Regi reaches championship match at OFSAA boys volleyball

Regiopolis Notre Dame Panthers will play for the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations boys AAA volleyball championship this afternoon.

The Panthers will face London Oakridge at 5 o’clock at Holy Cross Secondary School.

Regi advanced to the final with a 3-1 semifinal win Saturday morning over Jacob Hespeler of Cambridge, a match that began with a marathon 35-33 Panthers victory in the opening set. From there, Hespeler tied the match with a 25-23 win, before Regi prevailed 25-18, 25-22.

Oakridge took top-seeded Chatham Kent, the two-time defending provincial champion, in straight sets, 25-18, 25-21, 25-21.

Seeded third in the 20-team field, the Panthers go into the final undefeated, with six straight victories. Oakridge, the No. 2 seed, is 5-1, having lost to Hespeler in the preliminary round.

Regi and Oakridge are no strangers to the championship match at OFSAA—Oakridge has won five provincial banners in the last 17 years, most recently in 2011; Regi is seeking its fourth OFSAA title in the last 12 years.

The Panthers won back-to-back championships 2009-10 but, oddly, though this is the fourth time in the last nine years the tournament has been held in Kingston, Regi has never won at home.