Nunavut women’s team celebrates first win at summer games

Nunavut’s women’s indoor volleyball team is celebrating after finishing their first-ever appearance at the Canada Summer Games with three losses but one long-sought-after win.

This year marked the first time Nunavut has competed in a team sport at the amateur sports competition, sending men’s and women’s teams for both indoor and beach volleyball.

The women’s team finished its time in the tournament in Ontario’s Niagara region with a triumphant 3-1 win over Team Yukon on Thursday, then a disappointing 3-0 loss against Northwest Territories early Friday.

Rankin Inlet’s Kailee Karlik, 19, has been playing with Team Nunavut for six years. Sporting a No. 20 jersey and three eye-catching rose tattoos on her right leg in honour of her nieces, Karlik plays in the middle and heads up a strong defensive line at the net.

Ahead of Thursday’s game, Karlik said the team was feeling “nervous” but once they hit the court their confidence grew.

After losing the first set, Nunavut stepped on the gas and sustained a commanding lead on Yukon for the next three sets.

It won a nail-biting second set 27-25, then 25-22 in the third and finally took the fourth set 25-19, thanks to some out-of-bounds serves by Yukon and strategic blocks at the net by Karlik and her teammates.

“We got the winning point off of a serve and it was amazing, everyone was jumping, people started crying happy tears. The adrenaline was there,” Karlik told Nunatsiaq News on Friday.

Team Nunavut’s Kailee Karlik (20) and Shawna Kyak (11) keep their eyes on the ball in the women’s indoor volleyball game against Team Northwest Territories on Friday and the Canada Summer Games. (Photo by Denis Cahill)

Finally winning against northern rivals Yukon “felt incredible,” said head coach Beverly Netusil.

“Defeating Team Yukon has been a goal for us for six years now and to finally achieve that felt amazing. The girls really came together and committed to our goal.”

However, Northwest Territories proved to be a tougher opponent on Friday when the women played an early-morning game at Canada Games Park.

NWT showed off its speed and co-ordination and surged ahead to a commanding 25-12 lead over Nunavut to take Set 1.

That momentum continued through Set 2 as NWT walked away with a 25-16 win, but Nunavut put the pressure on for Set 3 and even led by a few points at moments during the game.

However, they couldn’t sustain the energy and ultimately lost the round 25-21, resulting in a 3-0 defeat.

“We knew the Northwest Territories had a stronger team than Yukon so we had to play a little different, had to try new things,” Karlik said.

“They just found our open spot and kept hitting there. We didn’t adjust very well. We did come back a little in the third set, but they just caught us at the end.”

The team is looking on the bright side and reminding themselves they made history by being the first Nunavut indoor volleyball team to win a game at the competition.

It’s especially impressive given the obstacles the team has had to overcome with training and access to resources.

“Back home, gyms were closed for the summer, so our only training time is when we leave. We’ve not had as much training time as the other teams, so we’re coming here strong with barely any training and we’re keeping up. I’m pretty proud of my team,” Karlik said.

“Nunavut is known for never giving up,” she added. “We have the smallest crowd, but they’re very loud and it pumped us up and we never gave up.”

After four games in their round-robin tournament, Nunavut walked away with one win and three losses.

The team will play Yukon again Friday at 6 p.m. to determine their placements in the final rankings.

Nunavut’s men’s volleyball team will play their final game Saturday to finalize the rankings.

The Canada Summer Games, which opened Aug. 6, wrap up with a closing ceremony on Sunday. Nunavut finishes with one medal, the gold won by wrestler Eekeeluak Avalak of Cambridge Bay in the 52 kg division.