Blues shade Kings, RDC to play in bronze semis against Lethbridge

Fredericton, NB – It was a game of inches Friday evening in the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Men's Volleyball National Championship semi-finals.

The Red Deer College Kings and Capilano Blues were deadlocked after four sets and the Pacific Western Athletic Association (PACWEST) Champions finished the race to 15 points in the fifth (25-22, 14-25, 23-25, 25-14 and 15-13), advancing to the CCAA gold medal match.

RDC Player-of-the-Game Carter Hills ignited the Kings offence with 20 kills, along with 15 digs, three blocks and an ace. The first-year outside hitter relished the high-stakes game and finished with a 0.245 hitting percentage.

Hills (4)

Pat Toze, a Bachelor of Kinesiology student, recorded 14 kills and four of the Kings' six aces. Setter Thomas Wass had 37 assists and 12 digs. Ben Holmes and Mark DeWit added five kills each. Middle Cody Boulding led the Kings with six blocks.

DeWit (8)

The Kings had their most efficient offensive performance in the third, finishing with a 0.312 hitting percentage.

Red Deer's JJ Graham had another steady outing at libero, contributing nine digs and four assists.

Graham (12)

Blues Player-of-the-Game Simon Friesen contributed 46 assists, six digs and three of the team's eight service aces. Teammate Rafael Hilario (0.216) led the way with 18 kills. Ben Friesen (0.286) tacked on 15.

On Saturday, the RDC Kings will face the Lethbridge College Kodiaks at 12:00 ADT in the bronze semi-final. The two teams met in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) gold medal match, with RDC winning in four sets.

The Capilano Blues and Humber Hawks will compete for CCAA gold on Saturday at 8:00 pm ADT.

The CCAA schedule and results can be found online.

Photos from nationals are also available.