Members of Westhome’s famous volleyball family helped Vancouver Island University teams to three different national championship tournaments recently, coming home with gold and bronze medals.
Sisters Danielle and Megan Groenendijk, graduates of Duncan Christian School, helped the VIU Mariners repeat as Canadian College Athletic Association women’s volleyball champions, while their brother, Doug, and fellow DCS grad Adam Kapteyn were part of the bronze-medal men’s volleyball team. Another alumna, Juliet King, was part of the VIU women’s basketball team that finished fourth in the country.
The women’s volleyball team beat the Kings College Eagles in straight sets 25-18, 25-11, 25-16 at Niagara College in Welland, Ont. on March 9 to become the first VIU team to defend a national title and the first CCAA women’s volleyball team to win back-to-back championships.
Danielle Groenendijk was named a second-team all-star at the tournament and had 16 kills and 13 digs in the final match.
“So much is going on right now. It feels great and honestly, I am just so happy that we won,” she said on Niagara College’s webcast after the game.
Doug Groenendijk and Kapteyn helped VIU’s men’s volleyball team claim its first medal since 2007 as they defeated the Keyano Huskies for bronze Red Deer College in Alberta, also on March 9. The five-set third-place match included a marathon fourth set that the Huskies ended up winning 30-28. The Mariners won overall, 25-20, 25-20, 22-25, 28-30, 16-14.
Doug Groenendijk was second on the team with 15 kills in the third-place showdown, while Kapteyn had a team-high five blocks.
King helped the Mariners women’s basketball team reach the bronze-medal match of their national championship hosted by Cégep Sainte-Foy in Québec, where VIU lost 74-64 to the Dawson College Blues.
With files from the Nanaimo News Bulletin
