VANCOUVER – The UBC Thunderbirds men's volleyball team will begin their quest to return national prominence this weekend, as they open Canada West regular season with a set of back-to-back games at home against the Manitoba Bisons.
 
The T-Birds are coming into their opening weekend ranked No. 6 in the country, according to the first CIS Top 10 rankings of the 2015-16 season.
 
The 'Birds are coming off of a 19-15 season in 2014-15, where their 13-11 mark in conference play was good for fifth in Canada West. The playoffs saw the T-Birds take down Manitoba in the best-of-three quarter-final series to advance to the Canada West Final Four, where they lost to the Alberta Golden Bears in the semifinals, before falling at the hands of the Brandon Bobcats in the bronze medal game.
 
UBC will see a new nucleus take center stage this season, as four starters from last year's squad, including Ben Chow, Chris Howe, Ian Perry, and Quentin Schmidt, all graduated following last season.   
 
However, Schick is adamant that this iteration of the T-Birds, including a pair of fifth-year seniors, 6-foot-10 middle Alex Russell (Surrey, B.C.) and setter Milan Nikic (Calgary), who ranked fifth in Canada West with 9.52 assists per set in 2014-15, will be able to carry the load left by the quartet of graduating standouts.
 
We're going to look to our seniors, and in the pre-season, Alex and Milan have definitely stood out for us," said the head coach. "[The coaching staff] are going to be looking to those guys, with their experience, to provide the leadership for this team. This is their last kick at the can, and their expectations are high for this team, even with the guys that we lost."
 
Mac McNicol (Calgary), a 2014-15 Canada West Second Team All-Star, also returns for his fourth year with the 'Birds. The right side outside hitter was brilliant last season, leading UBC with 296 kills. However, Schick admits that he could've been even better last season, and he looks the part so far this season.
 
"Mac's going to be carrying a lot of the load on the outside, and he has the ability to take over matches for us," said Schick. "Last year, he needed to work on managing certain situations within the game a little better, but there's been definite improvement their throughout our non-conference schedule this year."
 
The development of a couple of second-year players, setter Byron Keturakis (Surrey, B.C.) and middle Joel Regehr (Courtenay, B.C.), will also provide point of intrigue for the 'Birds, as the pair played for Canada at the FIVB U21 World Championships this past summer. That experience, which included months of training with the national team prior to the tournament, should serve the duo well going into the season.
 
"I think it can only help," said Schick of the extra work Regehr and Keturakis put in over the summer with the national program. "The training with that team, those coaches and at that level, it can only be a positive for us. The physicality that both of them bring will be an asset."
 
Schick also made special note of Irvan Brar, a third-year left side who really came into his own last season the native of Surrey, B.C. ranked second on the team in kills (241), digs (174), and total points scored (271.5). Brar has also made significant strides over the summer, as he spent time training with the Canadian junior national team.
 
"Irvan's another guy who has come in with a lot of fire, and in really good shape early on," remarked Schick of the 6-foot-2 Brar. "In our preseason, he really carried the load for us passing, offensively, and on defence. He's now getting a sense of how to better use his athleticism and maximize his skill set."
 
Even with the return of some key veterans, Schick will still be looking for immediate contributions from a few first-year Thunderbirds.
 
Trenton Leisen, a recruit fresh out of Edmonton's Strathcona High School and the Northern Alberta Volleyball Club (NAVC) Gold team, is the presumed starter at the libero slot, taking over after Perry held the position for five years.
 
"Trenton's solid passer, outstanding defender and a natural leader who has been a major contributor on his high school and club teams," said Schick.
 
Another player that will look to make the jump straight out of high school is Zach Albert, a Toronto-born outside hitter who starred for a Pakmen Club Team that won Gold at both the Penn State Invitational and the Chicago Invitational this past year. Schick brought up a few lofty comparisons when talking about Alberts' play style and potential upside, and versatility.
 
"Zach is a very nice player, with a really advanced skill set for a kid coming out of high school," quipped the UBC coach. "Has a good arm, a good jump, and is very similar to guys that we've had here before Ben Chow and Geoff Emslie. Really good ball control, too, so he could be a good fit at that libero spot, but he's going to want to swing."
                        
A little further east then Albert's native Toronto, first-year setter Henrik Hole joins the 'Birds from Oslo, Norway. Hole is a decorated member of the Norwegian national system, has he's captained both the U19 and U20 Norwegian squads. Hole has also claimed the Gold at the Norwegian U19 Championship, earning the title of Best Setter in the process.
 
"We really like what we've seen out of Henrik – he's a competitor, really nice overall skill set," said Schick. "Even though he's a setter, he's got the ability to attack, and he's got a heavy arm in both attacking and serving."
 
Having three high-caliber setters in Nikic, Keturakis, and Hole, Schick isn't going to be lacking the opportunity to be creative.
 
"The big thing with having three setters like Byron, Milan, and Henrik, is that we have so many options. All of them are extremely versatile – they're great athletes, great servers, and all can swing. It's going to be a fun challenge trying to manage those three players."
 
Two college transfers, Jean-Benoit Gagne (Quebec City) from Limoilou College in Quebec, and Cam Fennema (Victoria, B.C.), a former Camosun Charger, should also make a sizable impact in their first seasons in CIS.
 
The pair of outside hitters actually have a history of sorts, as Fennema's Chargers topped Gagne's Limoilou side in the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) championship final last March, with Fennema capturing MVP honours.
 
In addition to the other fresh faces for the 'Birds, middles Jordan DeShane (Surrey, B.C.) and Ben Ta (Burnaby, B.C.), as well as libero Brady Patterson (Prince George, B.C.), will red-shirt in their first seasons on campus. The three players have all shown promise after joining the fold, but will need time to mature physically before making the full-time jump to CIS.
 
A pair of first-year players who red-shirted last season, Jacob Smith (White Rock, B.C.) and Nick Hughes (White Rock, B.C.), as well as third-year Mat Guidi (Coquitlam, B.C.) and fourth-year Jarrid Ireland (Winnipeg), round out the outside hitter ranks.
 
Down the middle, Russell and Regehr are joined by another freshman who red-shirted last year, Connor MacCuspie (North Vancouver).
 
Leisen is listed as the only libero on the roster, but the versatility of a guy like Albert gives Schick another piece to tinker with, should the need arise.
 
When it comes to the end result that he's looking for, Schick was clear that it's going to be a process.
 
"I think it's going to be a gradual thing, as far seeing how far we go," remarked the veteran coach. "Our goal is always to be one of those final teams left standing at the end of the season. I know it's a cliché, but we really do have to take each weekend, and each match one at a time."
 
However, UBC's bench boss was also clear that he and his club have set high expectations for themselves this season.
 
"I expect us to be one of the top teams in Canada West this season, and I say that not only because of my expectations, but our players' expectations," said Schick. "Even though we lost four starters from last year, we feel that we have some key pieces in-house, as well as the guys that we've added, that are going to be able to help us achieve an even higher standard than we did last year."
 
The T-Birds' first chance to exceed those standards will come this Friday, October 23, as the opening whistle against the Bisons is set to blow at 7:30 p.m. (PT). The second meeting between the two teams is scheduled for a 6:30 p.m. (PT) start time on Saturday, October 24. Both contests will be held at War Memorial Gym.