COACH WILKINS TALKS CCAA WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL
VICTORIA, BC: Chris Wilkins, head coach of the 10-time OCAA champion Humber Hawks, chats Ryan Watters about the upcoming 2017 CCAA women's volleyball championships.
Humber will open the nationals on Thursday night against the host Camosun Chargers.
Official Tournament Initial Release
CAMOSUN CHARGERS
MEDIA RELEASE
Monday, March 6, 2017
Camosun set to host 2017 CCAA women's Volleyball National Championship
After months of planning and organization, action is about to get underway this week as Camosun hosts the 2017 CCAA Women's Volleyball National Championship at the Pacific Institute for Sport Excellence on Interurban campus.
Players, coaches and fans from across Canada will gather in Victoria to take part in the four-day event which begins Wednesday, March 8 and runs to Saturday, March 11. The top eight teams from the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association's five conferences will compete for the crown, including Island rivals, Camosun and VIU.
1. VIU Mariners Nanaimo, BC PACWEST Pacific Western Athletic Association
2. Humber Hawks Toronto, ON OCAA Ontario Colleges Athletic Association
3. Lynx d'Édouard Montpetit Longueuil, QC RSEQ Reseau du sport etudiant du Quebec
4. Lakeland Rustlers Lloydminster, AB ACAC Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference
5. Mount Saint Vincent Mystics Halifax, NS ACAA Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association
6. GPRC Wolves Grande Prairie, AB ACAC Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference
7. Camosun Chargers Victoria, BC PACWEST Pacific Western Athletic Association
8. Cavaliers de Bois-de-Boulogne Montreal, QC RSEQ Reseau du sport etudiant du Quebec
The championship will kick off with the CCAA Women's Volleyball National Championship Awards Banquet at the Harbour Towers Hotel Wednesday evening, 6:30-9:00pm. Joanne Ross, former Canadian women's volleyball national team member and respected coach and sport administrator, will emcee the event where the CCAA will honour the 2017 All-Canadians and announce the CCAA Women's Volleyball Player of the Year and Coach of the Year.
Camosun is pleased to welcome Michelle Cameron Coulter who will present the keynote address at the awards banquet. Michelle is a six-time World Champion and Olympic Gold Medalist (synchronized swimming) and was inducted into the Alberta and Canadian Halls of Fame and International Aquatic Sports Hall of Fame. Michelle has also been awarded the prestigious "Order of Canada" and is an active entrepreneur and philanthropist. Michelle has been married over 20 years to fellow Olympian and volleyball player Al Coulter and is the proud mother of four children – notably, daughter Jacqueline is a student at Camosun (University Transfer) and plays for the Chargers women's volleyball team.
Competition begins Thursday, March 9 with the following match ups:
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MATCH 1 1:00pm PT Thursday, March 9
VIU Mariners (1) vs Cavaliers de Bois-de-Boulogne (8)
The defending CCAA National Champion Mariners defeated Douglas in three straight sets to capture their 16thPACWEST title. VIU is led by captain, and PACWEST Player of the Year, Megan Rosenlund. The Mariners went 19-5 in conference play to finish atop the regular season standings. They'll face the wildcard Cavaliers, who upset RSEQ powerhouse Garneau in the conference semi-finals. Bois-de-Boulogne eventually fell in four sets to Édouard-Montpetit in the RSEQ Championship match. |
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MATCH 2 3:00pm PT Thursday, March 9
Lakeland Rustlers (4) vs MSVU Mystics (5)
The upstart Rustlers captured the ACAC Championship crown with a four-set victory over GPRC. Lakeland, 18-6 in the regular season, finished third in the ACAC North Division. They'll face the ACAA Champion Mystics. MSVU is led by ACAA Player of the Year Christina Day, who is in her final season. The Mystics were 20-1 in the regular season to finish atop the ACAA standings. They captured the conference title with a five-set victory over Holland. |
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MATCH 3 6:00pm PT Thursday, March 9
Lynx d'Édouard Montpetit (3) vs GPRC Wolves (6)
Led by third-year attacker Maude Babin, Édouard-Montpetit earned the RSEQ provincial title with a four-set victory over Bois-de-Boulogne. The Lynx finished the regular season with an 11-7 record and tie for second place in the RSEQ standings. They'll face the wildcard Wolves from the ACAC. GPRC fell to Lakeland in four sets in the ACAC Championship final. The Wolves, led by outside hitter Emily Groenenboom, were 19-5 in the regular season, which placed them second in the ACAC North Division. |
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MATCH 4 8:00pm PT Thursday, March 9
Humber Hawks (2) vs Camosun Chargers (7)
Humber, which earned a bronze medal at the CCAA National Championship a year ago, defended their OCAA crown with a three-set victory over Durham in the conference final. The Hawks, who have won an incredible 10-straight OCAA titles, were 18-0 in the regular season and finished atop the OCAA West Division standings. They'll face the host Chargers. Camosun was 8-16 in the regular season and fell in five sets to Capilano in the PACWEST quarter-finals. |
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Find official championship information here.
For the latest news, results and updates follow @CCAAsportACSC
Find audio interviews with the Head Coaches here, courtesy Ryan Watters, PACWEST Media Coordinator:
Camosun https://soundcloud.com/ryan-watters/ccaa-nationals-preview-2017-camosun-chargers
VIU https://soundcloud.com/ryan-watters/ccaa-nationals-preview-2017-viu-mariners
MSVU https://soundcloud.com/ryan-watters/ccaa-nationals-preview-2017-msvu-mystics
Lakeland https://soundcloud.com/ryan-watters/ccaa-nationals-preview-2017-lakeland-rustlers
Humber https://soundcloud.com/ryan-watters/ccaa-nationals-preview-2017-humber-hawks
GPRC https://soundcloud.com/ryan-watters/ccaa-nationals-preview-2017-gprc-wolves
Photo courtesy Camosun Chargers Athletics
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Contact:
Graham Matthews
Championship Coordinator
250-220-2505