The stage has been set for the last home or away round of the Scape Australian Volleyball Super League with the final positions still to be locked away.
In the men’s competition, Adelaide and Perth remain unbeaten coming into the final weekend, while Queensland’s could finish atop the women’s ladder pending Adelaide’s round five match.
Adelaide Storm v Canberra Heat
The Lights Community & Sports Centre, Lightsview SA
Women: Storm d Heat 4:1 (18-12, 18-12, 18-11, 18-5, 16-18)
Adelaide Storm have leapfrogged Canberra Heat and now sit in second on the competition ladder following a 4:1 victory on Saturday.
The commanding result also earned the Storm a bonus point after outscoring their opponents by 25 points.
With just seven points separating second to fifth on the competition ladder, both teams still need victories in round five to remain locked in a final four position.
Storm captain Rebecca Reeve said her side enjoyed the opportunity to once again play in Adelaide.
“It was really fun, good to have another home game,” said Reeve. “It was more of a ‘teamy’ game from last week so I think we really stepped up.
“I think we had a lot of good opportunities at the net and our middle blockers did a great job there.”
Men: Storm d Heat 4:1 (18-11, 18-10, 18-12, 18-6, 15-18)
Like the women’s team, Adelaide Storm collected nine competition points from their clash with Canberra Heat courtesy of a 4:1 victory.
The home side looked on track for a five-set whitewash before Canberra won the last, however they outpointed their opponents 90-54 overall to collect the bonus point.
The result sees the Storm open up an 11-point margin at the top of the table, and while a top-two finish is assured, their clash with Perth Heat next week should ultimately determine who finishes in first. The Heat earned two competition points courtesy of winning the last set, which keeps them just ahead of Melbourne Vipers with one round to play.
Adelaide coach Derek Slater was happy with how his team is building towards the finals.
“We found a little bit of rhythm today which was nice,” he said. “Last week we got off to a slow start so that was a focus for today.
“I thought the boys maintained that focus throughout the game against an opposition that were a little bit inconsistent but I was happy with how we went.
“It was really nice to get some guys on the court today who haven’t had a great deal of court time, and just to play different systems and change the rotation a bit knowing now that we’re heading into finals so it lets us experiment a little bit as well.”
Relive the action – watch on Cluch TV
Melbourne Vipers v Queensland Pirates
State Volleyball Centre, Dandenong VIC
Women: Vipers d Pirates 4:1 (18-12, 18-15, 18-17, 18-13, 5-18)
Melbourne Vipers have put the women’s competition on notice with a commanding performance against the competition front-runners, beating Queensland Pirates 4:1 at Dandenong.
The Vipers went into the match with just one win from their opening three games, but reeled off the first four sets in a dominant display.
A five-point fifth set win would have seen the Vipers take away a perfect 11 points from the fixture, however the defending champions scored an emphatic 18-5 result to show they deserve their place at the top of the ladder.
“Coming into the game today, we knew what we had to do, we had a game plan and it was a final for us, a mini-final for us, we had to win this game,” said Vipers’ Emalini Toleafoa. “I’m feeling really really good, proud of my home crowd and the support we are getting today is fantastic.”
Pirates setter Kylee White said the Vipers performance wasn’t a surprise and that they will certainly be contenders for the 2023 title.
“I think the Vipers really turned it on tonight,” said White. “They’ve probably played the best volleyball I’ve seen watching all the replays of all the videos after scouting.
“But I think also the crowd – they definitely probably got to us a bit – they were very intimidating and loud.”
Men: Vipers d Pirates 4:1 (13-18, 18-13, 18-9, 18-15, 18-13)
The Vipers men ensured the home crowd enjoyed a double dose of victory with their 4:1 win over Queensland.
The Pirates were on the hunt for their first win of the season and got off on the right track by claiming the first set. That was the end of the good news for the visitors, with the Vipers reeling off the next four sets to remain in fourth position on the table.
Melbourne now just need to secure at least one set in their clash with NSW next week to be assured of a finals position.
“I think we were getting heaps of digs, they have big powerful hitters,” said Vipers libero Darcy Cox. “When we get those digs, it brings the energy, brings the crowd into it and just makes the game flow a lot better. It felt really good out there, we were humming.”
Relive the action – watch on SBS On Demand
Queensland Pirates v NSW Phoenix
Iona College, Lindum QLD
Women: Pirates d Phoenix 5:0 (18-8, 18-16, 18-4, 18-7, 18-14)
Having temporarily dropped into second place on the competition ladder, Queensland Pirates bounced back to take maximum points from their final match of the season.
Having lost their Saturday match in Melbourne, travel did little to blunt the Pirates’ form with a 5:0 victory and a bonus point opening up a 10-point buffer at the top of the table.
The Pirates were particularly dominant in the powerplays, winning seven of their nine points compared to four for the Phoenix.
Queensland are assured of a top two finish, with NSW needing a perfect 11 points against Perth next week to take top spot on the ladder.
The result sees NSW still sitting in sixth position, however they remain a mathematical chance of making the finals when they host Melbourne this Saturday.
Men: Phoenix d Pirates 3:2 (18-17, 17-18, 18-17, 17-18, 18-16)
NSW Phoenix scored their first win of the season in what was the longest match of the competition.
The Phoenix and Pirates traded 18-17 sets to sit 2:2 going into the fifth, which the visitors claimed 18-16. The result meant 174 out of a possible 175 points were contested in the fixture.
The tightness of the result also meant Queensland took five competition points from the match to six for the Phoenix.
Despite going through the season winless, the Pirates sit five points clear of NSW who must win three sets next week to rise above Queensland, while a five-set win would see them claim the last spot in the finals.
Relive the action – watch on Cluch TV
Our Perth Steel will be travelling to the east coast this week to take on the Adelaide Storm (watch on SBS ON DEMAND) and the Canberra Heat (Watch on CLUCH) results are important to secure our spot in the Grand Finals – so get behind them WA.