SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (Mark Janzen) – Canada, who is represented by Trinity Western University’s men’s volleyball team, scored its second victory in as many outings at the Pan-American Cup after defeating Mexico 3-1 (27-25, 25-23, 21-25, 25-21) Saturday.
Jesse Elser (Calgary) and Brodie Hofer (Langley, B.C.) each recorded 18 points to lead the Canadian winning effort, followed by Jackson Howe (Calgary) who contributed 15 points to the victory.
Jorge Hernández, Diego Gonzalez and Josue Lopez finished in doublé digits for Mexico with 12, 11 and 10 points, respectively. Both teams had eight blocks while Canada (TWU) holding an 8-6 advantage in aces, with Elser and Jordan Schnitzer (Surrey, B.C.) landing three aces apiece.
As the defending Canada West and U SPORTS champions, TWU was asked to represent Canada at this year’s Pan-American Cup.
After the tournament, the Spartans men’s volleyball team will return to Trinity Western to begin their local preseason games in preparation for their season opener on Nov. 5.
AS IT HAPPENED
After the Canadian side earned back-to-back two-point set victories, Mexico bounced back to force a fourth set with a four-point win. In the fourth set, Canada built a big lead, but Mexico rallied to close the gap midway through the set. However, the Canadians held on for the win, with Schnitzer catching a tidy serving run near the end to finish it.
Canada Head Coach Ben Josephson
“The kind of competition that we’re in here is awesome. We have massive athletes banging balls and competing like crazy. It’s the end of the international season, so we have a lot of really good volleyball being played with teams who have been together for a while. It’s a high level and we’re competing well and the guys are showing a ton of toughness. I’m really proud of them. We talked a lot about making sure we made the most of this moment and representing Canada well. I don’t think we played great volleyball, but we played with great passion and great playmaking ability. Sometimes that’s enough to win and today it was.”
Schedule
Sept. 3 – Canada (3) Suriname (0)
Sept. 4 – Canada (3) Mexico (1)
Sept. 5 – Canada vs. Puerto Rico – 2 p.m. PT / 5 p.m. ET
Sept. 6 – Canada vs. Dominican Republic – 4 p.m. PT / 7 p.m. ET
Sept. 7 – Canada vs. United States – 2 p.m. PT / 5 p.m. ET
Sept. 8 – Semifinals
Sept. 9 – Gold and Bronze Medal Matches
Roster
Colton Loewen – Aldergrove, B.C.
Jackson Corneil – Surrey, B.C.
Isaiah Olfert – Winnipeg, Man.
Brodie Hofer – Langley, B.C.
Jackson Howe – Calgary, Alta.
Aaron Elser – Calgary, Alta.
Jesse Elser – Calgary, Alta.
Jordan Schnitzer – Surrey, B.C.
Liam Remple – Vernon, B.C.
Adam Schriemer – Winnipeg, Man.
Derek Epp – Saskatoon, Sask.
Kaden Schmidt – Mississauga, Ont.
Staff
Head Coach – Ben Josephson
Assistant Coach – Ben Ball
2nd Assistant Coach – Jordan Or
Doctor – Abe Avender
Physiotherapist – Nick Del Bianco
Statistician – Anselm Rein
Team Lead – Joel Jansen
Team Manager – Linden Bontkes
