The University of the Fraser Valley men’s volleyball program enjoyed the spoils of victory on Tuesday in the wake of their upset win over the Vancouver Island University Mariners.
The Mariners came into last weekend’s two-game set in possession of the coveted No. 1 spot in the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) national poll, and they defended that ranking on Friday by winning a five-set thriller. But the Cascades, second in the PACWEST conference and No. 8 in the nation at the time, bounced back on Saturday for a highly impressive four-set victory.
The new national rankings were released Tuesday, and the Cascades (15-5) moved up one spot to No. 7. They had been at No. 8 in each of the previous seven polls. VIU fell to No. 4, with the Fanshawe Falcons of the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) taking over top spot.
Additionally, Cascades sophomore middle Connor Pruim was honoured as the PACWEST men’s volleyball athlete of the week for his crucial contributions vs. the Mariners.
The 6’5” Langley, B.C. product racked up nine kills and a team-high six blocks on Friday, and he was once again instrumental in Saturday’s rematch with seven kills and four blocks. Pruim was extremely efficient offensively, posting a 70 per cent hitting efficiency over the two-game set.
The UFV volleyball teams are on a bye this week, and return to action Feb. 10-11 with a road trip to Cranbrook to face the College of the Rockies Avalanche. Their final home game night of the PACWEST regular season is Feb. 18 vs. the Columbia Bible College Bearcats (women 5 p.m., men 7 p.m., Envision Athletic Centre).
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