By: Shannon Blackmore, BA'19
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The St. Thomas University Tommies men's volleyball team has been preparing all season to host the best in the Atlantic Collegiate Athletic Association at the 2018 conference championships.

Four teams—the Holland College Hurricanes, UNB Saint John Seawolves, Université Sainte-Anne Dragons, and Tommies—will be vying for the ACAA title February 23-25 at the Lady Beaverbrook Gym. 

The Tommies look forward to hosting the tournament and with a young team will need a well-rounded effort to be successful.

"We want everyone to lead, whether that's by being a vocal or quiet leader," head coach Henri Mallet said. "We have a young team with little experience at the ACAA Championships, so some of the senior guys will need to play a key role."

Half of the Tommies' roster has had at least one ACAA playoff appearance, and Jonah Burridge, Spencer Hay, Ryan Dickson, and Nicholas Jackson have all been a part of at least one STU championship team.

With a regular season record of 8-7, the Tommies plan to keep things simple at the championships while working hard to execute the game plan.

"It would be easy to get overwhelmed by hosting the championships, but we have to keep our focus on the little things," Mallet said.

The Tommies will face the UNBSJ Seawolves in the ACAA semi-final Saturday at 7:00 pm. The Seawolves edged the Tommies in the season series three games to two, but Mallet said they know what the Seawolves bring to the floor 

"They have some big bodies and a lot of powerful players. If we're tough and are playing good defence we'll be successful," he said. "If we put pressure on them early, it'll open up lots of opportunities for us offensively, too."

The first-place Holland College Hurricanes will take on the fourth-place Université Sainte Anne Dragons in the other semi-final, which is set for 5:00 pm. The winners of each semi will square off Sunday at 3:30 in the championship game.