BU Bobcats land ‘best setter available’ Keon Torz

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This article was published 29/02/2024 (676 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Grant Wilson could have figured out Keon Torz was a good fit for his team without meeting him.

The setter and his Vincent Massey Trojans teammates, upon hearing the Winnipeg Free Press was coming to practice one day, threw their instructions to wear team gear so far out the window. They showed up in the craziest assortment of shorts and T-shirts they could find.

“All of us are just goofy and go-with-the-flow kind of guys,” Torz said. “That’s what helps us. We enjoy playing volleyball and yeah, we’re good at it too, but we have lots of fun and good friendships through that.”

Those who know Wilson’s Brandon University Bobcats know that’s an accurate assessment of them as well. Torz is set to join them after signing his letter of intent for the 2024-25 Canada West season.

“I’m super excited,” he said. “I’ve been thinking about it for a long time. It’s good to get this weight off my shoulders and know I have a good opportunity to play in the next few years.”

The six-foot-one setter means business when he needs to. He led the Trojans to a perfect AAAA volleyball season, capped with a convincing gold-medal match win facing the Dakota Lancers back in December. He also guided his Junior Bisons club team to a national title last May.

Torz was the No. 2-ranked player in the Free Press coaches poll, behind only his six-foot-seven teammate Owen Weekes, a University of Manitoba commit.

“He is, in our opinion, the best setter available out there,” Wilson said. “He plays the Bobcat way a bit in terms of he’s a competitor. He maybe doesn’t stand out in terms of how his size represents the way he plays.

“He’s not a big guy, but plays bigger than what he is, competes hard and has a winning pedigree.”

Torz was born into the game. His late father, Dave, played for the University of Winnipeg Wesmen.

Keon grew up playing for the elite 204 Volleyball Club, then switched to Junior Bisons after the COVID-19 pandemic hit when a few of his hockey friends shifted to volleyball.

He knew his senior season included a unique challenge when everyone Massey met knew they were playing six national champions in one terrifying lineup.

“There’s a lot of pressure, but it helped me play through the pressure and realize you also gotta have fun on the court. Having fun means getting better every day and I feel like that’s what our practices were like for high school,” Torz said.

“We ended up winning, but it wasn’t a walk in the park. We had to work.”

Torz and Wilson agree that while he isn’t a huge physical presence, he has all the tools to compete at a high level. For now, he’s an understudy to six-foot-seven starter JJ Love, with backup Evan Mah graduating in the spring.

Torz also has to compete with Kale Fisher, who was named to the Canada West all-rookie team after starting at libero for 21 matches.

The Edmonton native is a setter at heart and will want to push for the job.

Torz is aware of the situation, having attended a Bobcat practice. He still likes his chances of cracking the lineup as soon as possible.

“I liked how Grant ran his practices,” Torz said. “It was a lot of fun and I think it’s a good place where I can grow and hopefully grow and actually see the court in the next few years.”

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