Katreena Bentley and Graham Wright are Boston Pizza Athletes of the Week

Leaders in their respective sports, women’s volleyball setter Katreena Bentley and men’s track and field thrower Graham Wright are Boston Pizza Athletes of the Week. 

On the court, Bentley was the quarterback for a Bisons team that improved to No. 4 in the nation after sweeping No. 1, previously undefeated Trinity Western in two games. It’s the first time the Herd had swept TWU in 14 years. 

Bentley was automatic during both games, getting all of Manitoba’s attackers involved. Overall on the weekend she finished with 92 assists, while the nation’s kills and kills per set leader Raya Surinx, along with Light Uchechukwu, Ella Gray and Brenna Bedosky all had at least 18 kills during the series. 

On Friday, Bentley tied her single game kills record with four, using her tricky dump shot to gain points for her side. She also had three assisted blocks and 12 digs, keeping multiple rallies alive. 

On Saturday, Bentley contributed a career-high four aces, and had seven on the weekend overall, along with 11 digs. Her play at the service line, along with precision and speed in dishing the ball from one antenna to the next, along with her back-setting were major reasons for the Herd’s success. This included the fifth set, where she delivered a brilliant back to to Gray for a kill, giving her side a 2-0 lead. 

Bentley’s notable weekend has moved her into top spot in the nation in total assists, with 604, and she also leads the country in assists per set, with 10.60. 

On the track, thrower Graham Wright is on pace for program-altering numbers in the weight throw. 

Over two separate meets, Wright put the country on notice, climbing up the Bisons’ career record board. 

On Wednesday during the Winter Open at the U of M, Wright moved into second in program history with a weight throw toss of 19.35 metres. He’s less than a metre away from passing Dariusz Slowik, who’s the only Bison to throw above 20 metres, doing so in 2001 (20.02). Wright’s toss improved his previous PB of 18.32 metres, which still ranks fourth all-time. 

Just a few days later, Wright brought home hardware, winning gold at the Sanderson Classic with a toss of 18.27 metres, almost a full metre ahead of second place. Wright’s 19.35 metre toss currently ranks second in the nation, and he is already auto-qualified for U SPORTS nationals in Winnipeg March 7-9. Wright also finished sixth in the shot put at the Sanderson with a throw of 13.65 metres.