For the first time in their history, Briercrest College and Seminary will host the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association (CCAA) men’s volleyball national championship.
The announcement was made on Wednesday afternoon that the Briercrest Clippers won the bid to host the championship in March 2014.
“We are just thrilled to have this opportunity to bring volleyball championship to Saskatchewan and Moose Jaw,” stated athletic director and coach Nigel Mullan.
The Caronport-based college was one of two schools that put in a bid for the championship. Last year it was held in British Columbia and this year the tournament will be held in Ontario. There is a five-year bid cycle within the conferences and it was the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) turn to present a bid. Grande Prairie Regional College and Briercrest were the two schools to bid.
“The conference chose Briercrest as its representative for the championship,” he stated.
The Clippers men’s volleyball team held the ACAC men’s volleyball championship last year at the FieldHouse in Moose Jaw and that will be the same venue for this event.
“This is massive. I think last year was a great first test to see what it would be like to host a championship like this in the FieldHouse and in Moose Jaw. It was one of the major reasons why we were awarded the bid,” said Mullan. “We are just really excited to build off last year. We have a year and a bit to try and not only duplicate, but exceed what we did.”
The excitement wasn’t just felt in the athletic department and the volleyball team, as the school also got involved to showcase their talents.
“Our institutional strengths were definitely shown in the bid,” said Mullan. “The school is very talented in a number of different areas and it was shown on a number of fronts. Our diversity and skill level, that was really exciting to see.”
With a number of students from not only across the province, but the country and abroad attend Briercrest for classes and athletics. Mullan believes that was also a pull-factor in winning the hosting rights.
“It is a massive step, both for the institution and the conference to show that Briercrest wants to be a player and have an impact nationally,” he said. “It gives us an opportunity to show our capabilities.”
For more on this story, read an upcoming edition of the Times-Herald.
