The UNB Men’s volleyball team has set themselves into a nice seated position in the conference, finishing their first semester with a bang.
“We just finished our first half with a 2-1 record at the second interlock tournament, so we beat Montreal 3-0, Sherbrook 3-1 and lost in the fifth set against the number two team in the country, Laval, so we’re defiantly on an upswing,” said head coach Dan McMorran.
The boys have had a good season thus far, especially in their exhibition game against Trinity Western, who is ranked top third in Canada.
“We lost 3-2 the first day and beat them 3-1 the second day. So we have had a couple of weeks in the row where we were ranked top ten in the number tenth spot.”
During the first set of the interlock match, fifth year Varsity Red Jacob Kilpatrick injured himself again, and until recently was unable to play until the end of the semester due to a dislocated shoulder.
As a sturdy middle-setter, the loss of Kilpatrick for the first half the season wasn’t easy for the team, but the Reds have a deep bench this year and that more than makes up for it.
Kilpatrick’s middle man, Josh Sheehan is a valued player for the Reds. Together the boys make up the “twin towers” of the court, both surpassing 6’7” in height. “They’re as good a one-two combo punch in the CIS right now,” said McMorran. Kyle Blanchard became the AUS conference leader in digs and digs per set in the league, giving the Reds an advantage on the court.
As well, Matt Sweet came back on the team after suffering an injury last year and with a new season and motivation he has added fuel to the powerhouse team.
“These are some of the key guys for us right now.”
UNB’s biggest competitor this season has been the Dalhousie Tigers, suffering two losses against them early on in the season.
“[There are] a couple matches we would have liked to have had back, couple redo’s here this first half. We went down to Dalhousie and they’re our main competition in the Atlantic conference, and we lost 3-2 and 3-1,” McMorran said. However the Reds are hungry for the AUS title and believe that after the Christmas break they will have a chance to secure that position.
“Three seasons ago, we had a really good squad. We were pretty deep and we beat Dalhousie three times out of the six times we played them. We were as high as number seventh and eighth in the country that year and to be quite honest, I’ve always said that this year right here, I feel that we are an even deeper team and I think we have the ability to go further this year. So I guess farther for us right now would mean winning an Atlantic championship, so that’s what we’re trying to gear for.”
McMorran believes that with his players’ heighth and net-domination it will help them win the title they have been training for.
“In our success, in our wins this semester we have basically been dominate at the net. We block better then other teams right now.”