Still early in the season, Men’s Volleyball (4-1) looks ready to surpass the competition and spike into the division lead.
U of T is currently ranked third in the Ontario University Athletic league at eight points. With their strong roster and skilled coaching staff, the Blues have high hopes.
Head Coach Jeff Chung attributes the good start to tough preseason conditioning and disciplined training.
“We’ve been working hard,” he said. “A combination of work ethic, new recruits, talent and size has helped us make it to this point. Our specific focus early on has been on defence, serving and serve-receiving.”
With a stacked lineup of veteran players and skilled rookies, the season looks bright.
“We hope to have a better standing than last year, where we made top six. This year we hope to win the Ontario Title and advance to nationals,” Chung said.
Along with tough training, Chung also attributes the team’s skill to successful fundraising.
“Because fundraising has improved, our budget has increased,” he said. “The money has allowed us to buy more software and technology, like video equipment to scout out our opponents.”
The team has been putting this new technology to use as they scope out their competition for this weekend. They travel to London to meet the Western Mustangs on Saturday. The following day, the Blues hit the court versus the Windsor Lancers.
Chung admits that these upcoming away games may be tough on the team.
“We’ve been on the road quote a bit and it starts testing the players mentally,” he said. “Being away from home, the gym and on the road-all these factors come into play.”
When questioned about not having home court advantage, Chung admits that both of their oppoents play well at home.
“We have to be super-patient and work through it,” he said. “I’m confident we’ll get the results, but it’s not going to be easy, that’s for sure.”
This summer, Chung was invited to be the head coach for Canada’s Junior National Team, and he took much from the experience.
“I was constantly learning as a player, and now as national coach for the Junior National Team, I am constantly learning from other coaches and am passing their drills and techniques on to U of T,” he said.
Last weekend the Blues traveled to Waterloo to face Laurier’s Golden Hawks. U of T started slow, losing the first two sets, but they battled back to win in five (25-18, 25-12, 22-25, 23-25, and 12-15).
“Brendan Peel and setter James Mackay showed a lot of leadership to pull off the win,” Chung said. Peel led U of T’s attack by hitting 19 kills. Steven Kung scored 11 points with some huge hits, and played an important role defensively by digging 11 balls. Libero, Bowie Chung controlled the team’s composure in the backcourt.
For their second game of the weekend, U of T had to come back from behind, again losing the first set.
“We started off with a huge focusing issue. Then we started to play volleyball,” Chung said. Against Waterloo, the Blues quickly turned things around. They easily beat the Warriors in four sets (25-20, 17-25, 13-25, and 13-25). This time, it was some of the younger players who added a spark.
“Marko Balan and Colin Dole had some good numbers, their energy added to the game” Chung said.
The team’s only loss so far is to the OUA-leading Queen’s University squad. The Golden Gaels are currently ranked sixth in Canada, but it took Queen’s five long sets to defeat the Blues. Although U of T lost, Chung said, “it proves we’re in a race for the championship this year.”
