Men's Volleyball heading to CCAA bronze medal match

By: Fernando Bossoes
Humber Athletics Communications

VICTORIA, BC – The Hawks had once again a positive outcome against the Fanshawe Falcons, as Humber men's volleyball secured a five-set victory (23-25, 27-25, 21-25, 25-20, 15-10) in the CCAA bronze semi-final round. The Hawks will now fight to capture the national bronze medal as they take on the VIU Mariners in a must-win match.

Second-year player Marcus Morgan paced the offence for the Hawks with a game-high 17 kills, while Jaskarn Kalsi was a true wall by the net, securing an impressive game-high 5 solo blocks.

Match Recap

The top two teams in Ontario were ready to face each other again, this time for a spot in the CCAA bronze medal game. After a setback in their first game, the Fanshawe Falcons advanced to this bronze semi-final match by defeating the ACAA champions, the St. Thomas Tommies. The Falcons were not only aiming to secure a national bronze medal for the first time since 2016, but this matchup also carried a feeling of redemption from their fall against Humber in the OCAA championship.

On the opposite side, the Humber Hawks had a heartbreaking evening the day before, suffering a five-set defeat to the ACAC champions, the NAIT Ooks. Humber viewed this matchup as a prime chance to regain momentum, as they boasted a 2-1 record against the Falcons in the 2023-24 season.

In a rematch of the 2024 OCAA championship game, both teams were having a back-and-forth clash. The score read 15-15, and no team could get ahead to a comfortable lead. The fans in the crowd saw a close game throughout the entire set, with the Falcons finding crucial points late in the game to capture the set 25-23.

The Hawks knew the significant importance of winning this set. Dropping the second could mean the end of Humber's dreams of a spot in the bronze medal game. Second-year player Marcus Morgan would score twice in a row to send the Falcons on a timeout as the score read Humber up 7-3. Fanshawe would not allow the Hawks to sit comfortably on the lead, as they would rally from behind to level the match up at 18-18. Humber kept a neck-to-neck late game before levelling up the match with a 27-25 set win.

As the third set got underway, the crowd saw a very similar game, as both teams were once again tied at 18-18. This time, the Falcons had enough gas in the tank to make a late push, clinching the set with a 25-21 victory.

Both teams returned to the fourth set in this battle of the skies. The Hawks did not have their best performance on the court and would see Fanshawe jump out to a 10-7 lead, so head coach Wayne Wilkins called a timeout to bring his team together. Wilkins had a plan, as the Hawks would return red-hot with Marcus Morgan sitting on the Hawks' driver's seat to bring this game to a fifth set, 25-20.

This CCAA bronze semi-final match followed the same rhythm as the OCAA championship, as Humber and Fanshawe were set to play another fifth set. Humber started off strong, with Teyven Blackmore pacing the offence with three kills as Humber led 8-5 at the switch. Once again, the Hawks proved to be the rulers of the nest, leaving the Falcons feeling like mere fledgling as senior player Maximum Crowder drove a hard-driven spike down the floor to send Humber to the CCAA bronze medal game, 15-10.

Senior Jaskarn Kalsi was named the 4imprint Player of the Match after he scored seven kills, two service aces, and five solo blocks.

Humber Highlights

• The Hawks are headed to their first CCAA bronze medal game since 2014.
• The Hawks improve to 25-24 all-time against Fanshawe.
• Humber improves to 3-1 in the season against the Falcons.
• The Hawks have a 22-18 record in the CCAA postseason.

What's next?

The Hawks now look to capture the CCAA bronze medal as they take on the PACWEST champions, VIU Mariners, on March 10. The bronze medal game is set for 5 p.m. ET.