When the Saskatchewan men’s volleyball team heads to the Canada Summer Games in St. John’s, N.L., there’s seemingly “no turning back” for those Prairie boys.
At least that’s one of the mental-performance approaches that most inspires one of Team Sask’s best players, Will Reiniger of Vermilion, Alta.
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During the team’s training sessions, he was intrigued with the wisdom from Mark Epp, a mental skills coach with the University of Saskatchewan’s varsity programs.
“He talks on the mental side of the game with most of the sports teams at the U of S, so we get to have team meetings with him,” Reiniger said of Epp. “He’s a really cool guy. We can kind of tell him whatever.
“But he also gives good examples. The one example that stuck out to me the most was when he said, ‘Back in the day, when countries were going to war, they’d take the sailboats and when they landed on the island, they’d burn the boat and basically say there’s no turning back.’
“So, when we go for a competition, we’re there for a reason and there’s no turning back. Leave it all on the court, kind of thing.”
As they anchor in the Rock — Newfoundland and Labrador — for volleyball action Aug. 19-24, the Team Sask players believe they’re ready to face national competition in an East Coast setting.
Reiniger was the team MVP just a few weeks ago at the Canada Cup in Niagara Falls, Ont., as the Saskatchewan boys lost a tough quarter-final to Manitoba, which went on to win the tournament.
“I think I bring a very high IQ when it comes to this game, not only in selecting shots and stuff, but also in knowing what to say to a guy when he’s in his head,” Reiniger said. “Some guys, they just want to be left alone. Where I kind of go, ‘Next one. You’ve got the next ball. Keep swinging.’ Bring ’em back.
“I’m also very aggressive when it comes to attacking. I don’t hit too often, so if there’s a time where we need a guy to score some points or put a ball to the floor, I’m that guy.”
ON A MISSION
Reiniger, 18, graduated from St. Jerome’s Catholic School in June. Before he begins his freshman season at Medicine Hat College, with twin brother Brett and older brother Landon, Will is on a mission with his volleyball buddies from across Saskatchewan.
“I played Team Sask with these guys the last couple of summers,” said Reiniger, six-foot-three and 180 pounds. “A lot of them are from Saskatoon, there’s a few from Prince Albert, and a couple from Regina.
“They’re all very, very talented athletes. They’ve definitely pushed me to want to work harder and become the best I can to earn that starting spot.”
Reiniger now is in the spotlight, especially back home in Vermilion and in nearby Lloydminster, where he has played club volleyball with the Rustlers for the past four years.
From the quiet countryside of his family’s acreage, he has emerged as the next rising star from Vermilion, which in contemporary times has produced the likes of Colton Waltz in hockey and Sam Ree in rowing and cross-country skiing.
“I’m hoping so that my name sticks around in Vermilion a little longer,” he said.
Make no mistake, Reiniger is as humble as they come. He told just a few buddies in June when he received an email confirming his selection to the 12-man Team Sask. Word eventually got around school and the community, perhaps even to the Co-op gas bar where he works part time, although not as much so this summer because he’s been on the road for volleyball practices and competition.
He’s been otherwise fuelling Team Sask, which has complemented training camps in Saskatoon and Regina with national events in Ontario and now Newfoundland and Labrador.
VOLLEYBALL FAMILY
Coming from a family of five boys, Reiniger’s progression to elite volleyball has happened in relatively short order.
“Growing up, I played soccer until about Grade 8, and then I kind of did all the school sports, like basketball, badminton, track, et cetera,” said Reiniger, who attended St. Jerome’s since kindergarten.
“Then, it wasn’t until Grade 9 when my parents let me and Brett both play club (volleyball). From there, I just fell in love with the game and continued to grow with it.”
His growth will continue at Medicine Hat College, where he’ll capitalize on a rare opportunity to play with two of his brothers in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC).
Submitted photo
The stars aligned for a Rattlers reunion when Landon, 21, decided to remain at Medicine Hat College for at least another season to further his studies in advanced accounting.
At about the same time, Brett nailed down his plans for the carpentry program.
Will had been considering other schools, but he settled on the Hat in large part because of the
family ties.
“It’ll be fun,” he said. “It’s a cool opportunity, having three of us on one team.”
Will is enrolled in kinesiology studies, with hopes of becoming a chiropractor down the road.
His plan to play alongside two of his brothers
goes back to when he and Brett were in Grade 10. This winter, however, Will was courted by the
College of Rockies, the same Cranbrook, B.C., school that has recruited his volleyball buddy Kolton Wildeman of Lloydminster. The former Rustlers club teammates had long mused about playing college volleyball together.
“Yeah, we talked about that in 15U, that
wherever he went, I went, and wherever I went, he went, kind of thing,” Reiniger said. “I went to (College of the Rockies) for a visit, I met the guys, toured the school and I really loved the town as well.
“It wasn’t until Brett decided to sign that I wanted to go to Medicine Hat College. I couldn’t really pass up on playing a season with both my brothers by my side.”
Reiniger would have had Wildeman by his side with the Canada Games team, but Wildeman
decided to opt out at the end of Team Sask’s tryout process. He knew it would mean a full summer commitment and a quick August turnaround, reporting to college almost immediately after the Games finished.
“Kolton had a talk with his parents and they listed the pros and cons for both,” Reiniger said. “But he turned it down, because the day that we would get back from the Summer Games, he would have to start travelling to B.C., so it’s a tight time crunch for him. I don’t blame him. That’s a stressful time, for sure.”
Reiniger can relate. The day after he returns home from St. John’s, he heads to Medicine Hat to report for Rattlers’ fitness testing the next day. His brothers Brett and Landon will already be in the Gas City. Their maternal grandparents live in nearby Redcliffe.
“My auntie and uncle and cousins are also in Redcliffe, so we have our cheer squad for the home games, for sure,” Will said.
Reiniger’s fan club at the Canada Games will include his parents Joey and Kristy, younger brother Ethan and paternal grandmother Rose Reiniger.
Ethan is going into Grade 10 at St. Jerome’s. He plays school volleyball, along with Rustlers club and beach volleyball.
The oldest Reiniger brother, 25-year-old Jesse, is in the workforce.
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