#2 Douglas Royals vs. #3 Capilano Blues – Friday February 23, 5:30pm | WATCH HERE
The gym at Douglas College will be rocking on Friday night when the Royals meet the Blues in a women’s semi-final at the PACWEST volleyball championship tournament.
The Royals are the second seed coming into the postseason after a terrific campaign. They are on a hot streak winning their last six matches, four of them at home which of course is the site of this championship. Overall, they are 9-1 on their home floor making them awfully difficult to beat. Their only home loss came way back on October 27th at the hands of the VIU Mariners.
They have a balanced attack and skilled defensive players that is going to make it tricky for the Blues to get into a rhythm. They are the defending bronze medalists and are hoping for a different colour medal this season in front of their hometown faithful.
The Blues are back in the postseason after missing out last year. They struggled down the stretch winning just once in six matches during the month of February with two of those losses coming against the Royals. They finished eight points behind the Royals in the standings and compiled nine wins this season, three of which came on the road.
During the seasonal series the Royals beat the Blues in all four meetings, one match when the distance, the Royals won twice in four sets and then swept them in three.
Oddly enough the last time these schools met in the postseason was the last time the Royals hosted in 2020 just prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. That season the Blues were seeded sixth and upset the third seed Royals in five sets.
The last time the Royals beat the Blues in the playoffs was in 2018 beating them in a semi-final in four sets.
Not only is there a berth in the PACWEST gold medal match on the line, but an invitation to the CCAA national championship awaits the winner of this semi-final as well.
Head-to-head
Records: Royals 13-7 – Blues 9-11
Sets Won: Royals 47 – Blues 36
Sets Lost: Royals 32 – Blues 39
Seasonal Series:
November 9th @ Douglas – Royals wins in four sets: 25-23, 15-25, 25-19, 25-23
November 10th @ Douglas – Royals wins in four sets: 25-13, 25-17, 22-25, 25-20
February 2nd @ Capilano – Royals win in three sets: 25-23, 26-24, 25-17
February 3rd @ Capilano – Royals win in five sets: 15-25, 25-13, 25-20, 20-25, 15-13
