This year’s Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) men’s volleyball championship is coming quickly. The March 5–8 event is being hosted by Providence University College at the CRRC in Niverville—a big opportunity for the town, the facility, and the school to show off everything they have to offer.
The tournament draws the best collegiate men’s volleyball teams from across the nation and invites them right into Niverville’s back yard.
This year’s host school, Providence University College, home of the Providence Pilots, is situated in Otterburne, seven miles straight south of Niverville.
“The opportunity to host nationals is special,” says Paul Armbruster, head coach for men’s volleyball at Providence. “We’re blessed to have so many amazing people contributing to the organization of this championship. My hope is that it will be an awesome, unifying experience, highlighting Prov and our fantastic athletics community.”
Volleyball teams will begin arriving in the province on March 4, with the action scheduled to get underway at the CRRC at 8:00 a.m. the following day. Matches will continue through March 8, with the gold medal match starting at 7:00 p.m. The closing ceremonies will shortly follow at 9:00 p.m.
“The Pilots have appeared on a national stage with the NCCAA in the United States many times,” says Joel Coursey, Providence’s director of athletics. “But it’s an incredible opportunity for us to have the men’s volleyball team qualify back-to-back and to host the Canadian nationals this year.”
The Pilots competed at the National Invitational Volleyball Championship (NIVC) many times in the late 1990s and secured multiple national titles. In that era, the school emerged as a volleyball powerhouse. They also claimed a significant national banner at the Division II level at the NIRSA men’s volleyball national championships.
Providence rejoined the Manitoba Colleges Athletic Conference (MCAC) in 2009, and they went on to represent the conference at the CCAA championships in Toronto, hosted by Humber College, in 2023. They qualified for the big show again the following year, this time in Victoria, B.C.
As the 2025 event’s host school, Providence was guaranteed a spot this year. Nonetheless, Coursey explains that the Pilots beat Canadian Mennonite University in the MCAC provincials so earn their placement legitimately for the third year in a row.
“There’ll be a lot of attention on us,” says Coursey. “This tournament is exactly the opportunity we’re looking for to showcase the quality of our athletics program.”
National Hub
Since it opened its doors for the first time in 2021, Niverville’s CRRC has become a hotspot for high-calibre sporting events. In addition to serving as home ice for the MJHL’s Niverville Nighthawks, Providence’s teams have been using the fieldhouse since day one.
Recently it was announced that Providence and the CRRC will also host the CCAA’s national women’s volleyball championships next year. That major event will take place from March 11–14, 2026.
It will be the first time one Manitoba school has hosted the men’s and women’s national volleyball championships in consecutive years.
“This is an incredible opportunity to host back-to-back national championships,” says Coursey. “It’s monumental for the MCAC and for Providence.”
“Last year, we said that our cutting-edge recreation facilities would put Niverville on the map as a go-to place for national championships and other large-scale events,” says Niverville mayor Myron Dyck. “That is showing itself to be true with the Niverville CRRC having been selected back-to-back as the host facility for national championships. I am excited to see how the CRRC and other investments made into our community will continue to benefit us in the future.”
Warren Britton, the town’s director of recreation and wellness, adds that interest in the facility has grown steadily since its inauguration.
“This year alone, we have held or are planning to hold five provincial championship events in our facilities, not including the CCAA men’s volleyball nationals,” says Britton. “I fully expect that number to continue to rise as more organizations hear about [us].”
