Saturday the 26th of April played hosted to the first round of the final leg of the Premier Play Offs, showcasing some of the best volleyball we have in Scotland. Alongside side this were the 3rd/4th place premier play offs, and our promotion/relegation matches.
In the Women’s competition, City of Edinburgh hosted Edinburgh Jets. These teams have played each other twice already this season, with City of Edinburgh taking the win both times. Finishing the league in 1st place meant that home advantage went to COE, and the home crowd certainly helped the team in their quest for the championship, as they took the win with a convincing 3-0 (25-18, 25-16, 25-17). Over on the west coast, City of Glasgow Ragazzi were hosting NUVOC in the men’s play offs. Hoping to improve on their 4th place finish from last year, NUVOC were going to find it tough against undefeated City of Glasgow. It was the host team again that took the win, a 3-0 (25-16, 25-13, 26-24) score for City of Glasgow Ragazzi meaning they head into this week’s match with the advantage.
In the 3rd/4th play offs, Glasgow Mets hosted last year’s Women’s Champions Su Ragazzi. New to the Premier division this year, they claimed 3rd place with a 3-1 over their Glasgow base counterparts (25-22, 25-15, 24-26, 25-20). In the men, City of Edinburgh were playing Edinburgh Jets Bears. In a bit of a twist, a fire alarm resulted in the match being abandoned.
4 matches in the promotion/relegation matches meant that 4 teams were hoping to make the jump to the higher division. In the women’s side, Caledonia west Ayrshire Aces saved their place in the Premier League with a 3-1 win over Edinburgh Jets 2 (25-11, 26-24, 20-25, 25-15). Edinburgh University 2 will have another year in Women’s Division One, as they beat Volleyball Aberdeen Storm 3-0 (25-11, 25-20, 25-19). South Ayrshire will be back in Men’s Premier next year as they beat Lenzie 3-0 (27-25, 25-16, 25-13), and Edinburgh Jets 1 beat Dundee University 3-0 (25-19, 25-15, 25-23) to survive another year in Men’s Division One.
This Saturday we finish off the indoor season with the final Premier Play Off matches. Hosted at Glasgow University, City of Glasgow Ragazzi will play NUVOC at 10:30, while City of Edinburgh will play Edinburgh Jets at 13:30.