Carver Gym was rocking, and the Western volleyball team was on a roll against conference rival Simon Fraser. Just like old times. The Vikings took it to the visitors, taller and more experienced, turning an intangible — their home floor advantage — into something you could feel. Led by Delaney Speer, Hayli Tri, Emily Vossenkuhl, Janelle Grant and Devyn Oestreich, the Vikings surprisingly swept Simon Fraser, 3-0, in front of a Friday night, Sept. 27 crowd of locals and students welcomed back after a summer away.
Diane Flick-Williams is in her 25th season coaching Western, averaging more than 21 wins per year. Last season’s record of 14-16 was her first losing one. The Simon Fraser win on Sept. 27 gave the team its the first back-to-back victories of the season after beating Alaska-Anchorage the week before, and it felt like the possible ember to some future flame.
Western is 3-6, survivors of a six-match losing streak — four to nationally ranked teams — that included 15 lost sets in a row. For the second straight year, Flick-Williams’ 18-player roster has no seniors. For the second straight year, it’s a new world for the veteran coach.
“It’s funny to me,” she said about the unfamiliar losing. “I want to believe after this amount of time, I’ve seen it all, but I haven’t. So it just becomes a new challenge, and I love competing and figuring things out and problem-solving.” …