Jefferson Hagen, MacEwan Athletics
EDMONTON – There wasn't another team in any Canada West sport last season who missed the playoffs by a slimmer margin than the MacEwan women's volleyball squad.
After losing 3-1 to Brandon on the final day of the regular season last February, they ended up in a three-way tie for the final two post-season positions, but had the worst sets won/set lost ratio of the trio – (43-49 while both Manitoba and Mount Royal University were 44-48) – and saw their season end in heartbreaking fashion.
That's the back story as the squad enters a new Canada West campaign this weekend, visiting MRU on Friday (8 p.m.) and Saturday (7 p.m., both games Canada West TV presented by Co-op).
"They've been hungry since the beginning of March last year – as soon as we had our playoff scenario decided for us," said MacEwan head coach Ken Briggs, who returns a core group of 12 players from the 2018-19 team. "They're ready. We'll see. I think the league is going to be even tighter than we've ever been. Every weekend counts."
If they didn't know that before, last season's painful playoff tiebreaker fate taught that lesson well. MacEwan will be eager to start strong this weekend.
"We're starting against who a lot feel is one of the top teams (in Canada West)," said Briggs of MRU. "They're a veteran team and they've brought in two older recruits. They were solid last year, and they've been a playoff team the last couple of years. They're going to be good. They're going to be a really good test."
MacEwan will offer a stern test themselves for any Canada West opponent this season if preseason is any indication. The Griffins went 3-1-1, beating traditional conference titans Alberta and UBC along the way.
Boasting arguably the top 1-2 punch in the middle that the conference has with fifth-year seniors McKenna Stevenson and Haley Gilfillan, the Griffins also return starting setter Kylie Schubert and key veteran outsides Lauren Holmes and Hailey Cornelis, who are also heading into their final season of university eligibility.
"Now having a setter who has set at this level for a full season is going to make a huge difference for us," said Briggs of third-year player Schubert. "She has the experience now and a little more imagination on offence. In our preparation for other teams, I think we can bring a little more for them to defend."
Stevenson was the only middle in the conference to lead her team in kills when she topped MacEwan's statistical output in 2018-19 with 199 of them, also leading the team in blocks with 105. Gilfillan, meanwhile, broke the school record for most service aces with 50.
"Of all the people, they've set the bar the highest for themselves," said Briggs of his stars in the middle. "What I like is they're comfortable where they're at. They know they have lots of work to do yet they're not upset about it, they're not stressing about it. They know what to expect."
The squad has been bolstered by the addition of outside hitter Joslyn Peters – the sister of MacEwan men's volleyball player Jordan Peters – who is in her fourth year of eligibility after transferring from NAIT in the ACAC. Peters played for the neighbouring ACAC institution from 2014-17, leading the Ooks in kills during the 2015-16 campaign.
"She's been a really nice addition," said Briggs. "She's learning the Canada West game after being off for a couple of years. Luckily, she's in amazing physical shape.
"She's a high-intellect kid, so she understands the game. Now it's just getting her up to speed. We've spent the last month and a half doing that."
After the opening weekend on the road, MacEwan returns to Edmonton for their home opener against Regina Oct. 25-26.
