The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

WHILE their volleyball sudden death playoff games will get underway today at the DW Davis and Anatol Rodgers gymnasiums for juniors and seniors respectively, the Government Secondary Schools Sports Association is also gearing up for its cross country championships.

After being postponed last Saturday, the GSSSA will host the event this Saturday starting at 7:30am in front of the new Thomas A Robinson National Stadium and, according to president Varel Davis, it’s going to be an event you won’t want to miss.

“We know that the teams and the athletes have been gearing up for this event,” Davis said. “There’s been at least four or five cross country events and the majority of our athletes and teams have been competing in them.

“So with this being a year that we expect that things will get bigger and better, we are expecting that this weekend’s cross country championships will be very competitive.”

The CR Walker Knights are the defending champions in the senior division, while the HO Nash Lions are the defending champions in the junior division.

Will they both repeat?

Davis said there are a number of teams whose athletes are coming out to dethrone them. But she noted that they have to go out on the course and prove it.

Distances will increase as the competition moves from the junior to the senior divisions, which will add to the excitement that is already brewing amongst the schools.

Most athletes, according to Davis, are using the cross country races as a base for their training for the track and field season next year. But she noted that coaches are also using athletes in the different sports to help develop their stamina to compete in the other sports, while at the same time garnishing points for their schools.

As for volleyball, Davis said the sudden death will be played today starting at 4pm at DW Davis Gymnasium for the junior girls and boys and at Anatol Rodgers for the senior girls and boys.

“This should be a very competitive playoffs,” Davis said. “There are some close finishes in the standings, so it’s not like there was any team that ran away with it this year. So we expect that the playoffs and the championships will be just as competitive as the regular season.”

Following volleyball and the cross country championships, the GSSSA will close out the year with the start of its basketball competition, which will resume in January after they take a break for the Christmas holidays.