TORONTO – Another season of men’s volleyball kicks off Friday for Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU). After finishing 8-16 last season, this year’s edition of the men’s volleyball team is focused on winning their first playoff round since the 2021-22 season.
“This season, we did a good job coming ready to work,” said middle Bobby Tang “We’re in a similar shape to where we were in the middle of last season.”
Officially taking over the role is head coach Niko Rukavina, who has been behind the Bold bench since the 2018-19 season. Having served in an interim head coach role for the past three seasons, Rukavina leads a squad of several key upperclassmen who return for a final season, along with an influx of youth that should allow the Bold to take the next step.
“(We’re) a very united front,” said graduate student Alex King “this year everybody has a sense of leadership on and off the court”
King, who sits seventh all-time in school points (735.0), will have a chance to reach the 1,000 point plateau this season. With another strong season from King, he may also find himself just below current assistant coach Lucas Coleman for third in the school’s lead for kills. Fourth-year setter Taylor Wenzel could also break 1000 career assists this season, which would move him into fifth all-time among the school leaderboard. Despite the individual accolades that may come this season, the focus remains on returning to the postseason.
“I’m very happy that I’ve been successful and put up the numbers that I have in my career,” said King “Looking back on my career, it’d be much more memorable to win something as a team than any individual records.”
Of the 18 players on the current men’s volleyball roster, ten are currently in fourth year or are graduate students. For many on this year’s squad, the 2024-25 season serves a “last dance”.
“We have a lot of people graduating so it’s kind of a farewell tour for a lot of guys,” said King “So if there’s any year to get stuff done and have a positive outlook it’s this one.”
If the Bold are to take advantage of the experience in this season’s squad, several areas of play will need to be cleaned up. Offensively last season the Bold played well, generating kills per set and points per set statistics that ranked in the top half of the OUA. Last year’s squad was plagued with defensive errors, ranking near the bottom in blocks per set and service errors. With a more experienced squad, fans should be hopeful that the Bold will see more wins this season.
Up front the Bold are led by King, and Tang as well as former OUA all-star Jacob Walker and Kai Higuchi. Nicholas Hudson, Lyam Krapp and Ben Davey round out the fourth years that helped lead the Bold to the seventh most kills in the OUA last season. Tony Tanouchev returns as the libero after recording 110 digs last season. Second-year Liam Cobb has impressed in the preseason, catching the eye of both Tang and King.
“He’s been showing out since his first year,” said Bobby Tang “He’s going to put the league on notice.”
Ultimately the 2024-25 season for the Bold will be defined by whether their focus can be maintained throughout the year. King has said that the floor has been raised, and believes an OUA run is possible for this team.
“The strength of this team is our systems,” said King “we’re a super deep team, every single person on the team can do the job.”
The season starts Friday October 25th, with a matchup against the Windsor Lancers. The home opener takes place November 7th, with a matchup against the Trent Excalibur. Students receive free admission with their OneCard. Stream all home games on oua.tv.