Men's Championship Volleyball

The PACWEST men’s championship tournament opens on Thursday with a pair of quarterfinals on the campus of Columbia Bible College, the home of the CBC Bearcats in Abbotsford. The last time the tournament was held at CBC was in 2016. Purchase your championship tournament pass in advance HERE.

#1 VIU Mariners

For the first time since 2018 the Mariners are the top seed in the PACWEST heading into the championship tournament. They have won eight in a row and haven’t lost in 2022, a trend they hope to continue and have earned a bye into Friday’s semi-final where they await their opponent. They last won PACWEST gold in 2019, a performance they would like to repeat this season.

Record: 12-3 (1-0 at CBC, location of championship tournament)
Sets Won: 39
Sets Lost: 26

Kill Leader: Jeff Webb – 170 kills

Block Leader: Daniel Mascarenhas – 38 blocks

Dig Leader: Rylan Van Kooten – 61 digs

#2 Douglas Royals

The Royals earned a bye into Friday’s semi-final as the second seed after a 10-win season. They will sit idle on Thursday and watch the quarterfinal with great interest. They come into the championship tournament splitting their four matches in the month of February as they played three of those four on the road. They last won the PACWEST gold in 2014 but are the reigning bronze medalists.

Record: 10-5 (2-0 at CBC, location of championship tournament)
Sets Won: 37
Sets Lost: 27

Kill Leader: Matt Shand – 210 kills*

Block Leader: Greg Moore – 42 blocks*

Dig Leader: Nick Hansen – 104 digs

#3 Camosun Chargers

The Chargers have appeared in six straight PACWEST gold medal matches and have been crowed four times since 2015. They come into this year’s tournament without having played a match in three weeks after finishing the regular season on February 6th. They were good down the stretch winning four of their last five matches and will face the host CBC Bearcats in Thursday’s quarterfinal, a team they have beaten three times this year. The Chargers will no doubt have a bit more emotion this tournament and will be playing for their head coach Charles Parkinson who is planning to retire once the season is over.

Record: 8-7 (1-0 at CBC, location of championship tournament)
Sets Won: 34
Sets Lost: 30

Kill Leader: Vitor Pereira – 132 kills

Block Leader: Lorenz Vogel – 18 blocks

Dig Leader: Kristofer La Guardia – 97 digs

#4 COTR Avalanche

The Avalanche won their final two matches of the season and claimed fourth place in the standings heading into the PACWEST championship tournament. They will be the “home team” on Thursday when they face the Capilano Blues in a quarterfinal match. They met once during the regular campaign with the Avalanche winning in four sets. The last PACWEST medal they won at this tournament was a bronze back in 2014.

Record: 8-7 (1-0 at CBC, location of championship tournament)
Sets Won: 34
Sets Lost: 28

Kill Leader: Diego Policarpo – 135 kills

Block Leader: Nate McLennan – 29 blocks

Dig Leader: Vittor Mateus – 78 digs

#5 Capilano Blues

They are the defending PACWEST and CCAA national champions and finally get a chance to defend their titles. They have struggled down the stretch this season winning just once in their last five matches and will face a COTR team in Thursday’s quarterfinal that they lost to at the beginning of February in four sets. It’s been a while since the Blues and Avalanche faced each other in the post-season, you would have to go back to 2014 in a quarterfinal that the Avalanche won in four sets.

Record: 7-8 (2-0 at CBC, location of championship tournament)
Sets Won: 27
Sets Lost: 30

Kill Leader: Rafael Hilario – 185 kills

Block Leader: Jesse Lee – 17 blocks

Dig Leader: Malachi McMullin – 105 digs*

#6 CBC Bearcats

The Bearcats are hosting the PACWEST championship tournament for the first time since 2016 and are back in the post-season for the first time since 2019. They will face the Camosun Chargers on Thursday night in a quarterfinal in front of their home fans. They battled the Chargers hard this season but lost all three meetings…but as they say, the playoffs are a brand-new season.

Record: 0-15
Sets Won: 15
Sets Lost: 45

Kill Leader: Jackson Anderson – 138 kills

Block Leader: Jackson Anderson – 31 blocks

Dig Leader: Jonny Letkemann – 81 digs

*leads Conference