After falling short of an ACAC title in 2022-23, the Ooks Men's Volleyball team has been on a mission in 2023-24, making for a great developing storyline to follow.
Entering the final weekend of January, the Ooks currently sit 2nd in the ACAC North Division, having leapfrogged Lakeland College thanks to a pair of solid wins this past weekend. More notably, the Ooks sit just six points back of division-leading Keyano College, with three games in hand.
A 1st-seed in Championship Weekend (hosted by Olds College this year) would set the Ooks up for success in a year where they're gunning to win NAIT's first ACAC Men's Volleyball title since 1977.
Head Coach Phil Dixon, named the Ooks' Head Coach prior to the start of this season, reminds us that the Ooks have to be ready for whoever they go up against.
"Any team in the North or South that gets into Provincials, honestly, they (can) take off, and have a great weekend, can win Provincials," Dixon explains. "So the most important thing is... A: getting in to start, and B: playing your best ball at that time of year.
"As people might remember, Briercrest was 4th in the South last year, and they won it all."
Briercrest College, the defending ACAC champions, defeated NAIT in the semi-finals at Championship Weekend last year, so the Ooks remember that story well.
For the moment, however, the Ooks have done a tremendous job finishing the first half of the season strong and starting the second half equally as hot. Their current four-game winning streak includes victories over both Keyano and Briercrest. Those teams have records of 12-3 and 10-3, respectively, and the Ooks have shown they're at least on their level.
Dixon acknowledges that those are huge wins to boost the Ooks' confidence.
"When you can take a match from Keyano and Briercrest at home here, definitely- the boys know we're competing with some of the best teams in the nation. So yeah, we just gotta keep getting better, week by week, to move that forward to Provincials, hopefully even get a shot at Nationals this year."
Also concurring with the confidence aspect is Outside Hitter Josh Watson.
"It's a really big confidence boost," Watson says. "Especially besting those two teams; they were both nationally ranked, and we weren't, so that was huge, and hopefully, we can keep that going."
The Ooks weren't... until this week. Following their dominance of the Augustana Vikings over the weekend, the Ooks are now ranked 14th in the country, another milestone team achievement.
Watson, one of three New Zealanders on the roster, credits team culture as his favourite part of playing for the Ooks this year.
"Really good group of guys, Watson says. "Makes me feel good, being overseas with these guys."
You cannot measure team cohesion, but it is essential to a championship-caliber roster.
"The culture we have built is a culture of not only commitment but a culture of caring," Dixon explains. "We as coaches care about everyone on the team, and each other as coaches, and players (about each other) as players, as well.
"Those two things, culture of commitment and culture of caring, have made a big difference."
Is coaching such a strong team more fun or more stressful?
"It's kind of a combination of both," Dixon says after a moment of thought. "It's definitely fun being in the gym, working with the guys on a day-to-day basis, and getting ready for the next week.
"But with that high standard comes high standards from us coaches as well, and what we need to communicate in-game plans, and stuff like that, as we continue to build this team, build our volleyball IQ."
The Ooks will look to continue displaying their strong talent with three home games left, starting with tonight against Lakeland College, followed by Senior Night next week versus King's University, and a game against Medicine Hat on February 17 to close out the entire season.