The reigning national champion Trinity Western University Spartans, along with three Canada West rivals, hope to resume their conference’s domination of CIS men’s volleyball this weekend in Kingston, Ont.
The eight-team U Sports championship, hosted for the first time by Queen’s University, kicks off Friday with the quarter-final round and concludes on Sunday with the gold-medal final set for 4 p.m. SSN Canada – in partnership with Queen’s QTV - will have live webcasts of all 11 matches, including the main and consolation brackets.
The Spartans, who a year ago captured the second Tantramar Trophy in program history thanks to a straight-set win over Brandon on their home court in Langley, B.C., are seeded No. 1 heading into this week’s competition. Trinity Western is coming off a thrilling 3-2 victory against the Manitoba Bisons in the Canada West title match.
Ben Ball named U Sports men’s volleyball Player-of-the-Year
Led by 2011-12 Most Valuable Player Ben Ball, the Trinity Western University Spartans have become the first men’s volleyball team to claim four Canada West individual year-end awards.
“Ben is the engine that runs our team,” said Spartans coach Ben Josephson. “His unassuming attitude on the court and ability to find the fun in any situation make him the perfect setter for our team. His genius with the ball and athletic ability make him the most memorable setter in our program’s history.”
The TWU Spartans took home four of the top U Sports year-end awards including MVP: Ben Ball; Libero of the Year: Jarrod Offereins; Dale Iwanoczko Student-Athlete Award nominee: Rudy Verhoeff; and Coach of the Year: Ben Josephson.