In the U SPORTS Men’s Volleyball Championship Bronze Medal Game, the Queen’s Gaels took on the UBC Thunderbirds, taking UBC to four sets before falling 3-1 (29-27, 26-24, 25-27, 25-17) Sunday at the Athletics and Recreation Centre (ARC), walking away with a fourth-place finish at nationals.
This season marks the most successful the team has seen since 2012, where they also finished fourth in U SPORTS.
The Gaels kept the pressure on the Thunderbirds throughout the game, bringing the first set to 27-29, the second to 24-26, winning the third 25-27, and dropping the forth 17-25.
“I think being a student-athlete in this environment is life changing and they just embraced that,” Head Coach Gabe deGroot said post-game. “The opportunity to play at home in a national championship is once in a lifetime. It’s super cool. To feel the support of family, friends, community, the student body, there were just so many people and eyes supporting this group and that’s special.”
In the loss, graduating U SPORTS First Team All-Canadian Erik Siksna bagged ten service aces for the Gaels. In the second set, he went on a nine-serve run, bringing Queen’s back from an eight-point deficit.
“Erik went all world and did what he could behind the service line,” DeGroot remarked.
“He may be the best player that I’ve ever coached and as a result he’s going to make it difficult to match the opportunity to coach someone like that, it may come once in a career. Erik’s career has just started, and I’m exited to have been just a little piece of it,” he added.
Gallery: (3-17-2024) U SPORTS Bronze Medal Game
Several other Gaels also put-up strong numbers. Dax Tompkins bagged nine kills, and Zig Lucis and Reed Venning added another nine kills and one service ace each.
The team effort that the contest required has been built through a season of hard work and dedication.
“What we have in this group is truly special. They love each other and it’s hard to build that in a team. For me to have an opportunity to bring together such an amazing group of guys that buy into what were doing, I hope I change their lives in a little way,” deGroot said.
Looking into the future, Queen’s Men’s Volleyball plans to continue building on the momentum that propelled them through the National Championship
“We have to be in these moments to learn and move forward. We’re young. It’s exciting because our youth are going to begin experiencing these moments and these opportunities so that when they’re in them again then they’ll just become easier,” deGroot commented.
“We’re not in a rebuild next year. We’re going to maintain this, and I think that’s what’s exciting about the future for us.”
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