ST. LAWRENCE EXPANDS VOLLEYBALL PROGRAM

KINGSTON, Ont. - The coaching staff for the women's and men's volleyball teams at the St. Lawrence College (SLC) Kingston Campus have been pushing for increased support, in the hopes of advancing the teams from an extramural team, to the Ontario Colleges Athletics Association (OCAA) varsity schedule.

This summer, SLC Athletics & Recreation, recognized the success and dedication from both squads and will provide full coverage for the 2013-14 season. This year, rosters, schedules, results, feature stories, along with pictures and videos of the teams will be captured throughout the entire season.

"I'm really excited about this year" said Vikings women's head coach Sochi Keo. "By having comprehensive coverage, like one of the varsity teams, not only will we get a great turnout at training camp, but it will also show the dedication and work ethic I expect from my players. This won't be a recreation team. We are serious about moving into the OCAA in 2015-16, and are taking the steps necessary to become a competitive team."

Sochi became the head coach of the Vikings women's volleyball team in 2011-12, after completing her post-secondary education at Algonquin and Loyalist College, where she also played varsity volleyball.

"After playing with competitive teams at Algonquin and Loyalist, and seeing what it took to be successful, I was determined to bring that to St. Lawrence College," said Keo. Prior to leaving for College, Sochi attended (and also played volleyball) at Loyalist Collegiate and Vocational Institute (LCVI) in Kingston.

Vikings men's head coach Ricky Cruz shared the same feeling towards taking the next step in becoming an OCAA varsity team. "The players all work really hard, and we found it was demotivating to them when they found out that the team just plays in a local recreation league. With increased visibility, a longer schedule, exhibition games against OCAA teams, we'll get a great look as to where this team would stand in the OCAA."

Cruz, has been part of the Vikings volleyball program for five years, and has been patiently waiting for the right time to join the OCAA. "We had a great season last year, we increased our awareness for try-outs and that brought in some new highly skilled players. With even more coverage during the year, it makes me very optimistic about what our results will be for 2013-14."

Cruz also attended high school in Kingston, graduating from Holy Cross Catholic Secondary School, where he played volleyball for the Crusaders.

Last year the women's team finished first overall in a local women's volleyball league, in-addition to strong finishes in local tournaments. The men's team had similar success with a second place finish in the Ryatt Volleyball league. The teams will continue to participate in local leagues, in addition to exhibition games against OCAA varsity teams for the 2013-14 season. An evaluation will take place at the end of the season, determining if the teams are ready to advance to the OCAA varsity loop for 2015-16.

Both teams expect to have a core group of players rejoin the team, but are hopeful for a busy training camp with plenty of interested students in playing Vikings volleyball. Stay tuned for updates on training camp dates, times, and location.

Source: St. Lawrence College