Bobcats face Huskies in play-in round

The Brandon University Bobcats men’s volleyball team enters a championship as the lowest seed today.

No one expects them to make a deep run. Sound familiar?

The team that shocked the country 11 months ago is looking to do the same, starting with Match 1 of the Canada West play-in series against the host Saskatchewan Huskies at 6 p.m.

“The biggest challenge is we’re playing in enemy territory,” said BU head coach Grant Wilson. “And they have a lot of experience on their side. At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter where you play or who you’re playing, you’ve got to take care of the ball on your side of the net.”

On one hand, it’s an unlucky matchup for 10th-place Brandon, having to face last year’s Canada West and U Sports bronze medallist, which only lost one starter for this season.

However, before the schedule was shortened and two teams were added to the playoffs, the 10th-place team watched the post-season from afar. So you won’t hear any complaints from the Bobcats (7-13), who face a familiar foe they beat 3-1 in their home pre-season tournament, then split with in Saskatoon in November. BU lost the first match 3-2 and bounced back to take the second in four sets.

The Huskies (9-11) went just 2-8 against teams over .500, with both wins coming against the defending conference champion Winnipeg Wesmen (11-9). For the record, BU was 0-12 against teams over .500.

Wilson feels Saskatchewan would have fared better if not for all-Canadian opposite Emmett Graham missing the first two weeks of the campaign.

“That changed how they were playing the game. He’s a guy that can do so many good things to help you win a game, so they got off on the wrong foot,” Wilson said.

“You look at their last weekend against Trinity (Western), they didn’t win, but scores were tight and Trinity’s really good, so I think they’re playing much better than they were at the start of the year.”

Graham finished second in Canada West with 3.83 kills per set, behind TWU’s Kaden Schmidt (5.00). BU outside hitter Tom Friesen was tied for fifth at 3.61, with Liam Pauls at 2.97. The duo will have to stay disciplined on defence before transitioning to attack, especially when Graham’s swinging.

Friesen likes Brandon’s chances, though, especially with how middle blockers Matthew Siebenga and Riley Brunet have played lately.

“Our team as a whole, especially our middles, has been doing really well. This past weekend, I personally feel I played very poorly and our team still played well and together and made it a really close game (at Winnipeg),” Friesen said. “Everyone has been playing consistently good.”

The matchup features a strong setting battle between senior Noah Opseth, who finished third in Canada West at 10.05 assists per set, and Kale Fisher, who was fifth at 8.97. Both teams were in the middle of the pack in hitting percentage, with Saskatchewan holding a narrow edge of .264 to .245.

It has been Fisher’s job all year, save for a few points when Wilson throws rookie Matt Lefebvre in as a blocking boost, and the one lineup tweak over the past few weeks locks Fisher further in. Second-year setter Keon Torz has featured as a serving sub and back-row defender since his first year, but Wilson wants him on the floor even more and has made him the defensive libero, splitting the job with Australian Cooper Bevan.

“We feel he’s probably the best defender on the team, so he’s earned that right,” Wilson said. “It’s certainly not that Kingston (Thomas) lost it because Kingston has played well. For a first-year guy, he’s done some really positive things, but we feel Keon has earned the opportunity to get that.”

It’s an adjustment for Torz, who came to BU after leading one of the best high school teams in Manitoba volleyball history to a AAAA provincial title at Winnipeg’s Vincent Massey Collegiate. Instead of setting and touching the ball just about every play, he can go long stretches without it coming his way.

That makes it even more critical to make the most of the touches he gets.

“It’s good to stay loose, having fun with the guys, cheering, making sure you’re paying attention to the game. Paying attention to what’s going on and the situation is always important,” Torz said, adding he feels good with the added responsibility.

“I’ve been playing defence for every position I play on the floor, so to get out there and be on the floor doing that, I have confidence in that, and I feel the guys have confidence in me.”

The second match is on Friday at 6 p.m., and if necessary, the third match is on Saturday at 2 p.m. The winner heads to Trinity Western next weekend for a best-of-three quarterfinal.

The other play-in series features No. 8 Mount Royal (9-11) hosting Calgary (8-12), with the winner drawing No. 1 UBC (19-1).

Winnipeg (11-9) visits No. 3 Alberta (15-5) in the quarterfinals next week, while Manitoba (14-6) takes on No. 4 UBC Okanagan (15-5).

The top remaining seed hosts the final four on the first weekend of March.

On the women’s side, Winnipeg hosts Calgary, and Fraser Valley entertains MacEwan this week.