June 27, 2022 – The third, and final week, of the Volleyball Nations League (VNL) preliminary round is upon us and the Canadian women’s team is ready to make the most of a rare opportunity to play at home.
“It means so much to us,” said captain Jennifer Cross prior to practice Monday at the 7 Chiefs Sportsplex on Tsuut’ina Nation, near Calgary. “We spend most of our lives overseas. And as a national team, since I’ve been on the team, only hosted a handful of tournaments – and I’ve been on the team quite a while. Volleyball is really growing in Canada, and there’s lots of boys and girls playing volleyball and so we want to showcase what is possible, to be a professional and play overseas, and we hope that people from Calgary and the surrounding areas really enjoy it.”
With a 3-and-5 record on the season Canada is putting the building blocks in place for bigger results to come.
“We really have just found our stride and are starting to play more like ourselves,” said Cross reflecting on the team’s debut at this level a season ago. “When we were in VNL last year we were still trying to find our footing as a team with so many changes, but I think this year we’re just a lot more competitive and a lot more confident as a team in general. We’re playing really good, strong, aggressive volleyball which is what we like to do.”
This week’s four-game assignment starts by facing Turkey Tuesday night at 8 p.m. MT A big test with Turkey at 5-and-3 on the season and winners of their last two matches.
“The best games we’ve played have definitely been team performances when everybody’s doing their job well,” said head coach Shannon Winzer. ”I think anybody who watches us knows that Alexa Gray and Kiera Van Ryk hold down our offense really, really well. They’re both world class athletes. But we have some really exciting young names that not everybody knows about yet in Hilary Howe, Brie King, and our middles are some of the most underrated middles in the competition and I think they do a fantastic job for us – Jen Cross and Emily Maglio.”
While eight nations will compete when the finals begin next month in Ankara, Turkey there’s also the reality that one team will be relegated from VNL at the end of this preliminary phase.
It’s something Canada is well aware of, but not a possibility they’re going to allow to be a distraction.
“It’s just really important to focus on one game at a time,” said Cross. “So, we’re looking at Turkey and that’s our only focus. And then, once we’re done with Turkey, we’ll go to Serbia (Friday, 8 p.m.). You know, just go game by game. We can’t control how other teams play, but we can control our own destiny. We play best when we’re having fun and being aggressive and so that’s what we’re going to focus on, not what other teams are doing.”
It’s safe to say this Canadian team is ready to face any obstacle, and looks forward to the opportunities that lie ahead.
“We see everything as a challenge, everything is possible,” said Winzer. “We dream big as a team, and I think we’re exactly where we should be. We’re amongst the best teams in the world. We’re one of the best teams in the world, I truly feel that.”
Canada’s remaining VNL week three games are against Serbia Friday (8 p.m.), Germany on Saturday, and the Netherlands Sunday (5 p.m.)
Article by Mitch Peacock
