By DAVID WINER Ava Mann and Kaylee Glagau began the summer with two objectives. After their first goal of capturing the OVA Provincial Beach Championships was derailed by a three-set semi-final upset, the Mississauga Pakmen indoor teammates were hell bent on not allowing such an outcome to recur. “Coming third in Ontario really pushed us to get better and train harder for Nationals,” explained Glagau. And the duo lived up to their pact, not dropping a single set, on the way to claiming Volleyball Canada’s Youth Beach 14UGirls Nationals title at Toronto’s Ashbridges Bay August 19-21. Having to play 11 matches over three days, conserving their strength and stamina was essential, and Mann and Glagau prevailed in decisive fashion, capturing the gold medal with a 21-5, 21-10 win over Charlotte Bilodeau and Solveig Roy of Quebec. “We had a very tough loss in the semis at Provincials (to Phoenix Lee and Tia Shum that went to 14-16 in the third set) and after that we decided to train harder because we had three weeks before Nationals and we wanted to be the best we could be,” explained a determined Mann. “All year we were working towards gold at Provincials and Nationals, so when we didn’t get it at Provincials, we knew we would play stronger than ever at Nationals.” On hand to give them moral and technical support was Pakmen coach Aleks Mamuzic, who couldn’t say enough about Mann and Glagau’s work ethic and tenacity. “Even though the girls won the bronze after losing the semis at Provincials, it is always rough losing a third set by two points,” said Mamuzic. “(But) the girls didn’t let that loss stop them from working hard on and off the beach courts (in preparations for their next opportunity at Nationals).” And, because their expectations never varied throughout the season, it appeared as if there was little place for shock, or even surprise, when Mann and Glagau claimed their spot at the top of the podium at Nationals. “I think our win wasn’t surprising to us because we train a lot and we put a lot of effort into our beach season,” said Glagau. “We also take private beach lessons, which helps us, because we get a lot of one on two coaching and we can work on specific things, which I think helped us to get to where we are right now.” And where they are right now is in pretty select company as one of three Pakmen teams to win National beach titles this summer. “The girls were focused all tournament,” raved Mamuzic. “They passed well, set aggressively, and that allowed them to have a lot of scoring opportunities on their attacks.” “(The gold medal) definitely feels special because we achieved a personal goal and we were really proud to represent Pakmen,” said the 5-foot-10 Mann upon reflection. “It feels amazing because all of our hard work finally paid off,” she added. “I’m proud of both Kaylee and myself.” “It feels pretty good. Especially since Ava and I ended our 14U season on a great note,” added the 6-foot-1 Glagau. “I’m looking forward to many more championships.” Mamuzic feels there’s still a lot more talent to be untapped, especially with Glagau’s height advantage at the net. “Although both girls have solid fundamentals, it doesn’t hurt that Kaylee put up the biggest block in the 14U division,” said Mamuzic. “Most teams try to set the ball off the net more, which makes peeling and playing defense a lot easier. (Meanwhile) Ava is a workhorse on defense, she chases down every ball. Even if she doesn’t get it up, it’s that type of attitude that makes her partner play better.” “The coaching that we got from Aleks was definitely key to our success,” said Mann. “We had also been doing extra physical training with Reid Hall. Also we both know each other as partners and were trying to achieve the gold together.” That partnership Mann refers to is pivotal. “Kaylee and I have been a team for two years now and I think we know each other’s personalities really well, so when one of us is down the other knows how to bring the other one back into the game.” Another strength, according to Glagau is the professional way each player conducts herself, whether it’s at game time, or at practice. “The secret to our success is that we try to train like national champions by never slacking off at practices,” explained Glagau. “Also, having a really good relationship and friendship with your partner is important, because without that, we couldn’t have won Nationals. It’s therefore not surprising that Mann and Glagau have every intention of keeping their partnership. “We plan on remaining a team and I hope we remain a team forever because I couldn’t imagine myself playing with anyone else,” said Glagau. “Not only is Ava my beach partner, she is also my best friend, and if somehow we are not beach partners in the future, I hope we could still be friends. “I also think our games complement each other very well,” added Glagau. “Who knows how far we can go with hard work, determination and always remembering to have fun.” Unfortunately, the two friends couldn’t celebrate their championship together, because both families had to rush off on holidays, but the two agreed to take a rain check. “We didn’t celebrate together after because we had to go to our cottages, but I would have liked to,” explained Glagau. “We usually do at the end of other tournaments. “Our parents have a good relationship with each other too,” she added. “We are all very close and get along very well.” Mann, who will attend Burlington’s Dr. Frank J Hayden Secondary at the start of the school year, and Glagau, who will go to Mississauga’s Streetsville Secondary School, defeated Quebec’s Laurence Huard and Sarah-Jeanne Beaulieu in the semi-finals, 21-8, 21-4, and bested Markham’s Isabella Samadzadeh and Sonya Bogatchev 21-19, 21-6 in

By DAVID WINER Jamie Ha had an itch he couldn’t scratch for much of the spring and summer. After winning the Ontario Volleyball Association Provincial indoor title with his 14U Mississauga Pakmen teammates, Ha fully expected to lay claim to the Eastern Canadian indoor title as well. But, as is often the case in sports, expectations are sometimes met head on with disappointment, and the Pakmen suffered an early departure from the indoor Nationals in the first week of May. Luckily for Ha and his good friend and teammate Harjas Chahal, volleyball has two seasons. And where expectations fell short in the spring, hopes and wishes were met and exceeded at the tail end of the summer, as a gold medal at the Provincial 14U Beach Volleyball Championships on July 30, was followed by more gold at the Youth Beach Nationals Aug. 18-21 at Toronto’s Ashbridges Bay. “It feels amazing to win both Provincials and Nationals because during the indoor season the boys 14U Pakmen team lost in the quarter-finals at Nationals and Harjas and I feel proud to represent Pakmen and win beach Provincials and Nationals.” “Being a double gold medalist feels amazing,” offered an exultant Chahal. “And in the gold medal match, when we got the final point, I was on my knees celebrating as Jamie was jumping around. We both couldn’t believe it. “At the beginning of the season, we knew we would be contenders for gold, but we didn’t know that we’d end up winning Provincials, let alone Nationals, so we were both grateful.” It’s as if the two David Leeder Middle School graduates won the back-to-back titles for their indoor teammates as much as for themselves. While Ha and Chahal defeated Aurora’s Dalton Irwin and Markus Law-Heese 23-21, 21-13 in the championship final, and Quebec’s Carl-Eric Lafleur and Florent Hogue 21-14, 21-17 in the semi-finals, the two 14-year-olds felt their toughest challenge came against Ontario’s David Kang and Arthur Bento in the quarter-finals when they were stretched to three sets, eventually prevailing 15-21, 21-10, 15-10. “Playing David Kang and Arthur Bento in the quarter-finals was our toughest match of the tournament because they beat us in the first set due to a lack of communication,” felt Ha. “But in the next two sets, Harjas and I started talking before and after every point (which helped) to secure the win.” “Losing the first set to Kang and Bento was expected because we weren’t playing and communicating like we had been the whole season,” agreed Chahal. “Being the morning, (and) also the third day (of the championship) had a bit of a part to play (in it), but our coach Jessy Satti had a talk to us and just said to communicate and talk, which we did the next two sets, which led us to a win.” And for his part, Satti couldn’t be more proud of his players. “Jamie and Harjas were sharp all day,” said Satti. “They had moments where nerves were kicking in, but they managed to overcome that by communicating with each other and taking pressure off each other. “Once the nerves settled, and they started getting comfortable, they became a very aggressive team,” added Satti. “They were hitting the ball hard and serving very tough. It was nice to see them play their best volleyball at the very last tournament of the year, and at the most important tournament.” Other than the three-set victory over Kang and Bento, the 5-foot-6 Ha and the 6-foot-1 Chahal were also extended to a third set against fellow Pakmen teammates Ishaan Thandi and Lyam Krapp in preliminary round action, dropping the opener 21-18, before bouncing back with 21-14, 15-13 wins. Thandi and Krapp eventually bowed out to Lafleur and Hoag 2-1 in the quarters. “Losing to Thandi and Krapp did have a part to play (in our gold medal), because me and Jamie were used to being down the first set during the season, so we knew how to come back from it again,” said Chahal. “Like our coach Jessy says, ‘it doesn’t matter how you start out, it matters how you finish,” so in keeping that in mind, we pushed through and ended up winning both games.” “Coach Jessy has helped us a lot, with him constantly reminding us of little details that Harjas and I use while we play in games,” said Ha. “Jessy has also guided us during practice and at Provincials and Nationals.” This summer also proved one more thing to the David Leeder graduates, who will go their separate ways in September. While Ha will attend St. Marcellinus Catholic Secondary School, Chahal will attend the neighboring Mississauga Secondary School. And that is, “Harjas and I will remain as a team,” said Ha of his best friend. “We both learned a lot about the game of beach this summer and we will continue to improve on (communicating with) each other off and on the beach courts, as well as cheering after every point.” “I feel Jamie and I clicked because we had that chemistry being on sports teams together (since Grade 3) and knowing each other since elementary school,” chimed in Chahal. “I knew we were going to be contenders for gold, both at Provincials and Nationals and I had the confidence, but saying something and doing it, are two different things, but we tried our hardest and our hard work paid off. “You can expect me and Jamie to try out for the upcoming 15U indoor (Pakmen) team and hopefully we can win a Provincial and National championship.” Other than the preliminary round victory against Thandi and Krapp, Ha and Chahal also defeated Loreto Cerasuolo and Tyler McBride of Oakville; Andrew Song and Forest Turpel of Niagara; Markus Hong and Ethan Hendriksen of London; Lafleur and Hoag; and Irwin and Law-Heese, by 2-0 margins. “Winning in two sets was important because we didn’t want to waste any more energy than we needed to as the tournament was three days long,”

By DAVID WINER Peter Rugosi can play volleyball for the rest of his life and he will never eclipse what he accomplished over the past 12 months. After all, how can one improve on perfection. Paired with fellow Pakmen star Cole Ketrzynski this summer, the two 15-year-olds played up an age group yet still swept the 16U Provincial and National Beach Volleyball titles. Combining those championships with the Provincial and Eastern Canadian indoor titles he won with the 15U Pakmen, and Rugosi won all four major titles this year. “I feel extremely lucky because (four titles) is really, really hard to get and I somehow managed to. I never thought that I would be able to achieve what I have achieved this year,” gushed the 5-foot-11 Rugosi on a dream year. Had Ketrzynski not moved up two age groups during the indoor season, he too would have walked away with four gold medals. The Coup de gras occurred this past weekend (Aug. 19-21) at Toronto’s Ashbridges Bay. Taking on 14 of the best 16U teams in the country at Volleyball Canada’s Youth Beach Nationals, Rugosi and Ketrzynski won all 10 of their matches. “This feels unreal and like a dream for me because I have never gotten a national beach title before and I never thought I would’ve gotten my first one playing up an age group,” added Rugosi in regard to his most recent achievement. Rugosi and Ketrzynski earned the National Beach title with a straight-set 21-12, 21-16 win over Matthew Lee and Justin Lui of Ontario in the final. Earlier, the duo swept past Quebec’s Jonathan Portelance and Yannick Beaudet 21-12, 21-16 in the quarter-finals and Alberta’s Sam Elgert and Matt Neaves 21-11, 21-11 in the semi-finals. Rugosi and Ketrzynski were only stretched to three sets in one of their 10 matches, when they faced Lee and Lui in the final preliminary round match, losing the opening set 17-21, before rallying back to prevail 21-15, 15-12. Rugosi, who will attend Etobicoke’s Bishop Allen Academy in the fall, explained how losing that one set enabled them to better face what lay ahead in the final day of play. “I feel like losing the one set was something that Cole and I needed to do in order to win the title,” he explained. “Because, it was always on our minds. Losing that one set reminded us that we were vulnerable to losing. We knew that we had to play to the best of our abilities every single match. “I also feel that staying free from all the extra work, and keeping it down to two sets for almost every game, meant that we could focus on the game rather than how hot it was.” Ketrzynski wholeheartedly agreed. “I much prefer to win a (match) in two (rather) than in three (sets) because it maximizes your recovery time,” offered Ketrzynski. “And also anything can happen in a third set, so it’s always better to try and go two straight.” And having fought back from a set down against Lui and Lee meant that they had the confidence when facing them again in the final. “We both thought that we could beat them because we had complete confidence in each other from the very start,” said Rugosi. “That one set that they took off of us didn’t make us doubt our abilities for one second. We figured out what we did wrong the first day we played them and made sure that it didn’t happen again.” “Going to the third set with them did put a thought in my mind,” said Ketrzynski. “Not that we’re in trouble, but that we need to put in that extra effort in order to pull off the win.” And, with Rugosi’s father Franco eyeing the proceedings with his coaching cap on, little was left to chance. “He saw all the mistakes we were making and he would tell us what they were during timeouts,” revealed Rugosi. “Without him, we wouldn’t have won.” Pakmen head beach coach Jessy Satti, who was also involved in preparing Rugosi and Ketrzynski for the championships, came away impressed. “Cole and Peter played with great energy,” observed Satti. “They are big at the net and solid defensively. “I’m really impressed at how well they played, considering that they are a new pair (and that) they’ve rarely trained with each other,” added Satti. “They are both great players, and having the three-day tournament format, they were really able to get comfortable playing with each other. They got much better day by day.” Having played together for two tournaments last summer, followed by this entire outdoor season, Ketrzynski and Rugosi grew increasingly comfortable with one another’s tendencies on the beach, which led to improved play on a weekly basis. “The secret for us, I think, was just getting used to each other more because Cole and I haven’t practiced a lot together,” reflected Rugosi. “I think the Ontario Summer Games (Aug. 12-14, where they placed second to Cole’s brother Xander and Jack McBain) helped a lot because we played together a lot more there, allowing us to get used to each other’s style of play.” “I felt we were much more confident in what we were doing having played together the past few weekends,” added Ketrzynski. All those matches improved the duo’s timing, especially when it came to setting up the towering 6-foot-5 Ketrzynski at the net. “(Ketrzynski’s height) was a big advantage,” concurred Rugosi, “because everyone we played was taller than the people I usually play with in 15U, so he helped a lot blocking and taking up space on the court, making my job easier as a defender.” “The height certainly helps,” said Ketrzynski, who will attend Toronto’s York Mills Collegiate in September. “However, we did come across a bigger team (in Elgert and Neaves) and we still managed to win,” suggesting height can be helpful, but that talent aces size most days. In earlier, preliminary round matches, Rugosi and Ketrzynski

By DAVID WINER Winning gold at the OVA Beach Ontario Championships is becoming old hat for Peter Rugosi. Entering this year’s 15U championships at Toronto’s Ashbridges Bay over the weekend (Aug. 6-7), the Mississauga Pakmen Volleyball Club star had already claimed the top of the podium each of the last two summers with fellow Pakmen member and long-time amigo Mark Dildar by his side. But, Ontario Summer Games Region 5 coaches threw a wrench into the works by teaming Rugosi with a different partner this summer, fellow Pakmen Cole Ketrzynski. Instead of fretting about any lack of chemistry, or griping about Dildar not being by his side, Rugosi promptly demonstrated why he is a true champion by building a well-tuned Maserati with that wrench that purred all the way to the finish, rewarding Rugosi with his third straight provincial crown. “The coaches strongly suggested that (Cole and I) play a tournament together before (next weekend’s) Ontario Summer Games and we decided that provincials would be a good tournament,” explained Rugosi, who added, “We tried out as individuals and the coaches made us a team.” Rugosi, who also won Provincial indoor championships each of the past two seasons, added there were other complications prohibiting he and Dildar from returning to defend their title for a third straight summer. “Mark (Dildar) is a great indoor and beach player, but unfortunately it didn’t work out this year and he didn’t play because of Region 5 and because of his elbow injury at the beginning of the year. (Mind you) If I hadn’t been selected for the team this year then I would’ve played with Mark at provincials.” Although relatively new as a team, having only played twice last summer including an age group up at the Nationals where they placed fifth, Rugosi and Ketrzynski hardly missed a beat over the weekend, cruising to victory without losing any of the 16 sets against their eight opponents in the 27-team field that was eventually whittled down to 12 in Tier One and 15 in the lower Champions Division. Much of the credit belongs with Pakmen beach coach Jessy Satti, who prepared his two charges for the beach Provincials. Satti, who regularly works hand-and-hand with beach head coach Lennard Krapp, took on most of the responsibilities this summer, with Krapp currently coaching Olympians Sam Schachter and Josh Binstock in Rio de Janeiro. “Peter and Cole make a great team,” said Satti. “Cole is a dominant blocker and Peter is one of the fastest defenders on the beach. Both set well and both can put the ball away attacking.” And while Rugosi and Ketrzynski rarely had the opportunity to compete with one another, they had the chance to admire each other’s abilities. “We got to know each other by playing against each other in court and in beach and one day last year he asked me if I’d like to play a tournament with him and it worked out great so we’ve been playing for about a year,” explained Ketrzynski about his partnership with Rugosi. And Rugosi soon realized there’s a distinct advantage to feeding the towering Ketrzynski the ball at the net. “My secret with Cole is that I set him on the tape and he just hits the ball straight down,” said Rugosi. “Cole is 6-foot-5 with an incredible amount of skill, so it is no problem for him to do that. (And) all the weaknesses we had (like serving) we were fixing all throughout the tournament so that when we hit the finals, you could barely see a weakness.” That final match pitted Rugosi and Ketrzynski against Cole Irwin and Noel Campfens of Toronto’s Patriots Volleyball Club, with the Pakmen prevailing 21-12, 21-15. Earlier, Rugosi and Ketrzynski downed Robert Cooke and Erik Siksna of Aurora 21-7, 21-9 in the semi-finals and Craig Therkildsen of Aurora and Grant Reddon of Durham 21-17, 21-12 in the quarters. “They were all tough games, but in the end it would’ve probably been Craig and Grant in the quarters (who gave us the toughest resistance) because we have never seen Grant play before so we had no idea of what to expect from him,” added the 5-foot-11 Rugosi, who will attend Grade 10 at Etobicoke’s Bishop Allen Academy in the fall. Among all the championships Rugosi has won in recent seasons, he suggests, “This ranks really high because it was the most recent achievement in my life and and I also won provincials in indoor which I haven’t done since the 13U season.” While Rugosi is accustomed to the best, when it comes to picking out jewellery….er…gold, Ketrzynski, despite his obvious talents, is a relative neophyte when it comes to precious metals. “It’s the best I’ve ever done in beach,” said Ketrzynski, who played up two age groups in his first year with the Pakmen this past indoor season after coming over from the Patriots, “so I was very happy with the result.” Ketrzynski, who will attend Grade 10 at Toronto’s York Mills Collegiate in the fall, would appear to be the perfect fit for Rugosi. While Rugosi reflected on Ketrzynski’s great co-ordination and leaping ability at the net, Ketrzynski offered, “I think something that helps with our success would be Peter’s reliability and his skills. He’s always able to give me the set I need and help me play to the best of my abilities.” Being surrounded by Pakmen in indoor play has also been a boon to Ketrzynski’s immense talents, adding that “I enjoyed the switch a lot and the change in the intensity and competition.” Along with the competition, outdoor players have also had to compete against the heat in this record-breaking summer. And both Rugosi and Ketrzynski insisted learning to deal with the heat is almost as important as preparing for their opponents. “Something I found helpful to beat the heat was to wash off with cold water between games, either in the lake, or at the showers they have by the washrooms,” offered

By DAVID WINER “Wily, old veterans,” of the court are hardly the words that spring to mind when characterizing a couple of 14 year old athletes. Up-and-comers, ambitious, or perhaps promising, can best describe the immense talent and potential today’s elite youngsters may project. But, Harjas Chahal and Jamie Ha are hardly your typical striving teens. Members of the Mississauga Pakmen Volleyball Club, Chahal and Ha have an advantage over just about all of their opponents when taking to the sand for a beach volleyball match – camaraderie brought about by familiarity. “Jamie and I have lots of chemistry as we have known each other since Grade 3,” explained Chahal of his relationship with fellow David Leeder Middle School graduate Ha. “We also played on multiple school sports teams together. This allowed us to get to know each other as well as build trust in each other.” Those strengths contributed to a gold medal performance at the OVA (Ontario Volleyball Association) U14 Beach Volleyball Championships on July 30 at Toronto’s Ashbridges Bay. Riding on a high after defeating fellow Pakmen teammate Ishaan Thandi and his teammate Lyam Krapp in the semi-finals, 2-0 (21-19, 21-12), Chahal and Ha proceeded to beat Markus Hong and Ethan Hendriksen of London for the gold, 21-17, 21-13. “We don’t get mad nor do we get frustrated with each other because we trust one another,” continued Chahal about his unique relationship. “Also, another big factor is that, even though I have more experience (five years of volleyball to Ha’s three), he can understand the game just as much, which is useful going against tough opponents.” And Hong and Hendriksen certainly posed as tough foes, entering the championship final as befitting the defending Ontario champions and the No. 1 seeds. “We had never played them leading up to the finals, so we didn’t know about their weaknesses or strengths until we played them,” admitted Chahal, who missed most of last summer’s play with a broken toe. So, with little previous knowledge of the defending champs, Chahal admitted there was nothing planned for afterwards to celebrate the gold medal finish. “We were just in shock that we had won gold at provincials, it was almost like a dream come true.” Chahal also had kind words for bronze medalists Thandi and Krapp. “One of the toughest teams we faced were my Pakmen teammate Ishaan Thandi and his partner Lyam Krapp. We had faced them In the finals twice before provincials (with) both (matches)going into third sets and being (settled by) a difference of two (points), which we both won once.” While this is the first year Chahal and Ha have played together on the OVA outdoor circuit, there’s little doubting their ability to anticipate each others whereabouts and moves. “Harjas and I click as a team because we’ve known each other since elementary school and we always play with each other on the beach courts at David Leeder during school recess and for practice,” said Ha, adding, “The Pakmen elite beach training prepared Harjas and I by giving us more playing time together and our coach, Jessy Satti, gave us a lot of tips that we used to help us in provincials.” And while the final and semi-final contained some nervous moments for the duo, Ha took pride in the fact, “Harjas and I had a relatively easy road to gold. We had a couple challenging sets, but we didn’t drop (one).” While the 5-foot-6 Ha and the 6-foot-1 Chahal will likely be indoor teammates with the 15U Pakmen in the fall, the two will find themselves as opponents for the first time in school play. Ha will attend St. Marcellinus Catholic Secondary School in the fall, while Chahal will attend the neighboring Mississauga Secondary School – two Region of Peel volleyball powerhouses that will certainly improve with the aforementioned additions. Mississauga, however, appears to have the upper-hand for now, considering bronze medalist, Thandi, will be teammates with Chahal. At 6-foot-1, Thandi can be considered a late bloomer, having spent much of his early years dribbling and dunking on the basketball court. Thandi will be entering his third year of indoor action with the Pakmen and is completing his second year of beach play. “I just started to play volleyball in Grade 7,” explained Thandi. “I was a basketball player for powerhouse CIA Bounce but made the decision last year to focus on volleyball. (And) Pakmen is the only volleyball club I have played for – to be the best you have to play for and with the best.” Thandi certainly has the inside track in that department. Not only can Thandi turn to Satti for coaching advice, he can also pick the brain of Krapp’s father, Lennard. “Coach Lennard has been a technical coach with our Pakmen indoor team for the past three years and he is now heading to Rio to coach one of the men’s beach volleyball teams (Josh Binstock and Sam Schachter) at the Olympics,” said Thandi. “I have been lucky to have amazing coaches in indoor and beach including coach Lennard, coach Jessy and our indoor coaches, coach Tom (Leca) and James (Gomez).” And, other than the first- and second-place finishers, Thandi and Krapp were the next highest seeds entering the 12-team Tier One division of the tournament “I knew that out of the 12 teams, realistically any eight or so could have won,” said Thandi. “I felt we were contenders for gold, but also knew we would have to play Jamie and Harjas in the semis to get to the gold medal match because of the rankings.” “(But) we (still) felt good heading into provincials as in the past two tournaments, we met Harjas and Jamie in the finals – with them winning one tournament and us winning the other. “Harjas and Jamie complement each other well,” pointed out Thandi of his outdoor foes. “Harjas is one of the best hitters in our age group and Jamie is probably the best defender