Wesmen land left side from Volleyball Canada camp

After a stint playing against the best players his age this country has to offer, Cole Schroeder feels ready to make his mark with the Winnipeg Wesmen.
 
Schroeder, a 6-foot-6 left side from Mennonite Brethren and Volleyball Canada's National Excellence Program, has committed to Chris Voth and the Wesmen men's volleyball program as the first recruit in the Class of 2026. 
 
After a winter ID camp, Schroeder was tabbed for the Volleyball Canada NEP last spring and his time in Gatineau, Que. — which overlapped his senior high school season — gave him a glimpse at elite-level volleyball in Canada, something he says will prepare him well for when he steps on campus at UWinnipeg. 
 
"I looked around at other schools for visits and everything, but I just thought University of Winnipeg has a great coach, it's been a great program and I just thought there's a good opportunity to play right away here," Schroeder said. 
 
All in all, it's been a pretty good stretch for a guy who "didn't really want to play" volleyball when he first tried it out when he hit his Grade 8 year. 
 
"I played because my parents wanted me to," he admitted. "So, I went and then I decided I liked it and then focused more on it through the summer into Grade 9, and then it became my main sport after that." 
 
Schroeder was playing basketball and hockey in the lead up to finding his love for volleyball.
 
"Grade 10 is when I got a lot better at it, focused a lot of my time into it and I decided it was what I wanted to play. Yeah, it was what I was having the most fun doing."
 
Schroeder has played a mix of middle and left side between high school and club, a back-and-forth versatility he feels has given him an enhanced perspective on the floor. 
 
While Schroeder is ready to make an impact early, Voth sees a player who has the skill-set to do so. 
 
"We are thrilled to welcome Cole to the Wesmen family. Over the past few years, he has demonstrated consistent success at the provincial, national, and international levels, showing both competitiveness and maturity beyond his years," Voth said. "His recent experience with the National Excellence Program has prepared him to contribute immediately, and we believe his skill, work ethic, and versatility will make an impact across all facets of the game. We are excited to see Cole in red and look forward to what we can build together in the years ahead."
 
The recruiting process for Schroeder boiled down to putting his resume on the court and watching as coaches came calling. 
 
"I really didn't do much. I got first looked at in grade 10 at (Volleyball Canada) Nationals. That's when coaches started reaching out to me. I got reached out to by coaches from just playing well, and then that just went from there. I found good coaches I started talking to right away and those were just the ones I stayed with."
 
And shortly after all of that, Schroeder was in video calls with Voth, a player-turned-coach from whom he felt he could learn a lot.
 
"He just talked a lot about the game and everything he knew and all he thinks he could offer for me," Schroeder said. "I connected well with that and I thought it would just be a great fit to come here and learn under a great left side.
 
"He knows a lot, knows the game well, and I think I can learn a lot from him."
 
Schroeder, who will enroll in the Faculty of Kinesiology and Applied Health, said he felt UWinnipeg was his destination from early on. 
 
"It was a lot of coaches I talked to, but I think I knew — I knew for a little while, but I still had some visits and stuff to go into — it was UVW for a little while now."