain Samantha Clarey set the tone for the match by blocking the Falcons top hitter on the first play of the game. From then on consistent blocking by Clarey and Crocker produced a win in the first game 25-20. After falling behind 8-0 in the second game, the Falcons adjusted and surged into the lead 20-12 forcing Coach Mark Essak to make changes in the Breaker line-up. Hubicki came off the bench in an effort to spark the Breakers but the rally fell short as the Falcons defeated the Breakers 25-18 for the Breakers first dropped game of the day. The third game of the match was close with the Falcons pulling ahead 13-11 in the game to 15. West, as libero, played excellent defence and at this point made the pass of the day allowing setter Bell to get the ball to Sydney Fowlis who buried the set and propelled the Breakers to a hard fought 15-13 victory.

Having achieved one of the team’s goals for the day, a berth in the Premier Division for the Bugarski Cup, the second goal was within reach. Only the Barrie Elites stood in the way of a perfect day. The final was a tough match for the Breakers as all the girls saw action over the three games. Barrie won the first game 25-20 forcing the Breakers to dig deeper for the second. Consistent play all around produced a 25-23 victory for the Breakers and set up a 15 point third game to decide the gold medal. The Elites were the stronger team grabbing the gold by a score of 15-5 while the Breakers came home with silver. All the players, coaches and parents were fatigued by the end of the day but were satisfied with the excellent play of all the Breaker athletes. Their focus now will be preparing to compete with the top youth teams in the province at the next tournament February 7^th in Bowmanville.

On January 10, 2009 the Breakers U14 Boys volleyball team competed in the Ontario Volleyball Association’s 2009 McGregor Cup. The boys went 5 -1, suffering their only defeat of the day in the gold medal match. Everyone was extremely proud of a silver medal in our first competition of the season.

The day started off shakily as no substitutes were available for our first match. Our 6 players took to the floor, some in new positions, and quickly beat the Maverick team 2 games straight. Nathan Shakura distinguished himself throughout his first match playing middle. Jean Sebben served several aces and passed the ball well. We dominated our second match winning 2 games straight against the Stouffville Stingers. Mitch Wildenbeest served well and made several key passes while Reilly Reed dominated the middle with strong blocking and several kills. Although injured, Sam Cortesis supported the team all day, keeping stats, graphing game scores and scouting our opponents.

Our third match was against our pool’s other undefeated team, Durham Attack Black. Led by the swarming defense of Ethan Baron and huge blocking and attacking of Blake Scheerhoorn, we again prevailed winning 2 straight. With three wins, we clinched first place in our pool and a cross-over match against the other pool’s fourth place team.

Our playoffs started off well with a resounding 2 game to none victory against a tall St. Michaels team. Our setters Brad Crain and Curtis Smeding dominated the game creating numerous plays that we finished with strong attacks. Our semi-final game was against the Scarborough Titans who had, the month before, bested us in a tie-breaker. With strong serving and team defense we quickly dispatched of the Titans in two games straight.

Having worked so hard since October we were eager to meet our Gold medal opponents…Durham Attack Black. Even though we’d previously bested Attack in pool play we knew they would be a different team in the championship game. After jumping out to quick leads in both games we eventually were outscored by Attack in two close games. Silver medal was still sweet. We exceeded our expectations and are looking forward to perfecting our technique and tactics as we prepare for the remainder of our season.

With this top 4 finish the Breakers U14 Boys team advances to the OVA Championship Tier and will play against the province’s top teams.