Eight hours of winter highway driving separated the Clarence Fulton Maroons from their home in Vernon.
Judging from the response of the crowd Saturday at Duchess Park gymnasium while they were winning the triple-A girls provincial volleyball championship, home was not that far away.
They could trace their roots back to Maroons power hitter Kolby Richter, who spent the first of her 16 years living in Prince George, and Richter's large extended family and their friends showed up in force to make the Fulton the sentimental favourites in a three-set (25-21, 25-14, 25-17) win over the Timberline Wolves of Campbell River.
"It's unreal to win a provincial championship, I had all my family here and it was so exciting," said Richter. "My parents (Peter and Colleen) both grew up in Prince George and it feels like my second home."
The noise of the crowd helped pump up the Maroons, but the way tournament MVP Kelsey Thompson was dominating the match, they could have played it in a soundproof vacuum and still won. Thompson hit the Wolves from all angles, delivering ground-pounding spikes and deftly-aimed tips that left them helpless.
"The best team won in this final," said Wolves coach Terry Philip "They played amazingly well and there wasn't a whole lot we could do. I don't think our girls had their A-game, but even if we had, I don't know if we could have stopped them. Their hitter just picked us apart, (Thompson) was amazing."
The Grade 12 power hitter left little doubt Fulton would not be denied its first-ever senior girls volleyball B.C. title. Ranked No. 1 all year, they lived up to that billing, going undefeated in the 16-team provincial tournament and knocking off the No. 2-ranked Wolves in the final.
"We all had determination in this and we knew we could pull it off," said Thompson. "We're all like a family, we're all so close and we have each other's backs, no matter what. We all played beach or grass volleyball in the summer and that helped a lot."
Thompson had plenty of support on the court from setter Amanda Sakamoto and middle blocker Tavia Lockhead, both named first-team all-stars. Libero Justine Thomas and hitters Teesha Baker and Taylar Whipple were stellar on defence, limiting the damage from Timberline power hitter Melissa Heidema.
The Maroons were stretched to the limit in the quarterfinals Friday by their Vernon rivals Kalamalka, winning in five sets, 9-25, 25-21, 22-25, 25-11, 15-10. Fulton then breezed through the semifinals, beating Clayton Heights of Surrey in straight sets. In the other semifinal, Timberline needed four sets to beat Little Flower Academy.
Clayton Heights won bronze over Little Flower in two sets.
Fulton coach Sharon Shaigec, a former national team player, coached the Maroons to a second-place provincial finish 20 years ago in Vanderhoof, where they lost in the final to the D.P. Todd Trojans. She's been trying for the championship ever since.
"People don't realize how difficult it is to make it to provincials and to actually do something is a great accomplishment," said Shaigec. "They're great athletes who work hard together and they're such a pleasure to coach. We have some very powerful hitters and a well-rounded attack with good defence and it all came together."
