There was a silver lining in the Walnut Grove Gators' journey through the senior boys AAA volleyball championships.
The Gators were swept in three sets by the Semiahmoo Totems in title game at Delta Secondary.
All three sets could have gone either way.
The Totems came out on top, winning 28-26, 27-25 and 25-23
“There’s always a debate: did they play well enough to put us in trouble, or did we not play to the best of our ability? It was a combination of both,” Gators coach Gary Lutes said. “We could have played better but they played very well.”
Gators middle Andrew Goertzen and right side Brett Christensen were named Fraser Valley all-stars.
Lutes said left side/power hitter Ben Whiton deserved recognition.
“He was in my mind the most consistent guy for us this week.”
Next up for the Gators is the provincial championships at the Langley Events Centre, starting Nov. 30 and running to Dec. 3.
For many of the Gators, this will be their last kick at the high school can – the team includes seven Grade 12s.
“We have this week to prepare and rectify a few things, and tighten up our ‘D’,” Lutes said. “Last year we didn’t finish very well and we’ve always talked about being better this year.”