Last chance at the big dance

Raya Surinx has accomplished everything someone could dream of in Canadian university volleyball.

The two-time reigning U Sports Player of the Year — considered a front-runner to win her third consecutive honour next month — has a cabinet full of personal accolades and added the ultimate team award after leading the Manitoba Bisons to the program’s eighth national championship last year.

The only other thing she can ask for is to end her collegiate career on a winning note.

Checking off that last box has come into focus this week as the Manitoba Bisons gear up for the Canada West conference quarterfinals.

Surinx has already decided this will be her final run with the Bisons.

Despite one year of eligibility remaining in her university career, the star outside hitter will move to the next phase of her development and turn pro after this season.

Surinx has yet to sign with a club, but has been eyeing a start in France or Germany. Ideally, she’d start for a team and gain valuable experience for one season before advancing to one of the world’s top leagues in Turkey or Italy.

The decision did not come easily to the program cornerstone, who informed Bisons head coach Ken Bentley of her intentions in December.

“I’ve been thinking about it, and I feel like every time I thought about it, there were a lot of reasons for me to stay home,” said Surinx, “but I just really felt like this was the right move for me and for my development as a player, and it’s something I’ve really wanted to do, and it really felt like the right time, despite all of those other reasons.”

Surinx led the country in kills per set for the third year in a row and rewrote the Bisons’ record books several times this season, setting the all-time career marks in regular season aces, regular season points, regular season kills and total kills, including playoffs.

“I thought it was a good time for her to kind of spread her wings and give this a go… I think she’s ready for it now.”

“I wasn’t surprised,” said Bentley. “As she looks towards the international level of play, there’s a drive from the national team side of things to get players like Raya into the professional ranks to kind of test themselves against more mature players and in a higher level of play and training.

“Obviously, I support her, and I thought it was a good time for her to kind of spread her wings and give this a go,” he added. “I think she’s ready for it now.”

To keep this final run going, the 10th ranked Bisons must survive a tough test in No. 6 Thompson Rivers. Game 1 of the best-of-three series goes Thursday at 8 p.m. in Kamloops, B.C.

The Bisons visited the Wolfpack in November in what was a difficult weekend set for Manitoba, which was swept on consecutive nights. That series came at the tail end of a brutal stretch of injuries for the Bisons, who maintain the Wolfpack will face a different squad this time around.

Bentley called TRU a balanced team that is going to demand Manitoba play a clean match on the road.

“They’re a good team. There’s no doubt about it,” he said. “This is our path, so now we just take this weekend and try to get through it. But there’s no doubt that having played them already, I think is important. Having played them (on the road) is important, too. And we knew after that weekend, I told the team… ‘We will play this team again somewhere.’ It’s pretty much inevitable.”

Winnipeg Wesmen (men’s)

Carson Brennan knows what it’s like to be counted out.

The Winnipeg Wesmen’s fourth-year Libero had an adverse start to his university career as he was forced to have both of his labrums surgically reconstructed in consecutive years — each taking nine months to recover.

The tough luck weighed on Brennan during that time, as he was keen to be an understudy to then-starter Darian Picklyk but never got a chance.

“I think that my teammates are a huge reason why I was able to get through all of those injuries, but I do think that it’s definitely given me a sense of calmness knowing that I was able to come back and be proud of the career that I’ve had, especially considering the surgeries,” Brennan said.

“In general, knowing that we have such a strong league that any of those top eight teams can really beat anyone.”

It’s possible the Wesmen are being counted out as they prepare for a trip to Edmonton to face the No. 5 Alberta Golden Bears in a rematch of last year’s Canada West championship series.

Then again, this is a program that shocked the country a year ago, winning the conference title on home court.

“In general, knowing that we have such a strong league that any of those top eight teams can really beat anyone, and that just kind of shows like that every team needs to be on their A-game once playoffs come,” said Brennan.

“So I think we’re definitely going in optimistic and ready for a battle.”

This season has been more of a grind for the Wesmen, who finished 11-9 in conference play. However, they are confident that their experience will serve them well at the most important time of year.

Game 1 is Thursday at 9 p.m.

Manitoba Bisons (men’s)

It almost seems unfair that the hottest team in the country must head on the road for a playoff match.

But that is the situation the No. 8 Manitoba Bisons men’s squad finds itself as they prepare for a trip to Kelowna, B.C., to face No. 5 University of British Columbia Okanagan.

The Bisons are riding a 10-game heater, having yet to lose since the calendar flipped and dropping just one set in their last six matches.

“Yeah, it feels pretty good right now,” said fourth-year setter Sammy Ludwig. “I feel like, as a group and individually, we’re all playing some of our best volleyball right now, but we know it’s playoffs now, so it really doesn’t mean anything.”

Manitoba and UBCO squared off in the season-opening mini-series in Winnipeg, with the Heat taking both matches.

Their early-season meeting was the beginning of a 4-6 start for the Bisons, who have since taken a different shape and, as Ludwig puts it, “really found ourselves and found our identity as a team.”

That confidence extends to himself, as Ludwig, who ranks 10th in the conference with 416 assists, has taken his game to another level in the second half.

“I feel really good right now, and at the start of the season, I didn’t feel as if I was playing my best,” he said.

“I’ve always kind of known that I’m capable of it, and maybe at times last season, early in this season, maybe I was a little overconfident or just not fully there mentally. I’ve always believed in myself, and I know our coaching staff has always believed in me and all my teammates have always had my back, and that feels great.”

Game 1 goes Friday at 8:30 p.m.

Winnipeg Wesmen (women’s)

Taylor Cangemi tried soaking up every moment.

The fifth-year Libero has been a pillar of the Winnipeg Wesmen women’s program almost since the day she stepped foot on campus, but she’s played this season with full understanding that this would be her last in red and white.

“It’s quite bittersweet,” said Cangemi, who set a new program record for career digs this season.

“I’m feeling overwhelming gratitude for the chance that I was given at this institution to play and to study and to improve and kind of represent my position very well at the post-secondary level. If it weren’t for (head coach) Phil Hudson taking a chance on me — a Calgarian five-foot libero — I might not have had a chance to play period.”

It was a challenging year emotionally for Cangemi, as she was the only fifth-year on the roster. Her longest teammates moved on after last season, leaving her as the last from an era of Wesmen women’s volleyball.

Rather than turtle, Cangemi did what she’s always done: persisted and led her younger teammates.

“She’s been a great Wesmen for the last five years, and it’s going to be hard to replace her next year.”

“She’s definitely a leader, on the court but also off the court and in the weight room,” said Hudson.

“She’s a workhorse, doesn’t like coming off the court in training. She’s been a great Wesmen for the last five years, and it’s going to be hard to replace her next year. And we’re going to miss her value on and off the court. She’s had a great year this year, all around — one of her best years ever.”

The Wesmen are coming off a hard-fought victory over the Calgary Dinos in the play-in series. Their reward, for the second year in a row, is a trip to the quarterfinals against the reigning conference champs and top-ranked Alberta Pandas.

Although the task is demanding, the Wesmen will look to improve on their result from a season ago when they were swept by the Pandas, a team that doesn’t have a glaring weakness and “has everything going their way,” Hudson said.

To the surprise of no one, Cangemi has chosen to embrace the challenge and remember the joy that this type of series can elicit. She wants to soak up a few more moments while she can.

“I want to go out and make this a memorable weekend from the standpoint of working hard, having fun and competing at a high level,” she said.

Game 1 goes Thursday at 7 p.m.

winnipegfreepress.com/joshuafreysam