BONNYVILLE – An “End of an era,” could not have been a more fitting phrase used by Rhinos Volleyball Club president Scott Cameron to describe the past six seasons for the Rhinos 18U Black team.
On May 20, the group of athletes finished their final competition as a long-standing team at Volleyball Canada’s National Championships held in Calgary’s Olympic Oval.
The Lakeland team left Nationals with a bronze finish in Division I, Tier 4. In a field of 152 teams, the Rhinos 18U Black ladies finished 27th overall in Canada.
And while it has been a stellar season for the Rhinos team on the courts, that success is pouring over into athletes' lives off the courts as well.
As nine Rhino’s graduating players turn in their sneakers and knee pads for convocation gowns and caps over the next few weeks, four 18U athletes are signing commitment agreements to play volleyball at the post-secondary level.
Rhinos’ player Zoe MacLellan has committed to King University College in Edmonton, Halle Blocha and Alyvia Williams have committed to play for Ambrose University in Calgary, while Emma Jonker, also heading to Calgary this fall, will play for the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT).
MacLellan, along with Blocha and Jonker, were also on the École Notre Dame High School team that took home the 2A Volleyball Provincial Championship title this year.
Reflecting on the team’s last competition together, MacLellan told Lakeland This Week, “It was really exciting and just a good experience for all of us. I've basically been playing with all these girls since I was 12. We played school together, club together and it was so cool to have that final closing experience together.”
When MacLellan first tried out for a spot on a Rhino’s volleyball team at 12 years old, she said the only skill she came with was her height.
“I didn’t know how to play, so I was a blank slate,” she said. “I just started playing and I fell in love with the game and now I'm going to play college volleyball for King's University. [Volleyball] has become the most important part of my life practically.”
For MacLellan, being a part of the Rhino’s club has not only been a great experience but has helped shape who she is and the direction she has been heading over the last six years.
“This team has really become like a whole another family to me. And it sounds really cheesy and it’s cliché, but it's true. I've just spent so many hours in the gym with them and we've grown so much together in all aspects,” shared MacLellan. “It was such a special experience that I got to share with them.”
Now that both high school and club volleyball have wrapped up, the graduating Rhino is turning her attention to her next competition, which will take place prior to her university classes starting in the fall.
MacLellan was selected to play for the U19 Team Alberta volleyball team that will compete in the North American Indigenous Games from July 15-23 in Halifax.
Provincial results
12U Black – 4th Division I, 4th overall Alberta
13U Black – 7th Division I, 7 overall Alberta
13U White – 9th Division II, 25th overall Alberta
13U Silver – 2nd Division V, 66th overall Alberta
14U White – 7th Division II, 23rd overall Alberta
14U Black – 7th Division III, 39th overall Alberta
14U Men – 7th Division II, 23rd overall Alberta
15U Black – 13th Division II, 29th overall Alberta
15U White – 3rd Division IV, 59th overall Alberta
16U Black – 11th Division I, 11th overall Alberta
16U White – 9th Division IV, 57th overall Alberta
16U Men – 11th Division III, 35th overall Alberta
17U Black – 3rd Division II, 19th overall Alberta
18U Black – 6th Division I, 6th overall Alberta
National results
15U Black – 3rd place in Tier 10, 83rd of 160 teams, Canada
15U White – 1st place in Tier 14, 117th of 160 teams, Canada
16U Black – 1st place in Tier 6, 41st of 208 teams, Canada
16U White – 1st place in Tier 22, 169th of 208 teams, Canada
16U Men – 5th place in Tier 4, 87th of 88 teams, Canada
17U Black – 2nd place in Tier 9, 66th of 144 teams Canada
18U Black – 3rd place in Tier 4, 27th of 152 teams, Canada
