They overcame the flu, banded together after injuries to two of their key starters, but the Yukon U-16 midget men's volleyball team couldn't get past the Northern Lights Volleyball Club in the final at the Midget Canadian Open in Calgary last weekend.

Competing in Division 2 at one of the largest volleyball tournaments in Canada there were 267 teams the local athletes posted a 6-2 record prior to the final, including one victory over Northern Lights, a team from Grande Prairie and Fort McMurray.

They were put in the Tier 2 final at the conclusion of the round-robin and the Yukoners lost a heartbreaker, falling by just two points in the third set to the northern Alberta squad.

'There were teams there that have been together since September, practicing three times a week,' said Sukh Sandhu, head coach of the Yukon men. 'I've had this team for seven weeks, so that tells you how good we are.

'It's too bad we didn't get to go to a club tournament beforehand with these guys, then I would have put us in Division 1.'

The flu bug ran through the coaching staff at the start of the tournament, with Sandhu and assistants Dennis and Brian Boyd feeling under the weather. Then setter Ryan McLaren fell ill and starter Ted Stephens collided with teammate Jake Schneider while going for a dig, resulting in a concussion for Stephens.

He was evaluated by a doctor at the tournament and taken to the hospital as a precaution. The doctor said Stephens needed to stay away from contact sports for a week, which meant he was done for the playoffs.

Adding to the toll was a knee injury for Duncan Smith on the last day of the round-robin.

'Not having Duncan really hurt us,' said Sandhu. 'He's our middle blocker and (Northern Lights) had a great middle blocker that we just couldn't match up with in the final.

'Both sides had their chances to win it all, it was a very close match.'

That was thanks in part to the exceptional play of Schnedier and Robbie Stuckey as power hitters, said Sandhu, adding they passed and hit with authority all tournament.

'Robbie Stuckey showed flashes of brilliance and has a bright future in volleyball,' he said. 'Ryan McLaren set very well and had to battle the flu bug as well, Aaron Holway was relentless as libero and really gave us energy on defence.'

The entire team gave a great effort, he said, a group which included Stuart Murray, Brant Marrin, Tynan Thurmer and Alex McDougall.

'Jake and Duncan really sat in the shadows of Tory (Wiebe) and Kaleb (Dawe) before, so it was only fair for them to get a chance to lead this team,' said the coach, referring to two of the best juvenile players from the Yukon.

Wiebe and Dawe were a part of last year's midget team which won silver in Division 1, Tier 2 at the Canadian open.

This time around, Wiebe and Dawe were part of the U-17 team which attended the national championships in Abottsford May 5-7. That team finished with a record under-500, but played very well, said Sandhu, who was also the coach for that tounament.

The teams the Yukon beat at nationals included the Brandon Volleyball Club (Manitoba), Fraser Volleyball Club (B.C.) and Dawson Creek.

'We lost in the third set by two points to a team from Alberta,' said Sandhu. 'They were just massive, these boys.

'We lost to Prince George by two points as well and the Vancouver Volleyball Club, which is called APEX.

'It was a lot of volleyball for them, especially for how much we rely on Tory and Kaleb. The whole team was awesome. They played their hearts out.'

Sukh was fairly impressed with Dawson resident Brian Naef at nationals, a Grade 11 student who stands 6 3 1/2 and wears size 16 shoes. Naef and his parents drove down from Dawson every week to take part in the practices leading up to Abbotsford.

'It's too bad we can't see him play more,' said Sandhu, who scouted Naef at the Midget Canadian Open last year, when he travelled to Calgary with a team from Dawson. 'That's when I first saw him play. I called him and asked him if he wanted to play on our team and he was interested.

'He put in a lot of committment.'

The Yukon men weren't the only ones collecting air miles this month, as the midget women's volleyball team had their own successful trip to the Midget Canadian Open last weekend.

This year's team, coached by Jordan Borgford, finished with a 4-3 record in the Division 3, Tier 1 category.

'I'm extremely pleased with their performance,' said Borfgord, who like Sandhu, only had his team together for about seven weeks. 'They really came together as a team. We played some really good quality teams.'

In their playoff match, the Yukoners won their first set over the FOG Wild from Edmonton 26-24, lost the second by the same score (they were leading 23-18 at one point, but just couldn't close it out) and lost the third set 15-8.

Borgford gave a lot of credit to middle-blocker/hitter Kendra Thomson, who he said was dominant in every match and showed her true leadership abilities.

'Kendra's positive approach to each match and her ability to inspire and guide teammates was a huge plus for the team,' he said. 'She really directs the girls on the court, helps them with their positioning and gives them extra confidence.'

Michelle Dawson stepped up her game and also played a huge role for the team as a middle-blocker/hitter, added the coach, also applauding setter Ally Fraser's heart, determination and hustle.

'Ally provides a strong sense of, She'll get the job done!,' attitude to the rest of the team. Zara Neukom played libero and provided a steady presence on the court defensively.'

Other girls rounding out the team were Chantelle Bergeron, Jessica Borgford, Angela Ell, Sarah Jarvis, Julie Lackowicz, Jessika Malchow and Daphnee Tuzlak.

'I really enjoyed this tournament with the girls,' said Borgford. 'The atmosphere (at the Canadian open) was tremendous. There were about 19 courts within the (Olympic) Oval. And there were other venues on the (University of Calgary) campus. There were eight other courts plus the Volleydome.

'It was extremely well-organized. A lot of parents made the trip, but there were quite a few spectators as well.'

'It was extremely loud,' added Sandhu. 'The Olympic Oval was crazy. We couldn't even hear ourselves during the final, because there were so many other finals going on around us at the same time.'

The Canadian Open was the only tournament for both the men's and women's midget teams this year, andmany of them will jump to the juvenile level next year.

Sandhu is hoping to enter a team in the men's U-18 division at nationals next time, combining the key players from the midget and juvenile levels this year.

He would also like to get the team together a little bit earlier next season, although he acknowledges most of the players are involved in other sports as well, so he wouldn't expect them to practice on a regular basis.

'It would be good for them to know who their teammates are at the beginning of the year. We could start randomly getting together and then really go hard in the spring.'

A lot of the men's volleyball players will be heading to a camp at the University of Okanagan in Kelowna in August. About 150 kids in total will take part in the week-long camp, which will be run by 15 coaches and feature various university and Team Canada players as well.

Sandhu is actually moving back to Kelowna for the summer, to coach Team Okanagan's men's U-15 volleyball team for the B.C. Summer Games. He'll also work on upgrading his coaching level while away and return to Whitehorse for the next school year.