Image Credit: TRU WolfPack Athletics/Andrew Snucins

By Adam Donnelly

CANADA WEST

WolfPack men’s volleyball prepares to host top-ranked U of Alberta Golden Bears

Jan 26, 2023 | 3:17 PM

KAMLOOPS — There seemed to be some extra oppugnancy in the air at WolfPack volleyball practice Wednesday night (Jan. 26).

Maybe it was the late hour — the team practices from 8:30 to 10:30 pm. Maybe it was some extra confidence coming off a pair of wins against a rival. Or maybe it was the knowledge that they face a difficult opponent this weekend, as the University of Alberta Golden Bears — the top-ranked team in Canada — comes to town.

“They’ve got all the pieces in place,” WolfPack Head Coach Pat Hennelly tells CFJC Today. “Defending national champs. We’re going to have our hands full.”

Alberta enters the weekend winners of 17 straight matches in conference play. The Golden Bears have dropped just a single match all season — the first one of the year against Saskatchewan.

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On the other side of the net, Thompson Rivers has eight wins and eight losses, and sits in seventh in Canada West. They’re approaching this weekend as a potential playoff preview.

“It’s a privilege to play the best teams in the country,” Hennelly says. “We don’t have to look and see how we measure against the best. We get to see the best on a regular basis. That’s the strength of Canada West.”

Team cohesion and execution will be key for the WolfPack if they hope to steal a match against a big, physical Alberta squad.

“For our team to be together and stay together and come in and cheer,” fourth-year outside hitter Thundersky Walkingbear explains. “[We need to] be there for coverage, because they’re a big blocking team when we go and attack. In order to be successful against this team we need to pull together as a team, and play them as a team, not individually.”

If TRU can show resilience against the Golden Bears’ diverse offence and stingy defence, they could hold their own and stay in the match.

“The main thing with Alberta is just staying steady,” setter Sam Elgert explains. “They’re going to make big plays and they’re going score big points, but at the end of the day, it’s just another point. [We need to be able] to move on from that and just focus on our side.”

Friday’s match starts at 12:00 noon and will be a school-day game, which means close to 1,000 SD73 students will pack into the TCC. The WolfPack hopes to ride the energy of that boisterous crowd.

“It definitely takes a lot of effort off of our shoulders and we can focus a bit more on the game,” Elgert says. “We don’t have to try and make that energy ourselves, so that’s definitely a good thing.”

“Oh, a big crowd helps,” Walkingbear says. “Having that home-court advantage helps out lots, especially when you get that extra cheering for points.”

For a program that’s in the midst of a rebuild, this weekend will also be an opportunity to take stock and see where it stands against one of the very best in the nation.

“If we want to be in the top third in the country, then we have to start playing teams like Alberta or Trinity [Western] hard-nosed and better and tighter on our side of the court,” Coach Hennelly says.

BACK THE ‘PACK: Men’s volleyball gets underway at 12:00 noon on Friday and 2:00 p.m. on Saturday. Both men’s and women’s basketball teams play at home this weekend, as well, as the University of Victoria comes to town. The women play at 5:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, while the WolfPack men take on the USports #2-ranked Vikes at 7:30 both nights.