Baraniuk, Siebenga chase national team dream

The off-season is a time for most to take a step back.

But Ethan Baraniuk and Matt Siebenga have only ramped up.

The pair of Brandon University men’s volleyball players have been hard at work preparing for the upcoming Volleyball Canada under-21 national team selection camp, which begins on Tuesday in Calgary.

Baraniuk started for the U19 squad at the world championship in Uzbekistan last year, and that experience has him eager to do it at the next level.

“Volleyball’s just my life. My absolute desire is to play volleyball,” said the former Vincent Massey Vikings outside hitter. “The chance to represent my country last year was amazing, so to have the chance to do it again is absolutely amazing.

“It doesn’t get better than that.”

Siebenga posted a team-high .392 hitting percentage last season, recording 91 kills and just 24 errors. He added 77 blocks, good for sixth in Canada West.

Baraniuk recoreded 55 kills and 28 errors, hitting .170 while playing in 32 of the team’s 72 sets. He was named to the conference all-rookie team following BU’s 7-13 finish and first-round playoff exit in Saskatchewan.

The Bobcats took a little over a week off after the season, but were back on the practice court regularly after that.

When exam season hit and players started leaving, the guys with national team aspirations put their heads down and kept grinding. That includes former Bobcat JJ Love, who spent part of the year playing professionally in Greece before a sudden coaching change led to his release from the club.

The six-foot-seven setter from Dauphin cracked the 30-man roster for Canada’s senior national squad competing in the Volleyball Nations League this summer, so he was working with the current BU guys as much as possible before he had to leave.

That was massive for Siebenga, who can only do so much as a middle blocker with no setter.

“JJ is a phenomenal setter, so it’s great working with a guy at that level who brings back so much experience,” Siebenga said.

“JJ comes back, and one of the first things he says is ‘You’re a half-second slow.’ You’re moving too slow to be a middle.”

So Siebenga spent a whole session trying to speed up his attacking. The Ancaster, Ont., native has spent serious time solely on serving to one specific target. Those small, specific goals are much harder to work on during a full practice.

Baraniuk’s insight on what Love brought to the sessions may seem simple, but it’s easily overlooked these days.

“We have the intent to get better,” Baraniuk said. “He showed me a lot of stuff that will definitely improve my game, like just being more disciplined.”

When Love left, MacGregor native Kai Gaudet stepped in. The former Brandon Volleyball Club setter, who just finished his first year of Ontario Colleges Athletic Association ball with the Seneca College Sting, has helped provide attacking reps.

While BU graduations made it harder to get on the court — the school apparently requires closure of both Healthy Living Centre courts for multiple days of setup and needs to use Henry Champ Gymnasium to distribute caps and gowns — Baraniuk and Siebenga trust the work they’ve put in.

They’ll arrive in Calgary on Tuesday, register and go through a screening process. The next three days feature two three-hour tryout sessions, wrapping up on Friday, which is Baraniuk’s 19th birthday.

He went through the process last year as one of the older guys in the group, so he knows this one will be more challenging.

Love has helped them prepare, and both have thought about how they intend to approach the camp.

“This is mostly going to be a mental game,” Baraniuk said. “Knowing I’m one of the younger players trying out, I really have to prove myself, going with a good mentality, knowing I can be a really good player and showing what I’ve got is how I have to look at it. I can’t be nervous.”

Siebenga realized he hadn’t had a true tryout in past years, having been pre-signed to his club teams and recruited to Brandon. But he’s ready.

“Give it my all, prove to them why they need Matt Siebenga playing on this U21 team,” Siebenga said. “I think I’ve got what it takes, and I’m going to go in there with confidence.

“Everyone loves this game, but I’m so dedicated. I’m going to show how much I love it, and not in a rude way, try to beat other guys out. When a guy’s lacking in one area, I want to show up and just be better.”

Those who make the team stick around and train for two more weeks, and then head to Guatemala City for the U21 NORCECA Pan American Cup.

While Siebenga hopes to make it, he knows this opportunity is about more than just himself.

“We graduated out Paulsy (Liam Pauls) and Tom (Friesen) and we have a young squad. Me and Barney going to this tryout is a big deal for the Bobcat program,” Siebenga said.

“It’s a chance for the young corps to get better and see what this level’s like, and try our hardest to get on this team so we can improve and be even better for next season.”

» tfriesen@brandonsun.com