Gee-Gees

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GEE-GEES OPEN THEIR SEASON ON OCT. 24 – HERE’S EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW HEADING IN.

A brief history of Gee-Gees Women’s Volleyball

After jumping out to a promising 3-1 start to the 2024-25 OUA season, 6 consecutive losses to end the fall term would eventually culminate in a 7-13 record for the Gee-Gees. 

2024-25 marked the team’s 40th campaign in the OUA (formerly OWIAA) but its first since 2015-16, having spent 2016-2024 as a member of the RSEQ. 

The program has enjoyed considerable success throughout most of its history, claiming five conference championships (most recently in 2012-13), which ranks fourth all-time amongst OUA schools. 

However, several lean years, including a three-year stretch in the RSEQ with a combined 2-50 record, put the team in a very difficult situation exiting the COVID-19 pandemic.

Now, a resurgence due to a handful of impactful recruits in recent years has the team moving in the right direction.

Same Core & Fresh Faces

The Gee-Gees enter the season with a remarkably similar roster to last year. Unlike many of their fellow Gee-Gees teams, this group only lost one athlete to graduation: setter Max Langevin. 

Keeping an entire starting rotation from year to year is incredibly rare in any university sport. “We’ve been able to tweak, […] as opposed to starting from scratch,” according to setter Harper Schaefer. She added that the number of reps she and her hitters were able to get over the summer have allowed them to progress a lot as a unit.

The best of those hitters, Audrey Odigie, has been the key piece for the Gee-Gees since her rookie year in 2022-23. Scoring over 3.5 kills/set in each of her last two seasons, she’s earned RSEQ and OUA First Team All-Star nods in those campaigns. Now entering her fourth year, the Brampton native is poised for another monster season alongside running mate Nicole Hildebrand. 

Initially playing right side when she joined the Gee-Gees in the same recruiting class as Odigie, Hildebrand made the transition to left side at the start of last season and immediately reaped the rewards, posting a career-high in kills and kills/set last year (236 and 2.78/set, respectively). 

However, as seen in pre-season action, she may be moving back to the right side. The team cycled through a variety of options at right side last year – notably Jessica Schmid, Liliane Boucher-Pfliger and Christina-Anna Louka – but never found a true #1 option. Moving Hildebrand back to the right will give them a consistent offensive presence and a bigger block against opponents’ left side hitters.

Replacing her role as the second starting left side will be Camryn Giddens. The versatile third-year has played on the right and left throughout her tenure with Ottawa, but with older players starting ahead of her, she’s primarily been used as a serving sub to this point in her career. Her ability to score for the Gee-Gees during rotations where Odigie is in the back row will be critical to the teams’ success.

Up the middle, the Gee-Gees will once again rely on Keely Lloyd and Christine Hachokake. A year ago, Lloyd, then a first-year, averaged 1.8 points/set, while Hachokake – an Ottawa native who returned to the nation’s capital following two seasons with McMaster – scored 2.3 points/set and led the team with 0.86 blocks/set.

Backing them up will be Jessica Schmid. Recruited as both a middle blocker and right side, she played both positions last year. Following Hildebrand’s move back to the right, Schmid will likely get more court time as a middle this season.

Liberos Jess Goodman and Brynn Lewis will hold down the fort defensively. The pair played a relatively equal amount throughout the season last year, with Goodman – a rookie – earning herself more time as the starter as the season progressed. 

This year’s rookie class is smaller than most, with only three girls joining the fold. They’re a trio of outside hitters: Lea Pendergast from Metcalfe, Ont., Zoe Dirisio from Toronto, and Sophia Jekat from Winnipeg.

Joining a new group can be quite difficult, but instead of finding it intimidating to join an established group that has had little turnover, one of the rookies praised the team for their handling of her addition.

“The girls, the vibes and the coaches were all very welcoming and very supportive,” said Jekat, adding that “I’m from Manitoba, and that was a really tough time for me to leave home, […] but within the first week it was so easy to be involved here.”

5th-Set Woes

Looking back, last season’s modest 7-13 record could have been much better.

The team averaged 4.25 sets played per match (85 sets played in 20 matches), by far the most of any OUA program, and only suffered three 3-0 sweep losses all season. For comparison, the 12-8 Toronto Varsity Blues lost five matches via sweep. 

The most telling statistic to this end was a 3-6 record in matches that went to 5 sets (that’s 9 of 20 matches going to 5 sets!), including back-to-back home losses to the 10-10 York Lions and a reverse sweep loss at the hands of the eventual OUA Silver medalist Brock Badgers.

The takeaway? They were oh-so-close in nearly all of their losses, and with a bit more luck or clutch factor, could have easily contended for a playoff berth.

“I think we tended to let up a little bit when we saw it going our way,” said middle blocker Keely Lloyd. She also attributed some of the losses to overthinking, saying that a way they can win more five set matches this year is by not applying extra stress and pressure on themselves.

Giddens shed light on the off-season work the team did to prepare themselves for this year. “We had a really big focus on conditioning this summer, doing SPAC (speed, plyos, agility & conditioning). So we were out on the Minto field, running sprints, getting jumps in,” she said. “We definitely have the skill to win those five set matches, and now I think we also have the stamina to back up our skill.”

Serve and Receive

The Gee-Gees were one of the best serving teams in the OUA last season, with 2.02 aces/set. This tough serving contributed strongly to their wins, particularly against weaker opponents.

Unfortunately, they were very middle-of-the-pack in most other important statistics, and even towards the bottom in others.The most glaring of these was the team’s 1.70 reception errors per set – second worst in the conference. This means they gave away nearly as many “free” points due to poor service reception as they had worked so hard to gain on their own serve.

This has a cascading effect which affects the rest of the game. Without a good pass, setters struggle to make good sets, and in turn, hitters have a harder time scoring. 

The offense production last year certainly suffered as a result, and the stats back this up. 

Hachokake and Lloyd, the team’s starting middles, combined for only 6.08 attempts per set and converted those into just 2.45 kills. 

For comparison, Odigie and Hildebrand – left sides who are usually the outlets to be set when the reception isn’t good enough to set the middles – swung on over 8.5 attempts per set each. While it’s common to set them more balls since they’re some of the best hitters on the team and in the conference, it’s clear that the offensive diversity was lacking due to subpar passing.

The excess of attempts they had often led to more blockers on them;  lower hitting efficiency; and them being more tired by the time a 5th set rolled around.

Odigie and Giddens – this year’s two left sides – plus a libero (Goodman or Lewis) will be the primary passers this year, and have a heavy weight on their shoulders: serve receive will be the most important factor in their ability to close out games and to make the playoffs.

Great Expectations

Despite the number of close games, the Gee-Gees were playing with house money last year.

Previous years of struggle meant less pressure to back up recent performances, and the benefit of the doubt was given to them as they adjusted to their new conference.

Giddens and Schaefer highlighted the differences between the RSEQ and OUA, agreeing that competitors in the OUA tend to be taller and hit harder, while their previous opponents in Quebec were often very high-IQ players due to the added experience they’d have due to Cégep.

Schaefer mentioned that they were able to dive into the details of the differences during the off-season. Without the advent of that foresight last season, the expectations were lower.

Even as a starter in her first year, Lloyd said she didn’t feel as much pressure as she’d thought she might. “To have that opportunity was more so exciting,” she said. 

That all might change this year, though.

Facing a schedule that includes six of last year’s eight playoff teams will be no easy feat, and a 7-13 record is sufficient to put opponents on notice, especially given the lengths to which they pushed so many of their matches. 

With Schaefer, Odigie and Hildebrand all set to graduate in the next year or two, the luxury of time is no longer afforded either. Now in a relatively easier conference, there’s an urgency to improve their record and compete before they’re gone.

The team seems to be handling it well, however, approaching the season with goals that seem to be less performance-based and more holistic. When asked about the team’s goals for the year, Schaefer didn’t mention playoffs, their overall standing or a specific record they wanted to achieve, focusing rather on a desire to play together, as a unit, and with intention. 

“Competing with my best friends is what I’m looking forward to the most,” she said.

That may prove to be a wise approach for reducing pressure on a team that has struggled to close out matches, but only time will tell if their work has paid off.

Schedule & Predictions

The Gee-Gees season begins at home on Oct. 24 & 25, with a pair of matchups at Montpetit Hall against the Toronto Varsity Blues. 

The teams split a pair of 5-set thrillers in January, and while the Varsity Blues’ leading scorer,Julia Murmann, and starting setter,former Gee-Gee Robin Melnick, have since graduated, Toronto will retain a strong core that includes former OUA All-Rookie Team members Olivia Zhu and Julia Liu. Prediction: Toronto struggles to adjust in their first match with a new setter, then bounce back on night two. Gee-Gees Projected Record: 1-1

The season-opening home stand will last into November, when the Gee-Gees host RMC on Nov. 7th & 8th. Perennial bottom-dwellers, the Paladins won just 2 games a season ago (both against an 0-20 Trent squad). Prediction: Ottawa dominates an outmatched opponent and sweeps both. Projected Record: 3-1.

The Gee-Gees then head on the road (or rather, in the air?) as they head to Thunder Bay to take on Lakehead on Nov. 14th & 15th. The Gee-Gees suffered a pair of disappointing losses to the hands of the Thunderwolves a year ago, handing them two of their only six wins. Prediction: Gee-Gees exact revenge, win both. Projected Record: 5-1.

The road trip will continue on Nov. 21 & 22, as the Gee-Gees will face the TMU Bold in downtown Toronto for the second consecutive year. Just like with U of T, the Gee-Gees played two five set matches against the Bold a season ago, winning one and losing the other. The Bold (4-16) will have to contend with the graduation of leading scorer Scarlett Gingera. Prediction: Ottawa comfortably win, 3-0 and 3-1. Projected Record: 7-1. 

The fall term will wrap up back at home, on Nov. 28th & 29th against Waterloo. The Warriors were 14-6 a year ago, securing the 5-seed but losing the OUA Quarterfinals in 5 sets to eventual champions McMaster. However, the graduations of Rachel Meilikhan (2nd in OUA in Kills and Kills/set) and Sydney DeGraauw (2nd in OUA in Blocks/set and Hitting %), among others, have decimated their starting lineup. Time will tell if the Warriors can maintain last years’ level. Prediction: The two teams split tightly contested matches. Projected Record: 8-2.

The Gee-Gees start the winter term on the road, with two games in London against the Western Mustangs. Ottawa didn’t face the 15-5 Mustangs last season, who were led by OUA Rookie of the Year Emma Buntic. Despite the graduation of starting right side Rachel Gray, Western will prove a very difficult opponent, especially on the road. Prediction: Gee-Gees fight hard, but drop a pair of 3-1 matches. Projected Record: 8-4.

Back on home turf, the Gee-Gees will take on Windsor (13-7) on Jan. 23rd & 24th. The two faced off at Montpetit last season, with the Lancers winning both, 3-2 and 3-1. Windsor – much like Ottawa – will keep all of their starting hitters, led by Aliah Admans who was 1st in the OUA in kills/set (4.17) and was the only player to reach 300 kills on the season. Prediction: Ottawa’s losing streak continues, Windsor squeaks out two wins. Projected Record: 8-6.

The following weekend, The Gee-Gees will travel to Peterborough for a clash with the Trent Excalibur. Winless a season ago, the 0-20 Excalibur have not shown any indications of significant improvement so far in the preseason, and will be hard-pressed to compete with Ottawa. Prediction: A pair of easy sweeps gets the Gee-Gees back on track. Projected Record: 10-6.

The last road weekend of the regular season will see the Gee-Gees taking on the Nipissing Lakers on February 6th & 7th. Nipissing finished 13-7, dropping their OUA Quarterfinal in 5 sets to Brock. Led by returning outside hitters Océane Raymond-Leduc (2nd Team All-Star, 3.66 kills/set) and Paige Owen (3rd Team All-Star, 3.17 kills/set), Nipissing’s dynamic offense will put the Gee-Gees blocking and defense to the test. Prediction: Nipissing’s tough early schedule puts them in must-win mode, Ottawa lose twice. Projected Record: 10-8.

Finally, the season wraps up on Valentine’s Day weekend the exact same way as last season – a pair of home dates against the Queen’s Gaels. Queen’s (17-3) have lost 4 of their 6 leading scorers from last season (including OUA Player of the Year Hannah Duchesneau), but the Gaels – one of the deepest teams in the league – will be well-adjusted by the time this matchup comes around. Prediction: Queen’s serving proves too much, Gaels win both. Projected Record: 10-10.

Last year, Toronto were the 8-seed at 12-8, while the 10-10 York Lions finished just outside the playoff bubble in 9th. However, on the Men’s side, the 10-10 Western Mustangs finished in 6th, while two 8-12 squads squeaked into the playoffs as well. 

Without a clear-cut favourite to win the Quigley Cup, we may see a number of teams finish with a record around .500 on the season, which could set the stage for a Gee-Gees return to the playoffs.

How to Watch

Don’t miss a minute! All Gee-Gees WVB games – home and away – will be streamed live for free on OUA.tv. For fans in Ottawa, you can catch the Gee-Gees playing their home games at Montpetit Hall.