Jefferson Hagen
MacEwan Athletics
EDMONTON – Completing an epic university sporting journey that began six-and-a-half years ago on the badminton court at King's University, Alexei Walisser is heading into his final weekend of action … as one of best volleyball players in U SPORTS.
His winding journey took him from the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference badminton circuit in 2016-17 to playing ACAC volleyball at Lakeland College from 2017-19 to a four-season U SPORTS career at MacEwan that included only two seasons of actual eligibility.
What a ride.
"When you use your first year of eligibility as a badminton athlete, that's pretty cool that you got to play varsity athletics in two different sports," said MacEwan men's volleyball head coach Brad Poplawski. "You definitely don't see that very often, so I think that shows his athleticism. Not a lot of athletes can do that. It's a very unique journey."
Walisser enters the final weekend of his university career as he leads the Griffins into action against Mount Royal University on Friday (7:30 p.m.) and Saturday (4 p.m., both David Atkinson Gym, Canada West TV).
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Walisser will finish with the second-most kills in a single season since the Griffins joined Canada West as he enters this weekend with 260, behind only Max Vriend (317 in 2019-20). The Peace River, Alta. native also has 294.5 points, behind two of Vriend's seasons (362.5 in 2019-20 and 299.0 in 2018-19).
Enjoy a graduating senior Q&A with Walisser below.
Alexei Walisser (Robert Antoniuk photo).
ALEXEI WALISSER
Brad Poplawski coach quote:
"I think he's definitely left his mark on the program. He's carried a lot of offence for us in the last two years. I saw how hard he worked the first year he came to us from a very productive ACAC career. He decided to redshirt (in 2019-20) and I saw how hard he worked. As a coach, you really appreciate that a guy comes in and works that hard to become the player her became.
"He's been awesome for us offensively. He's a weapon from the service line. He's a big block presence. Once we moved him to the opposite position from the left side this year, that's when our team started to play its best. He's carried so much load for us this year. Statistically, he's having a great season. He gets a lot of teams' attention because they know we're going to get him some volume. His numbers are because he's earned that volume from our setters that they trust him in big situations, going to him often."
Graduating with …
Bachelor of Commerce in Management
Do you have a career goal in mind?
"Not exactly. I'm kind of hoping to go play pro overseas for two-three years and then come back and either do my MBA, law school or just find a job with my degree as is and work my way up a corporate ladder, I guess."
Do you have any leads on pro opportunities?
"I don't have offers right now, but I just hired an agent three weeks ago. He's compiling game film right now and said I should hear back from teams in April. It's a waiting game right now."
When you look back at your Griffins career, what are some of your favourite memories?
"Some of my favourites memories are meeting the guys that I've met and being able to learn from guys who've played volleyball at an elite level. Going all the way back to my redshirt year, watching a guy like Max Vriend play volleyball was something special. Not everybody gets to do that. Seeing his day-in, day-out work ethic was huge for me as a player. That's what really opened my eyes to how much work it takes to be an elite player in this league. I was very fortunate to be able to come into a redshirt year with a guy like that as a mentor.
"Then, obviously this little streak of games we've had recently is going to end up being the highlight of my U SPORTS career – piecing together three wins in a row. For some programs, that isn't much, but for us it meant a lot. It took a lot of work for us to get there, so I was proud of the team, proud of the guys. That was a good moment, for sure."
The campaign you're having is the second-most kills in a single season in MacEwan's Canada West history, only behind Max in 2019-20. What's led to the strong season that you've had?
"I had a few goals that I wrote down in September of things I wanted to accomplish this year and one of those was averaging over three kills a set and increasing my efficiency. I knew I was likely going to get more volume this year, so if I could increase my kills per set, along with my efficiency … I was able to do that. It's rewarding. It feels good."
You've had a unique post-secondary sports career, starting out playing badminton at King's University before transferring to Lakeland to play volleyball, ultimately leading to your time at MacEwan. Can you take stock in your entire university sports experience?
"I never thought I was going to end up playing volleyball after my Grade 12 high school year. Badminton was the only sport I thought I was good enough at to play post-secondary, so that's the route I took. In watching volleyball in college, I thought 'that looks kinda fun.' So, I tried my hand at it and just had to work my way up. It's been the grind of going into a new team and working your way up the ladder. I did the same thing when I came to MacEwan – had to redshirt and work my way up. Now I'll be looking to do that in the pros. It's kind of just the cycle of things."
What do you think is the legacy you're leaving to the program?
"I just hope at the end of the day, I can be what Max sort of was to me, that guys saw the work that I put in – on the court, but also in the weight room – guys could see it takes a lot of hard work and a lot of investment to obtain the goals you want to obtain in this league. You're not always going to get what you want in this league, but your work ethic can't be wavering. I just hope guys understand hard work goes a long way."
Do you have anything else you'd like to say about your time with the Griffins?
"All I can say is thank you. It's been an honour; it's been a pleasure. I'm grateful for the opportunity that I've had here."
