Playoff atmosphere on tap at Canada West volleyball showdown

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This article was published 09/01/2024 (1001 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Canada West post-season is six weeks away but it should be a playoff-level atmosphere this weekend when the No. 8 Manitoba Bisons host the top-ranked Trinity Western Spartans in women’s volleyball action.

Wins are at a premium in a conference race that has a massive five-team logjam atop the standings.

Teams in the mix for one of the top two seeds for the conference playoffs include the second-ranked UBC Thunderbirds (13-1), No. 5 Alberta Pandas (12-2), Trinity Western (12-0), Manitoba (12-2) and the sixth-ranked Fraser Valley Cascades (11-3).

Manitoba head coach Ken Bentley was never fooled when the Spartans, who returned only one starter from the squad that lost the national final to UBC last spring, dropped five of their first six pre-season games in 2023-24.

“They were never going to be a team that’s going to rise from the ashes,” said Ken Bentley Tuesday. “They’re always going to be team that’s going to be in play somewhere near the top, right? So the fact that they’re doing what they’re doing isn’t shocking to me.”

Since then, Trinity has reeled off 14 straight wins to surge to the top of the rankings ahead of Friday’s meeting at Investors Group Athletic Centre.

“I think it’s going to be an outstanding weekend,” said Trinity head coach Ryan Hofer. “Manitoba is playing incredibly well. They’re going to be playing in their own gym, which is a tough gym to play in and you’re going to have a good Manitoba crowd. Ken’s got a really good squad there. He’s done a really nice job.”

The weekend series — game times are 7:45 p.m. Friday and 6:45 p.m. Saturday — will serve as a showcase for perhaps the country’s top candidates for player of the year honours — third-year Trinity middle Kaylee Plouffe and second-year Manitoba left side Raya Surinx.

Plouffe currently leads Canada West in hitting percentage (.425) and blocks per set (1.31) while Surinx leads the conference in kills per set (4.85).

“Kaylee and Raya were with the national team this summer so that made them both better,” said Hofer. “That made them both stronger — physically and mentally. They’ve both grown a lot this summer with the national team.”

Much of the onus on controlling the dynamic Plouffe falls to Manitoba middle players Brenna Bedosky and Eve Catojo.

“We have to be a bit more aware of her obviously — as we’re all going to have to be — it’s not just going to be their job,” said Ken Bentley. “It’ll be all our jobs. She’ll be tough to slow down and we’ll have to try to mitigate the damage as best we can.”

The 6-1 Bedosky, in her third year, has brought her wingspan and reach to bear on increasing her offensive production (from 1.61 kills per set to 2.07) while also improving her blocking skills.

“She’s just made steady, persistent progress throughout her whole career,” said Ken Bentley. “Never leaps and bounds, just incrementally getting better and consistently getting better. And now she’s kind of in a place where she really understands the game tactically. She’s a very good player technically now. She’s got all kinds of shots in the middle.”

Bedosky said she started to become a different player midway through last season, able to see shots while she was in the air she hadn’t previously been able to visualize.

“The older you get the more you’re able to understand things quicker,” said Bedosky. “It’s like when you get to a fundamental of a class, you’re learning all these things and then by your third year, you’re talking about like it’s nothing. You know what you should know… the game fully slows down. It’s less panicky and it helps everything.”

Bedosky is described by her teammates as a team-first player with a high-energy on-court demeanour.

“I think that’s something she kind of turns on on the court — it’s a little bit of an alter ego she has,” said Manitoba setter Katreena Bentley, who leads the conference with 10.67 assists per set. “Her competitive spirit comes out but she doesn’t ask for the spotlight. She’s more of a behind-the-scenes kind of a kind of a teammate.”

Manitoba’s men also host Trinity Western on Friday (6 p.m.) and Saturday (5 p.m.)

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.ca