The UBC Thunderbird women's volleyball team continues to re-write the history books after winning their fourth straight national title at the University of Laval last Sunday.
UBC ousted the hosts from Laval in three dominating sets 25-16, 25-19 and 25-14 in front of a loud and boisterous home crowd in Quebec City.
Roberts Creek's Kyla Richey had nine kills in the second set alone and a team high 16 for the match.
The win marked the eighth national title for the T-Birds since the inaugural CIS championship in 1970, one more than Alberta and Winnipeg. UBC had previously been crowned in 2010 in Edmonton, 2009 and 2008 in Fredericton, 1978 in Moncton, 1977 in Waterloo, 1974 at home in Vancouver, and 1973 in Wolfville, N.S.
UBC's four-year championship run is the third longest in history, trailing only the six consecutive banners won by Alberta (1995 to 2000) and Winnipeg (1983 to 1988).
UBC started the tournament with a four-set quarterfinal win last Friday (March 4) over Sherbrooke 25-13, 25-18, 23-25 and 25-12. Richey had nine kills in the match.
That win set up UBC with a Saturday semifinal contest against the Alberta Pandas, which UBC won in three sets 25-17, 25-15 and 25-22. Richey had 15 kills in the win.
After spending the first part of the season with the Canadian National Team, Richey, along with teammate Jen Hinze, returned to the squad just after Christmas. They jumped right in and UBC really never looked back.
"It was a funny week. No one ever really plays well in the first round and that certainly wasn't our best match," Richey said, reached by phone Monday in Quebec City while the team was stuck at the airport during an eastern snowstorm. "After the first match, we regrouped a bit and started playing with a bit more purpose. We had our goal in mind, stuck to the game plan and really took it to Alberta."
In the final, Richey said the team fed off the crowd and the energy in the building.
"Everyone was so calm, it was just like any other game really, but the crowd was cheering so loud, I think we really fed off that energy," she said. "It was funny because when we would huddle up we couldn't hear a thing. We were using hand signals because we couldn't hear front court, back court. It wasn't a negative energy though, so again, we fed off that, just went out and had fun."
And having fun has been the hallmark of this UBC team for four years - a fact that Richey said has contributed to the team's success.
"We had a team meeting after the game and it was less outright celebrating. We were mellow and thanking each other for the great year," she said. "It really sounds cliché, but this group is so special. We support each other. We trust each other, and we're all best friends. It's an unreal feeling. We're one dominating force. I don't know what else to say. It's been amazing to be a part of this for four years. I count my blessings for sure."
Along with Richey, Hinze and Shanice Marcelle were named to the tournament all-star team, while Marcelle was named tournament MVP.
"I look at this as a tremendous two days starting with the match last night, which was our best of the year," said head coach Doug Reimer. "And then, to be able to come into the final against a pretty fired-up Laval team was a testament to the confidence that we've built in the last week and a half. That confidence was always latent with this group based on the experiences we've had, but it really began to show heading into the Canada West final four.
"Our performance today speaks to the culture of the team in the sense that a number of players were in new roles this year, but have been soaking up experience the last few. A lot of teams in this environment, playing in the national final against the home team, would not have been as focused and executing at such a high level of play that really took Laval out of the match."
Richey said she is looking forward to getting home and resuming a bit of a normal life.
"We all scrambling a bit today in the airport getting papers done and preparing for exams," she said. "You focus so hard on getting to nationals, that a few other things take a bit of a back seat. We'll probably be celebrating a bit on campus when we get back. We have a tradition that Wednesday night we celebrate back at the pub with Doug and other friends.
"It will be nice to catch up on life and take a bit of a break away from training, that's for sure."
Richey said she is still undecided what she will do next year - finish out her whole fifth year at UBC, or take some time off to concentrate on Team Canada.
"Tryouts for Team Canada are in May, but I haven't decided yet what I'll do," she said. "I need to sit down and talk with Doug and Team Canada, think about my degree and what I want to do."
