CW Coaches Poll: Griffins voted 13th ahead of Friday’s home opener

Canada West Communications

EDMONTON – The MacEwan Griffins men’s volleyball team will have earn their respect this season after being voted to finish last out of 13 teams in the Canada West coaches poll, released by the conference on Thursday.

The Griffins are coming off a 13^th place finish in 2023-24 after finishing 1-23 in the standings, but there are plenty of reasons for optimism with a strong recruiting class bolstering some key veteran returners.

MacEwan kicks off the 2024-25 Canada West regular season vs. Trinity Western – voted second in the poll – on Friday (6:30 p.m.) and Saturday (4:30 p.m., both David Atkinson Gym, Canada West TV).

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Cross-town rival Alberta – the two-time defending Canada West champions and 2023-24 U SPORTS national champions – were voted first in the poll, garnering 12/13 first-place votes.

The Spartans, who won Canada West silver last season, were voted second, getting the remaining first-place vote, while the UBC Thunderbirds – Canada West and U SPORTS bronze medalists in 2023-24 – were tabbed for third.

The Canada West regular season runs through Feb. 15, with playoffs starting on Feb. 21. 

The postseason will culminate in a “Final Four” format beginning March 8. 

Fans can catch all the action on CanadaWest.TV, which now allows fans to watch games on popular Connected TV apps like Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV and Roku. Regular season sport passes are available for $39.99. 

2024-25 CW MVB PRE-SEASON COACHES POLL 

Team – Points (First-place votes)

1. Alberta Golden Bears – 144 (12)
2. Trinity Western Spartans – 128 (1) 
3. UBC Thunderbirds – 116
4. Winnipeg Wesmen – 101
5. Manitoba Bisons – 92
6. Saskatchewan Huskies – 91
7. Brandon Bobcats – 90
8. Calgary Dinos – 61
9. Mount Royal Cougars – 49
10. Thompson Rivers WolfPack – 48
11. Fraser Valley Cascades – 40 
12. UBC Okanagan Heat – 33
13. MacEwan Griffins – 21

MacEWAN GRIFFINS SEASON PREVIEW

Key Performer: Mitchell Croft
​Outside Hitter / Middle ​
​1st Year
​Hometown: Melbourne, Australia

For a rookie to already be considered the Griffins’ key performer speaks volumes about the kind of talent that Croft is. Coming out of the Australian Junior National Team program, the 6-foot-9 outside hitter, who can also play in the middle, had 20 kills in his first-ever Canada West match, a 3-2 non-conference loss to Mount Royal in the Dino Cup last month in Calgary.

Croft is poised to bring his powerful game to the table in leading MacEwan’s attack right out of the gate in his university career.