GCA, SIS-Green arrange semifinal encounter

Grace Christian Academy and Saipan International School-Green arranged a semifinal clash after winning against their respective opponents at the start of the playoffs in the Middle School Division of the 2008 Coalition of Private Schools Sports Association volleyball tournament yesterday at the Gilbert C. Ada Gymnasium.

The GCA Eagles, who finished with a 11-3 record after two elimination round games for the No. 1 spot in the playoffs, won over No. 8 SIS-Blue Geckos in straight sets, 25-19, 25-18.

On the other hand, the No. 4 SIS-Green Geckos posted a similar hard-earned victory against No. 5 Mount Carmel, 25-19, 25-22, as the games got tougher with the volleyball season nearing its climax. Both the Green Geckos and the Knights finished with 7-7 win-loss records in the eliminations.

The JV Eagles and the Green Geckos will meet at 3:30pm tomorrow with the winner advancing to the championship game.

Asked about their chances, Green Geckos coach Kim Peterson said they must keep their momentum going to reach the finals and possibly win the title.

“They came out playing as a team today. This is the result of our hard work the whole year. We have a good chance if they continue to play together as a team,” Peterson said.

The Eagles and the Green Geckos have identical 1-1 record in the eliminations.

And the Eagles coach Mark Robles knows this well.

SIS-Green, Whispering Palms, and Calvary Christian Academy were the three teams that beat GCA this year after the Eagles won their first nine games.

The WPS Terns, who finished third in the elimination round, aim for a semifinal bid when it meets No. 6 Saipan Community at 3:30pm today.

The other game today will be between the No. 2 CCA Sharks and No. 7 Seventh Day Adventist, the defending champion.

Winners of both matches will meet in the semifinals tomorrow.

Meanwhile, there would be individual awards after the championship game.

For the sportsmanship award, there would be one vote for each school. A school must vote for another school, while for the most valuable player award, a player would be chosen by the coach as the school’s MVP.

The overall league MVP would be selected by votes from all the coaches, which usually comes from the champion or runner-up team.