Volleyball has been a highly successful sport on the Island with a talent pool and following that may not be as wide as other sports but it certainly runs passionate and deep.
That is evidenced by the number of Islanders who have played in the Olympics — including Fred Winters, Martin Reader, Jamie Broder, Tom Graham, Greg Russell, Ann Ireland — to the several national championships won by Camosun College Chargers and Vancouver Island University Mariners teams.
That Camosun-VIU rivalry is being renewed this weekend in the PISE gymnasium on the Interurban campus as the Chargers host the Mariners. The two-game men’s and women’s sets began Friday night in late-finishing games and conclude this afternoon with the women playing at 1 p.m. and men at 3 p.m.
“This rivalry is for real and Island fans, and both teams, always get up for it and bring their A games,” said Camosun women’s team head coach Brent Hall.
The Mariners had won four consecutive Canadian women’s college championships before the Chargers ended that streak by winning PacWest and going to the national championship game in 2023.
“We unseated their run but the Mariners are solid year after year with a great record,” said Hall.
The Chargers, led by defending PacWest MVP Erica Bolink, began the season last weekend with a 2-0 sweep of Capilano University.
“We talk a lot about winning championships the right way,” said Hall, who played for the Chargers men’s team during his career.
“With the talent we have, we go into seasons believing that is achievable.”
The Camosun College men’s team, meanwhile, was back-to-back Canadian colleges champion in 2022 and 2023 and Kelvin Ma has another strong unit and started out last weekend with a two-game sweep of the Capilano Blues at PISE gym as Brazilian import Gabriel Spinelli led the way with a league second-leading 21 kills after Week 1 and Australian import Lachlan Scherger with a league-leading eight blocks.
