After a 3–1 win over the University of Alberta Pandas, the UBC women’s volleyball team won their 14th national championship, giving head coach Doug Reimer his 11th national title in March.
Now, entering the new season, the Thunderbirds have the opportunity to celebrate a three-peat national championship.
The Canada West coaches preseason poll ranked the ‘Birds third in the conference, behind the reigning CW champions University of Manitoba Bisons and the Pandas.
The team saw eight departures from last season, notably those of liberos Kayce Jost and Victoria D’Acre, outside hitter Erika Vermette and team captain and middle Claire Cossarini.
Despite these losses, the T-Birds have key returning players leading the charge.
Outside hitters Lucy Borowski and Akash Grewal are ones to watch. Borowski, coming off a summer of international play on the Volleyball Canada women’s NextGen team, is a consistent offensive and defensive force on the T-Birds’ court, leading the team in kills and digs in the 2023/24 season. Grewal, who trained over the summer with the Canadian NetGen beach volleyball team, was a breakout player for the ‘Birds, boasting an impressive 72 service aces last year.
“Like the previous year, we have some good continuity but we've also graduated a lot of players,” said Reimer. “One of the differences this year is it is a much smaller group in total … but the overall energy and commitment to training … I've been really pleased with it, it's been really, really positive. We're working hard and we're learning.”
The team also brought in strong first-year players, such as middle Leonora Barbulovich-Nad and libero Daphne Demiryol. Both played in the Ontario club circuit together for Titans Volleyball Association.
A large defensive gap was left by Jost — who was named libero of the year for 2022/23 and 2023/24 — and D’Acre’s departures. But defensive athletes and recent recruits Demiryol, MacEwan University transfer Bronwyn Ettinger and returning T-Bird Olivia Furlan are ready to take on that challenge. Ettinger, however, is ineligible to play as per U Sports transfer rules.
Furlan played for UBC as a setter and outside hitter from 2016–20, where she was named a tournament all-star for UBC’s 2019 national championship win against Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly known as Ryerson University).
Returning outside hitter Elizabeth Lee and middle Emma Doyon also boasted a big threat for teams playing the ‘Birds, but Reimer said they will be sitting out for the foreseeable future due to injury.
When it comes to returning back to the national gold medal game, Reimer said it’s a matter of playing “with a level of consistency and belief.”
“There's a lot of other really good teams with a lot of good players. A lot of them have returning [players], and they're very hungry,” said Reimer. “So we have to stay hungry for success as well.”
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