Golden Bears capture record-tying 10th U SPORTS Championship

KINGSTON, ON – The Bad News Bears are Golden once again! For the second time in three seasons, and 10th time in program history, the Golden Bears Volleyball team are U SPORTS Champions. 

Alberta defeated Sherbrooke 3-2 in a thriller of a national final, coming back from a two sets to one deficit. With 10 national titles, the Bears have tied Manitoba and Winnipeg for the most ever. 

“I’m just so happy for these guys, they are an incredible group. I just loved being a part of this team this season,” said Golden Bears head coach Brock Davidiuk. “They have problem solved a lot this year; they have been through a lot of adversity. That is an amazing team in Sherbooke, and that is the best volleyball we have seen from this team this year.” 

U SPORTS Player of the Year Isaac Heslinga led Alberta with 28 kills, as he was named the Tournament MVP. Liam Espedido added 17 kills, six digs, and five assisted blocks, as he was named both the Player of the Match in the national final, and a tournament all-star. 

“It is a bit surreal, to be honest. It hasn’t sunk in. We really fought back today. It’s easy to roll over down 2-1, but we never lost our presence and togetherness,” said Espedido. “We tried to play one point at a time, and have each other’s back.” 

Sam Drybrough added 56 assists and nine digs in his final match as a Golden Bears, orchestrating an offence that finished the match with 63 kills and a .312 attack percentage. 

The Golden Bears finished with 12 more kills than the Vert et Or in the national final, with their .312 attack percentage significantly better than Sherbrooke’s .187. Alberta finished with seven kills and just one error in the deciding fifth set, along with 14 total blocks in the match. 

“We adapted well tonight, and I like how together we were all match,” continued Davidiuk. “There was some great tactical things that our middle blockers were doing, especially Billy Johnstone. And credit to Liam for how he played. Obviously Isaac is important to what we do, but you can’t win a championship with just one guy.” 

Alberta was dominant in a 25-16 opening set win, finishing with 14 kills on just 27 attempts. 

Sherbrooke responded in the second and third, thanks in large part to terrific blocking and pass receive. Zachary Hollands and Yoan David led the Vert et Or with 15 kills each, with first team All-Canadian Jonathan Portelance finishing with 39 assists and 10 digs. 

Alberta found the answer to Sherbrooke’s defence in the fourth and fifth, finishing with 21 kills and five errors in the two sets, while also adding five aces in the match.