Brent Mutis
CapU Blues sports info

A tip here and dig there, and it may have been a different weekend.

After the longest road trip in the CCAA, the Capilano Blues took the nation’s No. 1-ranked team – the College of the Rockies (COTR) Avalanche – about as far as you can while coming up short in a 3-2 defeat (set scores: 26-24, 22-25, 28-26, 23-25, 15-9) Friday night in Cranbrook.

COTR needed extra points to get past the Blues in the first and third sets, while Capilano took sets two and four.

In fifth-set crunch time, the Rockies showed their class by making just one attacking error while three-time PACWEST all-star and CCAA All-Canadian Diego Policarpo put away six kills on eight attempts to help clinch the win.

Blues setter Kameo Wagner got three of his teammates into double-digit kills, led by Luke Tiegen who terminated on 22 swings while Shub Wander had 12 and Xavier Masztak 11.

Quentin Middleton posed problems for the Rockies from the service line as he chalked up five aces on the night.

Trying to bounce back Saturday proved difficult for Capilano after Friday’s draining setback, though the Blues hung tough in the first two sets, which each went to COTR by the same 25-22 score. The home side played a tidy third set, winning it 25-16 to put the finishing touch on their weekend.

Blues standouts Saturday included Wagner, who tallied 26 assists, while Wander notched three aces. Tiegen and Masztak had eight kills apiece while middle blockers Reese Nowotny and Dylan Buehler combined for five kills with no attacking errors.

Capilano enters the exam and holiday break with a record of 5-5, their best mark at the midway point in four years.

The Blues sit third in the PACWEST standings; the top-four teams will qualify for the postseason. Capilano returns to the court Jan. 9 and 10, 2026, with home games against Douglas College.