While most of us were at home spending time with family or sleeping in over the break, the Redeemer men's volleyball team was busy training and competing out on the west coast of California. The trip ran about a week; from December 28 to January 4 and was centred around a tournament hosted by the San Diego Volleyball Club.

According to Athletic Director Dave Mantel, "The team has shown over the last number of years that it has the ability to compete for provincial medals and this quality competitive environment is a great way to prepare the team both physically and mentally for some important games coming up in the second semester."
 
The week proved to be a high-volume, high-intensity block of training for the team. With many injuries and illnesses present, the tournament provided good indications of the strength and resiliency of this year's squad. Royals head coach Wayne Harris stated, "Within hours of entering the gym, every single team had a rash of injuries or illness and we were no exception."

Despite the obstacles, the men held their ground among some of the best-ranked volleyball teams in the country. In their first match, they put together a patchwork lineup but ended up on the wrong end of a loss to the country's 11th-ranked team Columbia Bible College. Their second game featured a face-off against one of Alberta's top squads: Red Deer College. After five close sets, the Kings came out on top and stole a nail-biter from underneath the Royals.

Next up for the men was CÉGEP Limoilou—the fourth ranked team in the nation and the top team from the province of Québec. Despite a terrific first set (29-27), the men fell hard and were outgunned 3-0. "That was the low point of competition for us," says Coach Harris. "Fifteen minutes later we were to face the number one ranked team in Canada from Vancouver Island University."
 
Much to the surprise of PACWEST powerhouse VIU Mariners, the Royals came out flying. "Over the next hour and a half our guys played the most precise and beautiful volleyball of the week resulting in our 3-1 victory," exclaims a proud Harris. Their dramatic win against the nation's best showed just how capable this year's squad appears to be. Standout players in the tournament included fourth year libero Brad Kooy and first year outside hitters Eric Heidburdt and Calvin Fast. All three players stepped up their games and filled in for hurting contributors Derek Vandenbrink, Jesse Dyxhoorn, and David Klomps. As a team, Harris sums up the performance by saying, "we played some of the finest volleyball that we have played in the past four years against some very tough opponents coming out of western Canada."
 
But it wasn't all tactics and training for the men in San Diego. They were also able to enjoy some leisure time interspersed throughout their bouts on the court. "We took New Years Day off, went to church and then went to the beach," notes Harris. "For our last three days we trained for two hours each morning and then either played beach ball on the Pacific Ocean or went to the military museum in the harbour (the USS Midway)."
 
All of the charges for the trip are set up to be offset through team sponsorship and through the Redeemer Athletic Department. According to Sports Information and Marketing Coordinator, Peter Reid, "the amount [contributed from athletics] was added specifically for a trip like this for one of our varsity teams."

The record of effectiveness of these top-end tournaments speaks for itself.  As Reid pointed out, "The season after we sent our team on their first trip to B.C we won our first men's volleyball Division I medal ever (bronze). The following year in 2010-2011 we sent the team to Ottawa. Two months later we won our second men's volleyball Division I medal (silver)." If the pattern continues as such, it can only mean a positive result for the team at this year's OCAA championship. Reid also commented that the trips have proven to be successful in the recruiting department. "Since our initial trip out to B.C. in 2008-2009 we have added five men from B.C. to our roster. The year before we had zero."
 
Without a doubt, Christmas training trips have become commonplace among top-level college programs. "They allow teams to enter the all important January-February performance cycles with a bang," claims Harris. "At least 25 teams from across the country took part in these training trips during the break this year." Most of these colleges programs, according to Harris, have budgets that are two to three times larger than Redeemer. "We work very hard at giving excellent value for the monies spent. Our trip to San Diego allowed us the same opportunity that so many of our competitors have."

Source: Jeremy Parsons/Redeemer University College