The men’s Avalanche volleyball team faced the high powered Camosun College Chargers on Nov. 16 and 17 at College of the Rockies.
The team lost both matches going 3-1 and 3-0 respectively against the Chargers who are second in the PACTWEST with an 8-2 record.
“I’m pretty disappointed,” head coach Cisco Farrero said about the weekend.
“We are a young team, and Camosun is a little bit older, but I definitely wanted to at least get a split out of this weekend.”
Farrero explained blocking, defence and passing was not up to par to Camosun and it cost them the game.
“That makes things tough because they are an older and smarter team,” he said.
Even though the Avalanche didn’t get a point this weekend, Farrero said there were some bright spots.
“I thought that Reece Wilson was streaky yesterday and then really good today at the libero position. As well, Caleb Peters scored last night but his reception struggled all weekend. He was very good offensively, but we ask a lot of him and he was not as good on reception as he has been offensively,” he said.
While the games for the semester are finished, the Avalanche are going to still be practicing and going to the gym to try and get better.
“We really need to work on our physicality. We are a young team and we need to spend a lot of time in the weight room heading into January,” said Farrero.
Because the team has many first and second-year players, conditioning will be an important aspect.
“Post-secondary volleyball is a man’s game and I think as our 18 year old’s grow we need to be able to match the physicality of some of the older teams. So, definitely the weight room is a serious priority for the break,” said Farrero.
To end the semester the Avalanche are 4-8, which puts them in the middle of the PACWEST standings.
“It has us firmly in a playoff position, which is what I want. We have a little bit of breathing room on the two teams below us, but we have a little bit of work to do to catch up to the teams in front of us,” said Farrero.
The COTR is hosting the PACWEST volleyball championships this year and Farrero said the team still needs to earn their way into it.
“The goal is to be successful at provincials, and the most important thing is to get there first. We are hosting them but we have to earn our way in, and right now we are in a good spot, but we have to play better against the teams that are slightly in front of us to steal some of those victories,” he said.
In 12 games the Avalanche are currently recording 9.77 kills per set, 9.23 assists per set, 1.59 blocks per set, 1.80 service aces per set and 8.20 digs per set. As well, they are recording an average of .194 hitting percentage.