Volleyball player smashes way onto national team

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This article was published 19/08/2010 (5878 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

When Manitoba’s junior men’s volleyball team won the gold medal at the National Team Challenge Cup late last month in Toronto, the prize was even bigger for two players.

After the awards ceremony, Kevin Stevens and Matt Schriemer were told by their coach that they wouldn’t be heading home with the rest of the team. Instead, they’d be immediately joining the junior men’s national team in Ottawa to train for the NORCECA Junior Men’s Championship.

Stevens, a Dakota Collegiate graduate who is entering his second year at McMaster University, said the national team selection was on his mind throughout the NTCC tournament.

“I didn’t know how much to pack,” said the 6-foot-4 left side. “I was hoping I’d be going, but I didn’t want to look too confident, like I think I’m going to make it.

“It was definitely in the back of my head during the whole tournament. Winning the championship was a huge goal for a long time, because we were under a lot of pressure to play our best.”

The 19-year-old from St. Vital was named the MVP of the NTCC, while his teammate Schriemer, who plays for the University of Winnipeg, was named an all-star.

For Stevens, a heavily recruited star coming out of high school, this will be the first time he’s worn his country’s colours in competition.

He said playing for Canada first became a goal when he was 16 and he had a decent chance of making the national youth team.

That didn’t happen, so Stevens set his sights on the national junior team. With a year of university volleyball under his belt, he feels his game has never been stronger

“I played about 75% of the season (at McMaster),” he said. “It’s a big step out of high school, and I changed my game a lot. The blocks are bigger, so sometimes you just need to swing 50% and chip it off the block.”

That’s a big change from high school, where a talented player like Stevens could simply overpower opposing defenders.

Those newly learned skills will be put to the test in Gatineau, Que., this week at the NORCECA championship. Canada is one of 12 countries from North and Central America and the Caribbean competing in the event, with the top three advancing to the 2011 Junior Men’s World Championships.

Getting on that podium is a top priority for Stevens and his teammates.

“Our goal is top three,” he said. “Cuba, the U.S., Puerto Rico… they’re all going to be very good.”

Stevens said he expected to be a little jittery for the first few points of his international career, but would quickly get into the game. He expected that playing exhibition games against the senior national team during training would help the team get used to the high quality of opposition they would be facing.

Canada opened play on Tuesday and Wednesday, with round-robin games against Guatemala and the Dominican Republic. The playoffs run from Aug. 19 to 21.

For results, visit www.volleyball.ca.

avi.saper@canstarnews.com