BU’s Hildebrand preps for final home weekend

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This article was published 07/02/2024 (589 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s tough to beat Camryn Hildebrand’s long-awaited Brandon University Bobcats debut.

She still smiles wide about that night, two years later.

It was Feb. 19, 2022 in Winnipeg, after nearly three years of grinding on the practice court and standing on the sideline every weekend. Hildebrand subbed in during a blowout third set and got her first career kill on her first point.

Then, she added four more, made no errors and helped BU force a fifth set. At 14-13, the five-foot-11 middle blocker stuffed Ashleigh Laube for her first block to seal a massive victory.

“That was a crazy night, it really was a blur but kinda got chucked in and kinda blacked out, but I was just buzzing,” Hildebrand said with a grin.

“I really proved something there, so I’m happy about that.”

What Hildebrand proved is she belonged on a Canada West women’s volleyball court. The Vincent Massey product continued to do so the following season, carving out a starting role and becoming a leader for this year’s team.

She has a career-high 65 kills entering this weekend’s doubleheader against Thompson Rivers when she’ll be honoured in Saturday’s Senior Night festivities.

On Wednesday, she was named Bobcats female athlete of the month following a solid January which included Brandon’s first victory in two seasons.

“Getting athlete of the month feels like a full circle moment, especially at this time in the season, wrapping things up for the season, it’s pretty special to get this at this time,” she said.

Hildebrand joined the Bobcats in 2019 and while she didn’t redshirt, she didn’t play a point. Then, the next season was lost to COVID-19 so she didn’t see the court until playing a few points off the bench in November 2021.

She still wasn’t a starter at the beginning of her fourth year in Brandon and while she’s third on the team in kills and second in hitting percentage at .182, doesn’t necessarily play every match. She’s rotated through the two middle spots with Nerissa Dyer and Megan Pickford with a positive mindset on the situation.

“It’s all worth it, to be able to share our strengths between three different people is the beauty of the sport of volleyball,” Hildebrand said. “Seeing what we needed in different games and being able to execute or being confident enough to step back and let others do the job when it’s needed.

“Having that balance of ‘It’s for the team’ and not having that individual aspect there, it’s a big deal for us three to work together.”

Hildebrand’s first season on the court was one of the team’s more successful ones in recent history. Brandon went 9-7 in 2021-22 and picked up its lone playoff victory, a 3-2 marathon over Calgary in the first round.

Last year, BU went 0-24 and saw a massive roster turnover with 13 players leaving in two years. The resilient ones who stayed battled through a tough first semester and earned a decisive 3-0 win over Regina on home court in January. Hildebrand had six kills and hit .444 that night, then nearly led her team to a sweep before the Cougars snagged a five-set triumph.

The Bobcats (1-19) have one more decent shot at a non-playoff team in the WolfPack (6-14) this Friday and Saturday, then cap the season at the country’s No. 1-ranked UBC Thunderbirds (18-2).

It’s a stark contrast from Hildebrand’s high school and club days with the Vikings and now-defunct Cats Volleyball Club when losses were few and far between.

“It’s a big reality check going from doing well in provincials and having close games with those top teams in the province and then having a tough go at the beginning of my university career,” Hildebrand said.

“That’s the fun of it all, having those ups and being rewarded, and being pushed and challenged when you’re … at the bottom.

“That’s how we get better and learn as human beings so that’s the cool part.”

Interim head coach Kailan Robinson was an assistant coach for the past two seasons before running the team this year and said Hildebrand has grown a ton since then.

“The biggest thing is gaining confidence in herself,” Robinson said.“So many people on the team say they look up to Cam or go to her for advice. Literally, they say they want to play like her and be like her one day. For her to be such a role model for people now, that’s the biggest growth I see.”

It certainly helped that her best friend, libero Brianne Stott, has been there every step of her volleyball journey. They were graduating all-stars together at Massey, signed at BU together and waited those two seasons to see court time.

Now they have turned into players who, more or less, only leave the floor when they tag each other out.

“I can’t really put that girl into words,” Hildebrand said. “We’ve been playing together for 11 years … We’ve been through everything together and it’s a pretty cool experience to be able to do this journey alone … let alone with your best friend beside you.”

She added, “I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

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