June 11, 2022: In Saturday’s men’s Volleyball Nations League (VNL) action in Ottawa, Team Canada faced off against Italy, falling 3-0 (25-21, 25-18, 25-19) at the Arena at TD Place.

It was yet another back-and-forth match, with Canada holding the lead at times and fighting hard throughout to keep the game alive. The loss brings Canada’s record to 0-3, while Italy improves to 2-1.

“I think every game has been better,” said Canadian team member Jackson Howe. “We’re climbing; we’re getting used to our kind of style of ball. Our style of play is all new to us so we’re just going to keep working through things and just keep getting better.”

Looking ahead to the final game in Ottawa tomorrow, Howe added, “We just have to have a good serve and good pass, come together, we’ll have a good video session and we’ll get after it.”

Howe led the Canadians in points with eight. Pearson Eshenko came in behind Howe, putting up seven points.

The day started off with Germany and Serbia both playing their final match in Ottawa, with Germany coming out on top in a hard-fought 3-2 win (27-25, 25-27, 18-25, 28-26, 18-16). Germany finished the week 3-1 while Serbia leaves 2-2. Poland then defeated Bulgaria in three straight sets, 3-0 (25-19, 25-19, 25-23).

Tomorrow marks the final day of VNL in Ottawa, with France (3-0) and Poland (2-1) facing off at 11:00 am ET, Argentina (1-2) taking on Italy at 2:00 pm ET, and Canada closing out the day and week at 5:00 pm ET versus Bulgaria (0-3).

Roster (week 1)
Jay Blankenau, Sherwood Park, AB
Brett Walsh, Calgary, AB    
Ryan Sclater, Port Coquitlam, BC
Brodie Hofer, Langley, BC
Stephen Maar, Aurora, ON
Nicholas Hoag, Sherbrooke, QC (captain)
Ryley Barnes, Edmonton, AB
Mathias Elser, Calgary, AB
Justin Lui, Pickering, ON
Lucas Van Berkel, Edmonton, AB
Pearce Eshenko, Banff, AB
Jackson Howe, Calgary, AB
Marc Wilson, Stratford, ON
Jesse Elser, Calgary, AB
 
Staff (week 1)
Head coach: Ben Josephson
Assistant coach: Joe Trinsey
Assistant coach: Stefan Hübner
Sport physiotherapist: Jovana Smoljanic
Strength and conditioning : Michael Cook
Statistician: David Dantes
Team manager: Julien Boucher

• Members of the media requiring accreditation for the Ottawa, June 7 to 12 (men) or Calgary (women) VNL matches, please contact Jackie Skender
• For more info, please see the VNL web site, including full schedule.
• Please note: Tickets for the men’s VNL in Ottawa are currently on sale at https://www.tdplace.ca/event/volleyball-nations-league/
• Watch www.cbcsports.ca

Volleyball Canada media contact:
Jackie Skender
Mobile: 613.794.7676

Photo: Steve Kingsman