They entered as the No. 3-ranked team in the nation.
But a stunning, five-set loss to the Camosun Chargers in the provincial semifinals parked the Douglas College Royals’ national championship aspirations for the year.
Camosun, led by a well-rounded attack, took down the Royals 3-2 (25-16, 25-19, 22-25, 16-25, 15-12) last Friday at the New West campus, reminding the No. 1-seeds that the regular season means squat.
Douglas to collect itself on Saturday, turning the tables on the Vancouver Island University Mariners in a 3-2 (20-25, 13-25, 25-22, 25-21, 15-13) victory to collar the PacWest League’s bronze medal.
However, for a team that ran the table and finished first with a 19-5 record, third place was not the goal.
It started slowly for the Royals on Friday, as Camosun broke open a 2-0 lead. The break between sets and with their back to the wall provided a wake-up call for Douglas, which responded with a solid, yet close, 25-22 win in the third set. They carried that momentum over into the fourth set, beating the Chargers 25-16.
The Victoria-based Chargers, however, garnered the momentum back and advanced to the final on the strength of a 15-12 decision.
In the loss, outside hitter Max Haronga nailed a season-best 22 kills.
During their regular season encounters, the New West-based Royals ran the table, counting wins of 3-1, 3-1, 3-0 and 3-2.
To capture the bronze, Douglas again fell behind 2-0 before staging a complete comeback, delivered when third-year Reid Marriott cashed in the set point in a 15-13 triumph.
Matt Shand was named the Royals’ Player of the Game, posting 22 kills. He would also be named to the PacWest All-Rookie team.
Haronga, who prior to the tourney final was announced as the PacWest men's Player of the Year, was named to the provincial all-star team. Douglas coach Jay Tremonti picked up the coach of the year award, while Jared Collin and Marriott were second team all-stars.
