(Halifax, N.S.) - Dalhousie men’s volleyball head coach Dan Ota is pleased to announce the commitment of Mathieu Lavoie to the 2017-18 lineup.
A libero, Lavoie comes to the Tigers after successful high school, club and provincial team careers.
A member of the St. Paul’s High School varsity volleyball team, Lavoie helped lead the Crusaders to a Manitoba High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) provincial title in 2015 as well three consecutive West Winnipeg Athletic Conference (WWAC) titles since 2014. The Crusader’s MVP in his grade 12 year, Lavoie is also a two-time WWAC MVP (junior in 2014 and varsity 2016) and was an all-Manitoba high school athlete in 2016. An avid beach player, he also earned an MHSAA provincial beach volleyball championship title in grade 10.
Lavoie has played club volleyball with the WinMan Volleyball Club since 2014 and has two provincial 16U championship titles under his belt heading into this weekend’s 18U provincial championship. He led the 16U WinMan Clutch to a tier 1, division 1 bronze medal at the 2016 national club championships.
The Winnipeg, M.B., native played with the Manitoba provincial program in 2015 and 2016, and earned a Manitoba Volleyball provincial beach championship title in 2015.
“I am eager to join such a high-level team with players of great character,” says Lavoie. “I’m also looking forward to working with Coach Ota and his coaching staff, given his well-known reputation.”
An honour roll student, Lavoie will graduate this spring and will begin a Bachelor of Science in September.
“We are excited to add Mathieu to our program this fall,” says Ota. “He's already capable of being one of our best defenders, so that addresses a need for our team. I think that his best attribute is the drive he has to excel both on and off the court. The jump from high school to U Sports is pretty substantial, so having the motivation to improve daily is essential for making that transition successful.”
The Dalhousie Tigers men’s volleyball team ended the regular season in first place with a record of 11-6.