Skip to content

TRU wins McDonalds International

Men's Volleyball
Stuart Richey
Stuart Richey in action last weekend for the Thompson Rivers University WolfPack at the McDonalds International men’s volleyball tournament.

Fifth year outside hitter Stuart Richey from Roberts Creek helped lead the Thompson Rivers WolfPack to its second McDonalds International tournament title last weekend.

The WolfPack downed the Trinity Western Uni-versity Spartans 3-0 (28-26, 25-23, 25-17) to capture the 2015 title at the Tournament Capital Centre in Kamloops on Sunday, Jan. 4.

The last time Thompson Rivers won the title was in 2012.

“We have to go into every game with the mentality that we have to win,” said Thompson Rivers’ head coach Pat Hennelly. “I thought it was good. We have had so few matches with a full line-up.”

The tournament win, which also included victories over the Okanagan Heat (3-0) on Friday night and a 3-0 win over Budo International of Japan on Saturday, combined with a 3-2 loss to Trinity Western in the final round robin game, could prove to be a big confidence booster for the WolfPack, who came into the Christmas break with a record of 5-11 and 10th overall in the Canada West standings. The top seven teams qualify for the playoffs.

Plagued by injuries in the first half of the season, the WolfPack rarely played with a full line-up, so last weekend’s effort was a welcome boost, according to Hennelly.

Richey had seven kills in 17 opportunities with nine digs and two block assists in the win over Japan and was named the player of the match.

In 15 of 16 regular season matches, Richey is averaging 1.19 kills and has a .124 hitting percentage.

UBC Okanagan finished in third place in the round robin with a 1-2 record. UBCO left Kamloops after the match due to weather conditions. Budo played a split squad of Trinity Western Spartans on Sunday afternoon to round out the tournament.

The WolfPack visit MacEwan in Edmonton this weekend and return home next Friday, Jan. 16 against the UBCO Heat.