For the third season in a row, the men’s volleyball team has clinched a spot in the Canada West Playoffs.
Finishing third overall in Canada West’s central division with a 7-11 record and 14 points, the men’s volleyball team will head to Trinity Western University to compete in the Canada West divisional playoffs. The TWU Spartans will play host to the MRU Cougars, University of Saskatchewan Huskies and Thompson Rivers Wolfpack in a round-robin tournament from March 3-5.
Tough competition in the central division from powerhouses such as the University of Alberta Golden Bears and the University of Calgary Dinos has proved challenging for the Cougars as they faced only three teams in Canada West action this year due to cautionary covid measures. When playing the Grant MacEwan Griffins, the men’s team found success in five of six games this season. Against the Dinos, the men won two of six matchups and struggled against the Golden Bears in every meeting this year.
Offensive leader Chris Byam continued to dominate for the Cougars, holding third-place among Canada West players for kills per set at 4.25 and fourth place for number of kills with 251. Considering MRU’s middle-of-the-pack stance among Canada West teams, Byam’s impressive offensive performance is a standout among his teammates and Canada West competitors.
Defensively, Chris Byam also leads the way with 96 digs, but has more support around him in the form of Max Haronga (76 digs), Jackson Brennan (75 digs), Keal Prince (74 digs) and Jacob Van Geel (68 digs) to help Mount Royal against some of the top ranked offensive efforts in Canada West.
Members of the men’s volleyball team have also received recognition through the Mount Royal Athletes of the Week presented by Players Bench program, showcasing their performances on the court.
After finishing eighth overall in Canada West standings in 2019-20, the Cougars faced off against the Trinity Western Spartans in their CW quarter-final matchup. The Spartans, who placed first overall in 2019, defeated the Cougars in two straight games with MRU losing 0-3 on Feb. 20, 2020 (17-25,16-25 19-25) and 0-3 (17-25, 19-25, 21-25) on Feb. 21, 2020, ending Mount Royal’s post-season quickly.
Mount Royal’s 2018-19 postseason is also worth noting as Head Coach Shawn Sky led that year’s program to Mount Royal’s first-ever U SPORTS Nationals appearance, earning a U SPORTS Top 10 ranking at fifth overall during the regular season and finishing sixth overall at nationals in Quebec.
With Joao Pedro Freire, Luis Lange, Paul Dionne and Jackson Brennan as the only remaining members from the nationals squad remaining on the team now, the men’s squad will look to these players for post-season guidance in their efforts next weekend.
While the Cougars will still face number one seed TWU in their divisional matchups on March 3-5, competition against the Huskies and Wolfpack should be interesting with both teams in a more similar position in the standing with 9-8 and 6-10 records; respectively this year.
Schedules for the divisional playoff tournament are set to be released this coming week so stay up-to-date on game times and matchups at mrucougars.com and don’t miss a minute of men’s volleyball playoff action by tuning in to watch the Cougars on Canada West TV.