Cambrian women will be weary travelers by the end of the month

Randy Pascal

2025-01-21

Welcome to life in the OCAA (Ontario Colleges Athletic Association) West Division of women’s volleyball – where every single week is a grind.

Witnessing the maturing of a core of the Cambrian Shield roster that have formed part of the Dale Beausoleil led program for the past few years, intermingled with a key acquisition in the form of former OCAA all-star Carlie Pappano (transferred from Canadore) and capped off with a nice injection of newcomers from local schools blessed with some noteworthy OFSSA experience, the New Sudbury crew were showing clear signs of progress in early 2024-2025.

A valiant five-set loss to Fanshawe was squeezed in between wins over Sheridan and Niagara in early November, giving way to a three-game winning streak (Mohawk, Redeemer, Conestoga) that carried right over the Christmas break.

Break? What break?

With coach Beausoleil taking advantage of the training opportunities that availed themselves via a team trip to Cuba, between Christmas and New Year’s, giving way to second straight trip to a top-end tournament appearance at Limoilou (Quebec), the Shield had surged their way into an OCAA top ten ranking for the first time in a bit as they prepared to hit the road this past weekend.

“I feel like when we left for the Christmas break and played a lot of games together – we were together for two straight weeks – we learned how to communicate better,” noted Lasalle Secondary graduate and third year left-side hitter Maisie Craig. “Playing nine sets a day (in Quebec), everyone was exhausted, but we kept pushing through.”

“Just to keep moving throughout the Christmas break helps a lot,” added Jersey Masson, who joined Craig in that 2022-2023 recruiting class after making her way down from her hometown of Atikokan. “We used Cuba and Limoilou as a big practice.”

The January schedule, however, is a tough one as the Shield find themselves with five straight road games after hosting Conestoga on January 12th. A Saturday afternoon matchup with the St Clair Saints (now 13-2) in Windsor did not go the way of the Cambrian ladies, despite battling tooth and nail against the third best team in the entire OCAA.

A scoreboard that would read 24-26, 24-26, 25-13, 25-19, 15-13 in favour of the Saints is a clear indicator of just how close the Shield came to registering a huge road upset – but also served as a reminder of the emotional drain that is absorbed in a match such as this.

The challenge of ramping it up again the next day was apparent in London as the northern women lost 16-25, 23-25, 21-25 to Fanshawe, though their record of 6-7 still finds them right in the thick of the playoff race (6th place of 10 – eight qualify). With travels this week sending them Hamilton way, encounters awaiting with Redeemer (6-8) and Mohawk (8-6), things don’t get any easier.

But such is the OCAA West.

It’s an eye opener, especially for the likes of Jersey Masson, a hockey star throughout high-school whose volleyball involvement was honestly just a second sport on the side. “I didn’t really expect the level of change (when I came to Cambrian),” said the naturally athletic 5’9” right-side.

“I really didn’t know what to expect; I was quite young. Adapting and putting your best foot forward, playing hard every day, handling the mental stuff – doing all of that was the biggest change for me,” Masson added.

It went well beyond the move from a town of just over 2600 residents to the City of Greater Sudbury. “It’s quite the culture change coming here,” noted Masson. “Back home, it’s hockey, hockey, hockey. Coming here, it’s very much volleyball – and I’m with people who have played volleyball since the age I started in hockey.”

In many ways, Jersey Masson – the veteran – perhaps exemplifies some of the growth of mental toughness that has been so critical to the Shield taking a step forward this year. “I knew coming in that I wasn’t going to be the best player that Dale had recruited,” she admitted. “All I could do was to try my best and grow from there.”

“Volleyball is a game of mistakes; there is always room for improvement. Reflecting and doing better and relying on your teammates to pick you up is what you need to do.”

For as much as Dale Beausoleil is heralded, and deservingly so, for his detailed attention to the technical skills of volleyball, his ability to equip athletes with the emotional skills to handle the ebbs and flows of varsity sports is equally as impressive.

“In my first year, we were not strong mentally,” suggested Maisie Craig. “We didn’t know how to work through our errors. When I would mess up a few times, I would get down on myself. Now, I know it’s one mistake. I just need to get my head clear and get the next one.”

Qualifying for post-season play in each of the past three years, post-Covid, the Shield have been eliminated in the cross-over game by Redeemer (2021-2022 – 18-25; 17-25; 25-18; 21-25), Sheridan (2022-2023) and Loyalist (2023-2024 – 18-25; 20-25; 29-31).

“I think from my first year to my third year, we’ve made a lot of improvements,” stressed Masson. “I think we have the ability to beat any team in the league.”

But it won’t be easy. In the world of the OCAA West (Women’s Volleyball), it never is.

The remainder of the Cambrian Shield lineup this year includes Kennedy Bellefeulle, Allison Nordquist, Taylor Vaillant, Mackenzie Selk, Mikayla Tremblay, Fannie Gauthier, Shae St Onge, Symantha Welsh, Abby Laporte, Reyne Hoare, Gillian Clarke and Lily Sleigh.