Bears volleyball showcases incredible talent at Ganza all-star game

The Golden Bears volleyball team invited 25 of the best high school volleyball players in the province for their 11th annual Ganza all-star game. This game allowed the Bears a chance to scout some of the best talent in the province and see how they respond to their coaching. It also gives the players a chance to showcase their skills in front of the highest-ranked team in the country.

“It just gets me excited to play [university volleyball]. Playing in high level matches, you get better every time dealing with the pressure, and especially playing on a big stage like this. Fans and coaches are watching, and you’re just figuring out that pressure in your mind,” setter Ethan Berarbocco said.

However if you only went to this game, you might not realize the Bears are the best team in the country. The men’s volleyball team showed up to the game in an odd mix of country and brightly coloured clothes. Outside hitter Jacob Sargents announcing was an amusing choice of commentary, focusing primarily on Evan Linder, a Bears commit.

Some notable players were Bears’ commits Jack Drake and Linder, as well as Berarbocco, Justin Low-Ring and Tyson Dezutter.

Early thoughts on the game

What ever head coach Brock Davidiuk did to get Dezutter, Low-Ring, Linder, and Drake on his team was worth it. He created a next level roster with a strong serving line early in the game.

The first set saw a back-and-forth style of play that was prolonged due to multiple failed blocks by both teams. However, each team had less of a forceful game and more of a strategic light-touch style. This is not what you would expect from mens high school volleyball, but it’s not necessarily a bad thing.

Early on, multiple players stood out. Low-Ring delivered some heaters with impressive accuracy on his kills. He consistently found the open space and capitalized on the opposing team’s concentration near the net.

The second set saw a strong start by Davidiuk’s team, thanks to some power serves by Linder who worked well with Drake for the kill. As Linder and Drake will be teammates next year, it’s nice to see them pick up on some early chemistry.

How the players developed by the end of the game

The strategic style worked for the first half of the game, but the real leads came from back-to-back kills in the last three sets. Corny Bergen, Jamie Purse, Dezutter, Linder and Low-Ring all stepped up in this area, though Dezutter knew when to go for the subtle play.

Linder was no doubt the star of the fourth and fifth set, sending one of his serves 106 kilometers an hour. He’ll be a notable player to watch next year at Saville Center. After Linder’s heaters, it became a bit of a contest to see who could serve the hardest. This unsurprisingly resulted in some wasted points.

The tie-breaking set showcased Drake’s serve receive skills, as he made multiple impressive digs. His performance had part-time master of ceremonies, Sargent, tell the other team to “stop hitting to that guy.”

Ganza all-star MVPs

Dezutter and Bergen won the Ganza all-star MVP for their respective teams after an outstanding performance from both players. However, Dezutter was already a Ganza all-star MVP, one of the youngest in fact.

Dezutter is in his second-last year of high school and his team recently won gold at provincials on November 23. Though, he may not play his last year of high school volleyball.

“I’m not sure if I’m gonna go to the National Excellence Program or stick around, but if I stick around, I’ll definitely try to recreate that same win,” Dezutter said.

As you can imagine, with 25 of the best volleyball players in the province, there was some pretty great talent showcased during the game. But it also served as a good chance for the Bears’ commits and other potential prospects to interact with the Bears’ current team. It’s pretty clear that some of the guys have already begun welcoming the 2025–26 rookie class.