There seemed to be no rust for first place Providence University College (PUC) Pilots as they returned to conference action to start the second half of the 2021-22 Manitoba Colleges Athletic Conference (MCAC) men’s volleyball season. Second year middle blocker Nick Friesen was efficient as the Pilots swept the weekend series in the week ending Jan. 30, 2022.
The Mitchell, MB native had quite the weekend with 22 kills (1 error for the entire weekend) while registering 70% hitting efficiency plus four solo blocks and three aces.
The Pilots had a tough battle at Assiniboine Community College (ACC) Cougars. To begin the weekend, Friesen had 11 kills on one error hitting with 67% efficiency and added two aces with two blocks in a thrilling five setter victory on Fri., Jan. 28. He was consistent again with another 11 kills with no errors and 74% hitting efficiency with two blocks and one ace during Saturday ‘s matinee four set road win.
“Nick put up massive numbers for us on the court this weekend but also led the team with energy, leadership and calmness. While only in his second year of eligibility, Nick posses leadership qualities on and off the court far beyond his years, commented PUC’s head coach Cody Quiring. “This weekend was an incredible performance for a middle blocker at any level. His efficiency was off the charts – getting set 30 times in the middle over the course of two matches while hitting only one error with 22 kills on those 30 attempts was a big reason for our weekends results. ACC is a super strong team, and Nick answered the challenge to help put our squad in a place to find success.”
With the weekend results, PUC now leads the MCAC standings with a 9-2 mark as tight battle for top spot continues.
The Business Administration student-athlete at PUC will seek to continue his strong play as the Pilots host third place Université de Saint-Boniface (USB) Les Rouges on Saturday, February 5. First serve schedule for 7:30 p.m. CT.
MCAC Athlete of the Week winners for 2021-22 season
Week 1 (ending Sept. 12, 2021)
WSOC: Kira Ireson – BU
MSOC: Franck Oumar N’Dia – USB
Week 2 (ending Sept. 19, 2021)
WSOC: Morgan Pierce – CMU
MSOC: Jai Virk – PUC
Week 3 (ending Sept. 26, 2021)
WSOC: Katie Moniot – USB
MSOC: Matheus Dos Anjos Aquino – CMU
Week 4 (ending Oct. 3, 2021)
WSOC: Sara Boissonneault – USB
MSOC: Garreth Rayner – PUC
Week 5 (ending Oct. 10, 2021)
WSOC: Paige Heide – PUC
MSOC: Jafet Sandoval – ACC
Week 6 (ending Oct. 17, 2021)
WSOC: Cassie Nazeravich – USB
MSOC: Ryder Anthony – BU
Week 7 (ending Oct. 24, 2021)
WSOC: Makayla Myer – PUC
MSOC: Joel Dueck – PUC
Week 8 (ending Oct. 31, 2021)
WSOC: Mylène Chabot – USB
MSOC: Diego Rodriguez – BU
Week 9 (ending Nov. 7, 2021)
WVB: Alex Buhler – PUC
MVB: Noah Barcellona – ACC
Week 10 (ending Nov. 14, 2021)
WVB: Halle Meisner – CMU
MBB: Nathan Ens – PUC
Week 11 (ending Nov. 21, 2021)
WVB: Brielle Grenier – USB
MVB: Tyler Klassen – PUC
Week 12 (ending Nov. 28, 2021)
WBB: Shirliz Apiyo – CMU
MVB: Austin Anderson – PUC
Week 13 (ending Dec. 5, 2021)
WBB: Julia Schatkowsky – CMU
MVB: Carter Beattie – ACC
Week 14 (ending Jan. 30, 2022)
WVB: Maddie Fehr – PUC
MVB: Nick Friesen – PUC
Manitoba Colleges Athletic Conference 