NORWICH- Just as a Tornado once swept Dorothy into the land of Oz and uttered the famous line ‘We’re not in Kansas anymore’; this year’s Purple Tornado girls’ volleyball team has also spiraled themselves to where no Norwich team has ever gone before; the Southern Tier Athletic Conference playoffs.

Fresh off of their first divisional title in school history, the Purple Tornado now face their next foe- the Vestal Golden Bears. Coming into tonight’s contest Vestal holds an overall record of 10-3 while also riding a five match winning streak dating back to October 8th. The formidable Golden Bears according to MaxPreps.com are the seventh ranked volleyball team among Class A schools in New York State.

“Vestal is a tough. They attack well and cover the floor extremely well,” said Norwich Head Coach Shelly Alger on their STAC opponent, adding that “it will be a good match.”

Norwich and Vestal previously met this season on October 5th. The Purple Tornado won the exciting match by a score of 3-2. Vestal won the first two games by close scores of 25-21 and 27-25 only to have Norwich rebound back in the final three games 25-12, 25-16, and 25-23 to clinch the match victory.

The Purple Tornado enter with a record of 15-1. Norwich has won 15 consecutive matches dating all the way back to September 14th, building a seasonal resume that has them ranked according to MaxPreps.com as the second best volleyball team among Class B schools in New York State. Oh, and just to add one more piece of mystique to this year’s NHS squad; the Purple Tornado are undefeated at Jack Jones Gymnasium this season.

The Purple Tornado’s journey into unchartered waters begins tonight as their match with the Golden Bears will start of 6:00pm at Norwich High School’s Jack Jones Gymnasium.