Wesmen tops at U Sports awards

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This article was published 21/03/2025 (231 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

BRANDON — The two loudest roars of the U Sports men’s volleyball all-Canadian breakfast came from the Winnipeg Wesmen.

The first was for the national rookie of the year, Easton Dick, and the second for Chris Voth, coach of the year in his rookie season as they were announced at Brandon’s Victoria Inn on Thursday morning.

Wesmen captain Paxton Koop couldn’t have been more excited for his guys.

“He’s one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met, so it’s hard not to root for a guy like that,” Koop said of Dick, who starts as the other middle blocker in the Wesmen lineup.

“I consider Steinbach rural Manitoba… he’s from Linden, so it’s kind of a bond we share, so it’s been great.

“First year for him being in his redshirt year, I know he was struggling with that but it’s been great to see him grow. I try to help as much as I can but a lot of that goes to Chris as well.”

The 6-7 rookie has 99 kills and a .371 hitting percentage entering nationals, where his top-ranked Wesmen face the host Brandon University Bobcats today at the Healthy Living Centre at 6 p.m.

Dick also posted 59 blocks, totalling 2.06 points per set.

“He is a massive human being, takes a lot of space and is willing to learn. He works so hard… when you’re a good person like that the world rewards you and he’s reaping what he sows there,” Koop said.

Dick had a slower start stats-wise — most rookies do — but came on strong down the stretch with his best regular season matches last weekend, first against UBC Okanagan to clinch first place in Canada West at 17-3.

After Winnipeg swept Manitoba 2-0 in the quarterfinals, earning the right to host the final four, Dick racked up 10 kills without an error in a 3-1 win over the Saskatchewan Huskies to secure a trip to nationals.

He got it done on defence with six blocks in a 3-0 sweep of Alberta in the gold-medal match.

Voth said he’s “super impressed” with the former Landmark 96er’s growth.

“You can tell by the size of his arms he hits the gym hard,” Voth said. “He’s the same on court.

“He’ll go for every ball and if you ask him to run into a wall, he’ll say, ‘How fast?’ He’s really well deserving of (the award).”

Voth deflects much of the credit for Winnipeg’s success to the team he inherited from 35-year head coach Larry McKay, as well as those he learned from during a standout U Sports career at Manitoba, a few years of professional volleyball in Europe and time with Volleyball Canada’s national team program.

“As people, as players and coaches, we’re a mosaic of our experiences. I’ve been very fortunate to play for amazing coaches in Canada and across the world,” he said.

For his players, Voth was the perfect fit to bring an already-solid group new life.

“He brings a lot of energy, a lot of preparation and attention to detail,” Koop said.

“We stay focused and we always have a task at hand. He keeps us on the right path and minimizes distractions, as easy as that is as university students. He’s made a program we’ve all been able to buy into so that helps a lot.”

Winnipeg rolled through the first semester 10-0, then lost its first match of the second term at Thompson Rivers. The Wesmen split the Saskatchewan Huskies and the Bobcats to finish one win ahead of the Alberta Golden Bears for first place.

Until they swept national player of the year Isaac Heslinga and the Golden Bears in the league final, however, they were the No. 2 seed.

They’re ranked the best team at nationals but Voth doesn’t approach the weekend that way.

“I don’t know if we feel like we’re the best team. We go into each game just hoping we can play well and after that, what happens, happens,” he said.

“We had a lot of matches in the first half where we didn’t feel we played well and found a way to come out on top but it wasn’t from playing spectacular the whole season.

“I think that’s what’s great about these guys is they’ve had some success now but they don’t think more of themselves, they just come right to work every day so it’s great to see.”

Winnipeg’s Isaiah Olfert was named a first-team all-Canadian, joining his father Rob, who earned the same nod with the Wesmen 32 years ago.

The other major honour, the Dr. Dale Iwanoczko award, went to Matthew Hamilton of the Thompson Rivers WolfPack.

The Wesmen take on the Brandon Bobcats today at 6 p.m. The teams are on the same half of the bracket as the No. 4 Queen’s Gaels and Saskatchewan Huskies, who play today at 8 p.m. The winners meet in Saturday’s 6 p.m. semifinal.

The final is Sunday at 6 p.m.

— The Brandon Sun