The Trinity Western University men's volleyball team has five players who were named to Volleyball Canada's NextGen Team.
The Spartans contingent includes current Spartans Jesse Elser (Calgary), Mathias Elser (Calgary), Brodie Hofer (Langley) and Jackson Howe (Calgary) along with alum Pearce Eshenko (Banff, Alta.).
The TWU quintet is part of a group of athletes with the potential to represent Canada at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. This year's training program will run in Gatineau, Quebec, from May 24 to late August.
Members of this team would represent Canada at the Pan Am Cup (details TBA).
With the cancellation of the 2020-21 U SPORTS season, all four current Spartans still have at least two years of U SPORTS eligibility remaining, with Howe having two years left, Jesse Elser and Hofer having three years left and Matias Elser having fours year to go, with 2019-20 having been his rookie campaign. Meanwhile, Eshenko graduated in 2020 and is coming off his first year of professional volleyball playing with Helio Grizzlies Giesen. He recently signed with SVG Luneburg for the 2021-22 season.
"With the unusual circumstances of 2020 and 2021, it's crucial that we continue to have opportunities for athletes to train in a high-performance environment," said Julien Boucher, High Performance Director for Indoor programs. "This is an impressive group of players and we're looking forward to a productive summer."
The program will be led by head coach Joao Paulo Bravo, and assisted by Matt Harris and Chris Voth.
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About Trinity Western University
Founded in 1962, Trinity Western University is Canada’s premier Christian liberal arts university dedicated to equipping students to establish meaningful connections between career, life, and the needs of the world. It is a fully accredited research institution offering liberal arts and sciences, as well as professional schools in business, nursing, education, human kinetics, graduate studies, and arts, media, and culture. It has four campuses and locations: Langley, Richmond-Lansdowne, Richmond-Minoru, and Ottawa. TWU emphasizes academic excellence, research, and student engagement in a vital faith community committed to forming leaders to have a transformational impact on culture. Learn more at www.twu.ca or follow us on Twitter @TrinityWestern, on Facebook and LinkedIn.