2018 U Sports Men's Volleyball Championship
The 2018 U Sports Men's Volleyball Championship was held from March 16 to March 18, 2018, in Hamilton, Ontario, to determine a national champion for the 2017–18 U Sports men's volleyball season.[1] The tournament was played at Burridge Gymnasium on the campus of McMaster University. It was the fifth time that McMaster had hosted the tournament and the second time in three years.[2] This was the last tournament to feature an Atlantic University Sport champion as that conference withdrew from men's volleyball competition beginning with the 2018–19 season.[3][4]
| Season | 2017–18 |
|---|---|
| Teams | Eight |
| Finals site | Burridge Gymnasium Hamilton, Ontario |
| Champions | UBC Thunderbirds (4th title) |
| Runner-up | Trinity Western Spartans |
| Winning coach | Kerry MacDonald (1st title) |
| Championship MVP | Byron Keturakis (UBC Thunderbirds) |
The third-seeded UBC Thunderbirds defeated the two-time defending champion Trinity Western Spartans as the Thunderbirds won the fourth national championship in program history and their first since 1983.[5]
Participating teams
| Seed | Team | Qualified | Record | Last | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Trinity Western Spartans | Canada West Champion | 22–2 | 2017 | 5 |
| 2 | Alberta Golden Bears | Canada West Finalist | 19–5 | 2015 | 8 |
| 3 | UBC Thunderbirds | Canada West Bronze | 20–4 | 1983 | 3 |
| 4 | Montreal Carabins | RSEQ Champion | 12–2 | 1970 | 1 |
| 5 | McMaster Marauders | OUA Champion (Host) | 15–2 | None | 0 |
| 6 | UNB Varsity Reds | AUS Champion | 4–11 | None | 0 |
| 7 | Queen's Gaels | OUA Finalist | 10–8 | None | 0 |
| 8 | Windsor Lancers | OUA Bronze | 10–7 | None | 0 |
Championship bracket
| First Round: March 16 | Semi-Finals: March 17 | Gold Medal Game: March 18 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Trinity Western Spartans | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 8 | Windsor Lancers | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Trinity Western Spartans | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 5 | McMaster Marauders | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | Montreal Carabins | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 5 | McMaster Marauders | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Trinity Western Spartans | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | UBC Thunderbirds | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Alberta Golden Bears | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 7 | Queen's Gaels | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Alberta Golden Bears | 1 | Bronze Medal Game: March 18 | |||||||||||
| 3 | UBC Thunderbirds | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | UBC Thunderbirds | 3 | 2 | Alberta Golden Bears | 0 | |||||||||
| 6 | UNB Varsity Reds | 0 | 5 | McMaster Marauders | 3 | |||||||||
Consolation bracket
| Semi-Finals: March 17 | Fifth Place Game: March 18 | ||||||||
| 4 | Montreal Carabins | 3 | |||||||
| 8 | Windsor Lancers | 0 | |||||||
| 4 | Montreal Carabins | 3 | |||||||
| 6 | UNB Varsity Reds | 0 | |||||||
| 6 | UNB Varsity Reds | 3 | |||||||
| 7 | Queen's Gaels | 0 | |||||||
Awards
Championship awards
- U Sports Championship MVP – Byron Keturakis, UBC
- R.W. Pugh Fair Play Award – Irvan Brar, UBC
All-Star Team
- Taryq Sani - Alberta
- Brandon Koppers - McMaster
- Pearson Eshenko - Trinity Western
- Eric Loeppky - Trinity Western
- Adam Schriener - Trinity Western
- Byron Keturakis - UBC
- Irvan Brar - UBC
References
- "Telus to serve as title sponsor of 2018 U Sports men's volleyball championship". McMaster Marauders. January 19, 2018.
- "U Sports Volleyball Championship History". U Sports. Retrieved March 27, 2024.
- "Men's volleyball Tigers set for RSEQ housewarming party". The Chronicle Herald. November 1, 2018.
- "Telus to serve as title sponsor of 2018 U Sports men's volleyball championship". McMaster Marauders. January 19, 2018.
- "Final: UBC wins first national title in 35 years". usports.ca. U Sports. March 18, 2018. Retrieved March 28, 2024.
- "Men's volleyball championship results" (PDF). U Sports. Retrieved March 28, 2024.