MVB Final Preview: TWU at ALB
Spartans, Golden Bears renew rivalry in fourth straight CW Final
Article by Brian Swane, special to CW
March 6, 2024 - The latest chapter of one of university sport’s greatest rivalries will be written on Friday, when the Alberta Golden Bears host the Trinity Western Spartans in the 2024 Canada West men’s volleyball championship match at 7 p.m. MT on Friday in Edmonton.
Tickets for the match are available online. Catch all Canada West playoff action live and on-demand at CanadaWest.TV.
This will be the fourth consecutive postseason and 10th time ever that the Golden Bears and Spartans have met for the Costa Chrysanthou Trophy. All told, the Golden Bears and Spartans have played each other 13 times in the Canada West postseason, including two meetings in the semifinal round and a pair of bronze medal matches.
While Trinity Western is 7-6 all-time against Alberta in the Canada West postseason, all six of those Golden Bears’ wins have come in the conference championship match. Last year, Alberta defeated the Spartans 3-1 to win its record 14th Canada West gold medal. The Spartans have won seven conference titles since joining Canada West in 1999 and are appearing in the conference final for a remarkable 12th straight time.
The Golden Bears and Spartans split their 2023-24 matches, Nov. 10 and 11 in Edmonton, with each beating the other 3-1. Both the Golden Bears and Spartans finished their 2023-24 schedules winning seven of their last eight matches, and both are 4-1 thus far in the playoffs. They’ve even got an identical number of Canada West honourees, with each boasting one First Team All-Star, one Second Team All-Star, and one All-Rookie Team selection.
As an added twist to this already captivating contest, for the first time in 15 years, the Canada West men’s volleyball championship match will take place at historic Main Gym on the University of Alberta’s main campus. That’s because the Golden Bears’ normal home venue, the Saville Community Sports Centre, is hosting 2024 U SPORTS women’s basketball championship from Thursday through Sunday.
This a national championship-calibre match-up, with the Spartans and Golden Bears having combined to win 13 of the last 17 U SPORTS titles. They’ve even faced off five times in the U SPORTS final, most recently in 2022 when Alberta bested the Spartans in a rematch of that year’s Canada West championship. The Golden Bears are nine-time national champions, while Trinity Western won its seventh U SPORTS gold medal last year.
Both the Golden Bears and Spartans have punched their tickets to the 2024 U SPORTS men’s volleyball championship, taking place March 14-17 at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ont.
An additional berth at Nationals goes to the winner of Saturday’s Canada West bronze medal match between the Winnipeg Wesmen and UBC Thunderbirds, scheduled for 7 p.m. at War Memorial Gym in Vancouver. Tickets to the battle for bronze are available online and the match will be streamed live and on-demand at CanadaWest.TV.
Alberta Golden Bears
(18-6 regular season, 4-1 playoffs)
How They Got Here: First in standings; defeated Manitoba 2-1 in quarter-final, swept UBC 2-0 in semifinal.
Key Player: Third-year outside hitter Isaac Heslinga ranked first in Canada West this season with a .310 hitting percentage and leads the conference during the playoffs with 101 kills and 5.32 kills per set. He was named a Canada West First Team All-Star.
Fun Fact: Alberta has faced Trinity Western once for the Canada West championship at Main Gym, winning 3-0 on Feb. 25, 2006.
Trinity Western Spartans
(16-8 regular season, 4-1 playoffs)
How They Got Here: Third in standings; swept Brandon 2-0 in quarter-final, defeated Winnipeg 2-1 in semifinal.
Key Player: Fourth-year outside hitter Henry Rempel was named a Canada West First Team All-Star this season after leading the conference with 4.23 kills per set. He has continued his strong play in the postseason, averaging 4.35 kills per set through the first two rounds.
Fun Fact: In each of the last seven postseasons, Trinity Western has won either the Canada West or U SPORTS men’s volleyball championship.