An early test showed some good mental toughness and resolve for the Langley Christian Lightning.
The junior girls volleyball team dropped a tough 26-24 opening set against the Walnut Grove Gators.
The teams were playing in the Langley district final on Thursday at the Langley Events Centre.
“We knew it would be a tough battle going in but I don’t think our girls were quite ready for it,” said Langley Christian coach Marie Grim.
“The first set was a bit of a wake-up call.”
The Lightning recovered in a big way, taking the second and third sets 25-13 and 25-17, respectively.
In the fourth set, Walnut Grove had a large lead, but rather than folding, Langley Christian clawed their way back, tied the set at 22 and then scored the final three points to win 25-22 and take the match 3-1.
“The last couple of games have been a battle so they have shown some good mental toughness to dig out of it and come back,” Grim said.
“They just kept pushing.”
Langley Christian defeated Credo Christian in one of the semifinals to advance to the title game while Walnut Grove beat D.W. Poppy in the other.
And in the bronze medal game played ahead of the first-place game, Poppy beat Credo.
With the victory, the Redhawks join Langley Christian and Walnut Grove at the Fraser Valley championships.
The championships run Nov. 7 to 10 and are being co-hosted by Coquitlam’s Heritage Woods and Riverside Secondary schools.
The district title is Langley Christian’s first trophy of the season after a couple of second and third-place finishes at earlier tournaments.
It also gave the school a clean sweep of all four divisions — Grade 8 and junior boys and girls — at the district championships for the second straight year.
“It was nice to be that tail end of that,” Grim said.