Season Preview: Women’s Volleyball Team bringing a young team to the court, relying on veteran leadership
The St. Thomas University (STU) Women’s Volleyball Tommies experienced a tale of halves last season. The squad found themselves at the bottom of the standings during the first part of the season.
However, the second half of the season was a different story.
STU finished the season with a 12-8 record. The squad was eliminated in the second round
of the playoffs by the UNB Saint John Seawolves.
Fast forward to the 2025-26 ACAA season. The Women’s Tommies are looking to replicate their success of last season, albeit with a much younger roster.
This year’s ACAA playoffs will take place on home soil. STU will have some extra
momentum and confidence to play well this season. Six of the top teams in the
league will travel to Fredericton to stake their claim as the best team in the conference.
Kim Colpitts is the head coach of the STU Women’s Volleyball team. She is entering her second year in the position, following a year where she was named the ACAA Coach of the Year.
Last year was an up and down season for the Tommies. They started the season toward the bottom of the league. However, their slow start was met with some stellar volleyball in the back half of the year.
Colpitts believed dealing with those rough patches helped emphasize the value of patience, hard work and perseverance.
“The athletes came into the season ready to train and compete. We have been working hard in practices and have had numerous competition opportunities for athletes to get match experience. We’ve had a busy preseason, starting off with the UNB Preseason Tournament, we travelled to Fort Kent, Maine and Quebec City for exhibition matches and competed at the ACAA Tip Off tournament,” she said.
“We were very pleased with last season overall and proud of the hard work and commitment of the athletes.”
The Tommies will look to lean on their veterans for leadership this season.
STU brought eight returnees back from last year’s roster. The team is also welcoming a large number of rookies. Ten players will wear the green and gold for the first time this season.
Having a large group of newcomers means Colpitts will rely on the veteran players for leadership and guidance.
The team is also putting an emphasis on athletes and team development as the season progresses, hoping their hard work gives them results.
Colpitts is excited to see the continued development of the new players. She thinks they will bring a lot of “excitement and talent” to the gym this season.
“Our new recruits bring diversity and new perspectives coming from various clubs, teams and provinces,” said Colpitts. “They are helping us build our culture, despite being first year. They are stepping up along with returning players to build and create a great team dynamic.”
Emma Harris and Kathleen Boyle are fourth year players for the Tommies. They are players who Colpitts will depend on to provide support and leadership on and off the court.
Last season, according to Harris, was a big step forward for the team. Going from eighth place in the standings at Christmas to third place at season’s end was a huge accomplishment.
It also showed her how much work the team had put in during the season.
“This year’s team has a lot of potential and can really do something special. Having this many athletes working toward the same end goal makes a huge difference,” said Harris. “The commitment, energy, and chemistry we’ve built so far have been great, and I think that’s going to show in our performances as the season goes on.”
Boyle believes the lack of experience and cohesiveness will be one of the team’s biggest challenges this season. However, these challenges will hopefully not persist if the team is “determined to play” together at the start of the season.
She is the reigning ACAA Player of the Year.
“The new rookies will continue to fit into the dynamic of our team, as we are pretty straight forward about what to expect when playing for this team,” said Boyle. “And everyone is quite optimistic and knows that whatever we do, is what we need to do to win.”
Ella Estey is a rookie setter. She is in her first season with the Tommies, and couldn’t be more excited for the year to get underway. She feels she has a great group around her for support during her first year.
“This year we have a great group of athletes, a good mix of young talent and experience, that all seem to be eager to succeed,” she said. With the hard work we’ve been putting into our preseason and practice, I am excited to see what we can accomplish this year.”
Estey thanked the fans for their support. She has only been with STU for a short period of time. However, she is appreciative of the fans, saying how they create an environment where her team feels “loved.”
“I hope our team can continue to develop our skills, work ethic and mental strength to perform well and hopefully have a standout performance at the ACAA championships, as we are hosting this year,” said Estey on what her thoughts are for the rest of the season. “With the hard work we’ve been putting into our preseason and practice, I am excited to see what we can accomplish.”
STU opens their season this weekend at home against the Universitie Ste-Anne Dragons and the MSVU Mystics. Game time on Saturday is six o'clock, while Sunday’s action begins at one.
The rest of the team’s schedule can be found gotommies.ca/composite.
“We really feed off your energy, and we can’t wait to keep making you proud this season,” said Harris.
Story written by Leo Czank