With the thrill of meeting the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge now behind them, the UBC Okanagan Heat women have returned to the business of preparing for the new Canada West volleyball season.
Steve Manuel’s defending national bronze medalists are at the University of Ottawa this weekend for exhibition matches against Acadia, Sherbrooke, Guelph and the host Gee Gees.
The Heat will continue preparations with a number of training sessions in Canmore with the University of Alberta from Oct. 21 to 23, before opening the new CIS season Oct. 28 at home to the Brandon Bobcats.
Last weekend in Kamloops, the Heat came away a four-set win (20-25, 25-18, 25-17, 25-19) in preseason action against the Thompson Rivers Wolfpack.
UBC Okanagan’s offence was led by fifth year Megan Festival, fourth year Michelle Jakszuk and third year Siobhan Fitzpatrick, who delivered10, nine and seven kills, respectively.
“I liked to see how we battled down the stretch,” said head coach Steve Manuel. “In a couple of sets we got down.
“We are still trying to find our identity,” he added. “We are a fairly new group.
“What I liked to see is that as we got rolling we played more like a team.”
