The Camosun Chargers are gearing up for a brand-new season of striving to be the best and having fun on the courts. The Chargers teams—women’s and men’s volleyball, and women’s and men’s basketball—all have quite a bit of turnover from last year, so there are plenty of new faces on the rosters.
“We have a lot of people who graduated before going into this year, so we lost a lot of key roles and key mentors who were older players with a lot of knowledge to give to the whole team,” says fifth-year women’s basketball guard/forward Jordyn Broekhuizen. “So that was an adjustment. But it was our second year last year with our coach. So that was good. We’re just building the trust and creating that culture and just continuing to carry that through to this year.”
Along with the struggles that come with having lost a few important key players, new teammates bring new opportunities.
“Just kind of seeing what our individual roles can be and how we mesh together, like each year, it’s very different with new dynamics,” says Broekhuizen. “This year, we have a lot of rookies coming in, a lot of fresh faces. So, it’s just what each person can bring to the table and how we can work with that. It definitely starts off the court with team bonding and just building that trust to be able to work together when it comes to game time.”
Last year was not an easy one for the women’s basketball team, as they came in second to last with 7 wins to 17 losses, but Broekhuizen has a balanced mindset looking forward to the new season.
“I would say definitely [there were] some games that we should have won when it came down to the wire, just in high-pressure situations,” she says. “Like, we’ve got a little taste of it last year, and we’re feeling pretty strong this year. So definitely, a fourth-quarter finish and we go on some high runs and then some low dips, just staying consistent throughout the whole game and finishing strong.”
Broekhuizen describes the team this year as “a high-energy team with a lot of intensity.”
“Sometimes we’ll come into a game as a mismatch, but that team should fear our team coming into the game,” she says. “They know they’re going to get a run for their money. When we step on that court, we play as a unit, and… we’re diving on every ball, we’re rebounding, like, just the areas where we’re putting in effort, we bring that. I think that’s one thing that makes our team successful.”
The women’s basketball team aren’t the only ones learning their way around the playbook of a new coach. The women’s volleyball team welcomed coach Scott Freeburn in the last season.
“I think he had a lot more time this summer planning and figuring out how he wanted to plan out our season and our team and stuff,” says fourth-year women’s volleyball libero Sloan Thomson. “So far, it’s been really good. And I think he learned a lot, both from our feedback to him and also just kind of seeing, because this last year was his first year coaching at this level. But yeah, I think we all really enjoy him. He’s a super awesome human being, but also very knowledgeable and always willing to learn from us or getting mentorship from other coaches that we’ve had in the past or that he looks up to and stuff like that. And he’s really big on making sure we have a good team dynamic over just [being] good players.”
And while that dynamic is an important goal for the team, they still have room in their schedule to gun for the championship.
“I feel like we all put pressure on ourselves to do well, and everyone likes to win and to do well, play well,” says Thomson, a fourth-year student. “I would say we all want to and are striving for winning provincials, like going to nationals. But that’s not a main goal, like, we need to do this. [What’s important is] growing together as a team.”
The Camosun Chargers men’s basketball team had quite a run last season, taking home the bronze medal at nationals and nabbing 19 wins throughout the PACWEST season. This was the best season on record in the program’s 32-year history, and they’re hoping to do even better this coming season, despite some changing faces.
“We had a really good season last year,” says fifth-year guard Jakob Neufeld, “and we definitely lost some big pieces that contributed to that success, but I think we have guys from last year’s team that can step up into those important roles, as well as if we brought in some new transfers and rookies that would also be able to help us find success.”
Incoming coach Craig Beaucamp is one of the elements, along with the new teammates, that Neufeld is looking forward to working with.
“Our new coach, as well, is very experienced and smart, and I think he’ll help us accomplish our goals in terms of accolades and success, [but] our team culture, I think that’s been what’s set us apart from other teams,” he says. “How hard we work, and how close we are off the court, it contributes to our success.”
While national bronze was an achievement, the team has their eyes set on a higher prize.
“In terms of improving, I would just say, probably the way we finished our season in the playoffs, we lost in the final of our conference last year, and then we got a national bronze, so I guess improving upon that,” says Neufeld. “So that might look like winning a PACWEST championship, and then hopefully a national championship would be ideal.”
For Neufeld and the other outgoing team members, the pressure to do even better than last year is palpable.
“Personally, being my last year, I just want to have no regrets,” he says, “so I just want to do everything in my power to be successful, whether that be individually [or] with the team, just [so] I can put myself in the best position to succeed in my last opportunity to play basketball at Camosun.”
The men’s volleyball team also has a new incoming coach, Camosun alum Elion Wong; fifth-year leftside Jake Bolton is looking forward to working with Wong and the new round of players.
“I’m very excited; it’s really good to have new faces in the gym. We brought in a lot of new guys—transfers and rookies… as well as a new head coach, and pretty much all new coaching staff,” says Bolton. “[Wong’s] a bit of a local legend, and I’m very excited to work with all of them.”
While last year did not go in the men’s volleyball team’s favour, this influx of new blood brings with it new hope.
“I think last year we left it a little bit too late when it came down to the end of the season,” says Bolton. “We needed our last few wins to make it into the playoffs, and I think we just need to do a better job of getting on top of it early, and you know, every game matters. I think that’s kind of what we’re looking to do is just treat every game like it’s the last.”
But hope springs eternal for Bolton and the rest of the team, and while they know there are tough matches ahead, they’re determined to put their best foot forward.
“I think we’ve struggled in the past with overcoming adversity, and I think this year will be kind of our year to really test how hard we’ve worked on our team culture, but I think we can expect a good challenge within our own conference, the PACWEST… it is usually the top in the country for men’s volleyball,” says Bolton. “We can always expect a lot of good competition, and I think it’s going to come down to how hard we work.”