Women’s Volleyball
U SPORTS Rankings: Toronto Varsity Blues continue dominance as women’s hockey playoffs heat up
For the third consecutive year, and the fifth time in program history, the Trinity Western University Spartans are the team to beat heading into the 2022 U SPORTS women’s volleyball championship.
The seeding was announced on Sunday for the 2022 national tournament, which runs from Friday to Sunday at the University of Calgary’s Jack Simpson Gym. All 11 matches from the eight-team competition will be webcast live on cbcsports.ca and CBC Gem (English) and usports.ca (French), including the gold-medal final on Sunday at 6 p.m. Mountain Time.
Rounding out the seeding behind the Canada West champion Spartans are the No. 2 Brock Badgers (OUA champions), No. 3 Alberta Pandas (Canada West finalists), No. 4 Toronto Varsity Blues (OUA finalists), No. 5 McGill Martlets (RSEQ champions), No. 6 Dalhousie Tigers (AUS champions), No. 7 Mount Royal Cougars (Canada West bronze medallists) and No. 8 Calgary Dinos (hosts).
The quarter-final matchups on Friday will feature Brock vs. Mount Royal (1 p.m.), Alberta vs. Dalhousie (3 p.m.), the hosts Calgary vs. Trinity Western (6 p.m.) and Toronto vs. McGill (8 p.m.).
Trinity Western is the top seed for the third straight national championship, and the fifth time overall. This is the 12th consecutive time that a Canada West team has held down the Number 1 spot. This year’s field includes seven of the eight teams that had qualified for the 2020 championship, which was set to be held in Calgary before it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Alberta Pandas are the most decorated team in the field, with seven championships to their credit, while the host Calgary Dinos have three titles and the Spartans, Varsity Blues and Tigers have one apiece. McGill, making its first visit to nationals since 2016, has a bronze medal to show for its three previous trips. Brock and Mount Royal, meanwhile, will be seeing their first championship games this week, as the 2020 tournament would have been each team’s first appearance.
SEEDING:
- Trinity Western Spartans (CW champions: 15-1 regular season, 6-1 playoffs)
- Brock Badgers (OUA champions: 13-0 regular season, 3-0 playoffs)
- Alberta Pandas (CW finalists: 16-2 regular season, 5-2 playoffs)
- Toronto Varsity Blues (OUA finalists: 12-0 regular season, 2-1 playoffs)
- McGill Martlets (RSEQ champions: 9-3 regular season, 4-1 playoffs)
- Dalhousie Tigers (AUS champions: 9-5 regular season, 4-0 playoffs)
- Mount Royal Cougars (CW bronze medal: 14-4 regular season, 5-2 playoffs)
- Calgary Dinos (Hosts: 5–13 regular season, 1–4 playoffs)
CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE (all times MOUNTAIN TIME)
Thursday, March 24
- 7 p.m. —All-Canadian Awards Ceremony (Arts Commons)
Friday, March 25
- 1 p.m.: Quarter-final #1—No. 7 Mount Royal vs. No. 2 Brock (www.cbcsports.ca / www.usports.ca)
- 3 p.m.: Quarter-final #2—No. 6 Dalhousie vs. No. 3 Alberta (www.cbcsports.ca / www.usports.ca)
- 6 p.m.: Quarter-final #3—No. 8 Calgary vs. No. 1 Trinity Western (www.cbcsports.ca/ www.usports.ca)
- 8 p.m.: Quarter-final #4—No. 5 McGill vs. No. 4 Toronto (www.cbcsports.ca/ www.usports.ca)
Saturday, March 26
- 1 p.m.: Consolation #1—Loser Quarter-final #1 vs. Loser Quarter-final #2 (www.cbcsports.ca/ www.usports.ca)
- 3 p.m.: Consolation #2—Loser Quarter-final #3 vs. Loser Quarter-final #4 (www.cbcsports.ca/ www.usports.ca)
- 6 p.m.: Semifinal #1—Winner Quarter-final #1 vs. Winner Quarter-final #2 (www.cbcsports.ca/ www.usports.ca)
- 8 p.m.: Semifinal #2—Winner Quarter-final #3 vs. Winner Quarter-final #4 (www.cbcsports.ca/ www.usports.ca)
Sunday, March 27
- Noon: 5th-place game (www.cbcsports.ca/ www.usports.ca)
- 3 p.m.: Bronze Medal (www.cbcsports.ca/ www.usports.ca)
- 6 p.m.: Gold Medal (www.cbcsports.ca/ www.usports.ca)
As the official volleyball Supplier of U SPORTS, Mikasa Canada will provide match balls and other prizing to the 2022 U SPORTS Women’s Volleyball Championship