The final tournament day for the D-juniors took us to Kauhajoki. The start was early again, and we set out at 6:45 am. Before reaching Viitasaari, we had to change a tire in one car, which was done quite skillfully while the coach and players watched in wonder.
We arrived at the playing venues just in time, and the players quickly warmed up to play the first match against Nurmo’s “supersudet”. We won the first set comfortably (25-18), then had a slight dip as the opponents won the second and third sets (14-25, 12-15).
No worries, we had a break before the next game, so we had some snacks and moved to another hall to warm up before the upcoming matches.
Next up were the Kauhajoki Karhut, who won the first set (18-25). Motivated by this, Ploki won the second set (25-17). Unfortunately, fatigue set in again, and the Karhut took the third set (10-15). The last game was against Kauhajoki Pandas. Ploki won the first set (25-22), but then the Pandas overtook, winning the second and third sets (19-25, 6-15).
Our game was a bit inconsistent – sometimes it seemed like the fatigue was overwhelming, and at other times, there were great digs and plays to the end, fantastic decisions at the net, and so on. Great progress has been made! After the games, as a surprise, we drove the girls to Ideapark in Seinäjoki for some shopping (by this point, the fatigue was definitely setting in for the adults) and then stopped at Hesburger on the way home.
The autumn games involved long journeys, and the team has handled them brilliantly, so the Christmas break comes at the right time. The games will continue in January with renewed energy.
A big thank you to the parents for driving and being part of the support team! You are highly valuable to the whole team!
And Noora, you’re the best.
#Jojo and substitute coach Hanna P.