McGregor, Redekop win beach volleyball provincials

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This article was published 31/05/2024 (721 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Zoe Redekop and Hannah McGregor would usually need a metal detector to accomplish what they did on Thursday.

They showed up for a beach day and struck gold.

The Vincent Massey Vikings junior varsity duo won the Volleyball Manitoba provincial beach 2s championship at Sargent Park Beach Volleyball Centre.

“We’re going to have a fun little tournament, let’s just try our best,” McGregor said of their mindset on Wednesday, having never played competitive beach volleyball.

Added Redekop: “We went in not thinking about winning, it was mostly just for fun and we weren’t expecting much. It turned out pretty great.”

It didn’t start smoothly. Since Redekop and McGregor had only played indoor volleyball to that point, they didn’t know they weren’t allowed to set the ball on first contact or set it over without squaring their shoulders in the direction they played it.

It’s a big adjustment from the indoor game where players are taught to set the ball as much as possible for control.

The Vikings lost their opener but learned quickly and didn’t drop another match. They finished second in their pool on Wednesday to qualify for the championship bracket.

From there, they rattled off four wins to reach the final against St. Mary’s Academy on Thursday. Somewhere along the way, their focus shifted.

“After winning quarters in pouring rain I was like ‘Oh, we actually have a chance.’ We were connecting really well and doing such a good job together,” McGregor said, adding Redekop’s defence was instrumental.

“She did a really good job digging balls when I shanked them. She did a really good job … getting everything that was close to touching the ground, keeping everything up.”

Some of the biggest adjustments were due to the playing surface. While both are taller than average JV attackers, it’s still tough to jump in the sand. Timing attacks was tough at first, as was blocking.

McGregor noted none of the JV teams blocked, instead playing with one defender near the net and the other further back to cover deeper attacks.

Redekop said tough serving was key and helped them go on scoring runs.

“The wind makes passing tough so if you serve it over, serve it in good, that can really mess up the other side and give us an advantage,” Redekop said, echoing her teammate’s praise.

“Hannah did great in general, especially her passing.

“Her hustle was really great. Hannah was diving everywhere … she made it a lot of fun to be a teammate.”

Massey reached the final against a St. Mary’s Academy duo. McGregor said each set started close but the Vikings made the important scoring run late in both sets, winning 21-16, 21-15.

“It was really great,” McGregor said. “Me and her were so shocked at winning that because we weren’t expecting to win going into it. We were really happy and surprised.”

Added Redekop: “We went there to have fun and got something even better out of it.”

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