Information and photos courtesy of volleyball.org.au
Queensland Pirates claimed their first national title in the last three years, emerging victorious from the Mahindra Australian Volleyball Super League Women’s Final.
The win was even more remarkable given the Pirates suffered a negative win-loss record in the regular season but dropped just one set during the Finals Series in Adelaide over the past two days.
Earlier in the day the Perth Steel recovered from their semi-final loss in a come-from-behind victory over Melbourne to claim the bronze medal.
2024 WOMEN’S FINAL
Queensland Pirates v Adelaide Storm 3:1 (18-16, 18-15, 13-18, 18-11)
Queensland Pirates claimed their first title of the Super League era with a 3:1 victory over home side Adelaide.
After going down in last year’s final to Perth Steel, today’s victory marks the second women’s national league title the Pirates have claimed in the last three years.
Queensland were first on the board, taking the first set before the Storm opened up an early advantage in the second.
However the Pirates clawed their way back to take a 2:0 advantage to put the Storm backs up against the wall.
With a strong home crowd behind them, Adelaide never gave up and at 11-7 in the third set they pressed their advantage by enacting a powerplay. At the end of the next three points they had opened up a seven-point break which was a more than comfortable buffer to send it to a fourth.
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Queensland responded from the opening rallies and quickly opened up an early lead.
With the Pirates ahead 10-5, both teams traded powerplays at the end of which Queensland and upped their lead to eight.
From there, both sides traded rallies until eventually the Pirates took their first chance at Championship Point to hammer home the victory.
Pirates captain Kylee White paid tribute to the extended Queensland squad who helped prepare the side for an assault on Finals weekend which sent them to the victory dais.
“It’s been a really rough season but the girls who came away today are not the only ones who contributed,” said White. “It’s a massive squad that’s made this team how it is, especially leading up to finals.
“The whole squad has just backed each other and proven we deserve to be in finals and today it’s paid off.”
After winning their second title in three years, only split by a runners-up medal in 2023, White believes this Pirates outfit has the opportunity to add more championships in the near future.
“I think we’ve got so much more in the tank with this group of girls,” she said. “We’ve only spent 12 weeks together in preparation, but there’s so much more left in the tank.”
WOMEN’S BRONZE MEDAL MATCH
Perth Steel d Melbourne Vipers 3:2 (18-12, 12-18, 11-18, 19-17, 18-12)
Defending champions Perth Steel were denied the chance to go back-to-back after suffering defeat in the semi-finals but were able to regroup overnight and mid-match to claim the bronze medal.
Both Perth and Melbourne finished equal on competition points after the regular season indicating how tight the third place playoff would be.
Perth got off to the better start, however the Vipers showed glimpses of their best and held the advantage after three sets.
With an uphill task ahead of them, the like of Tessa Browne, Ellyse Hislop and Denae Walters took it upon the stood tall and helped the Steel take the match to a decider.
Perth maintained their momentum right through to the end, outlasting the Vipers to claim the bronze medal.
Hislop said after the match that following yesterday’s defeat, the team was able to come together as a group to reset and maintain to hunger to finish the season on a high note.
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“We don’t have individuals that are just there for themselves, everyone is there for each other and I think that’s what stands out,” said Hislop. “I think we really wanted it today. Coming away with a loss yesterday was tough but it gave us the motivation to really come out and try hard today.
Hislop also paid tribute to the team behind the team, including the players who have been training with the group all year but may not have been present on court today in Adelaide.
“They are the reason we are here,” she said. “We started training from January, we’ve had this core group, everyone’s worked really hard.
“The only reason we’re here at the level that we are is because of those girls. Hats off to them – they’re not getting picked and they’re still showing up giving 110% and that’s really why we play, and we play for them.”
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