Crusaders on the march to provincial title

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This article was published 23/11/2018 (2752 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The St. Paul’s High School varsity boys volleyball team has one more big goal to hit before season’s end.

The Crusaders were ranked No. 1 going into the AAAA provincial volleyball championship tournament, which starts Nov. 23.

This year, the Crusaders finished regular-season play undefeated and won the West Winnipeg Athletic Conference title on Nov. 16 against the Westwood Warriors in three straight sets, 24-26, 22-25, 16-25.

Head coach Lloyd Voth, who’s coached the varsity team to four provincial championship titles in over 35 years with the program, said this year’s roster of players is a strong combination of Grade 11s and 12s with a lot of volleyball experience and depth.

“I’ve been pleased right from the very first practice. I could tell that this team was a pretty special team,” Voth said.

“The league has been a lot tougher than most years,” he added. “I think we had four teams from the Top 10 in WWAC, which is quite unusual. So I think the competition within the league has been quite useful.”

Of the six tournaments St. Paul’s has competed in, the team has managed to take three titles: the Seven Oaks Invitational, the Daniel McIntyre tourney and the St. Vital Invitational.

The only team to knock down the Cru this season has been the No. 2 seeded Dakota Lancers.

“We’ve been battling with Dakota most of the year, and we’ve played them six times, we’ve won two of them,” Voth said.

Voth said the Crusaders consistently run a strong offence and capitalize on their talented hitters at the net.

Standing 6-5, middle player Darian Koskie — son of former national men’s team setter Scott Koskie — has been a boon for the Crusaders on both defence and offence. Voth also points to the Crusaders’ strong hitting contingent as being instrumental to the team’s success.

The Crusaders also have the benefit of four setters (who’ve been shuffled to other positions to fill out the roster), which Voth said has increased the team’s overall skill level.

“We have several of the best setters in the province. I’m not saying other teams don’t have good setters, but we have four of them,” he said.

Josh Terin, a 6-2 left-side hitter, said the regular season has presented some tough battles but the team is feeling good about its position heading into the provincials.

“I’m definitely confident as we all should be,” Terin, 17, said. “But at this point in the season, anyone can really take it. You gotta come out with guns blazing and be ready to play.

“The key for us is going to be playing good defence and passing well, and if we’re passing well our attacking will come naturally.”

Koskie, 17, noted the team’s strength has also been its ability to stick together through the harder games and that experience will hopefully prop them up through provincials.

“I think we’ve had a lot of success this year, moreso than last year,” Koskie said. “I think it’s a nice progression that we’ve made, and winning our conference is really nice too.

“We’re a bit more together as a team this year… and I think that’s really come into play in helping us win,” he added.

The Crusaders play in the Nov. 24 quarter final, against either the No. 8 Garden City Fighting Gophers or No. 9 Miles Macdonell Buckeyes. For the full provincial tournament schedule, visit mhsaa.ca