Kodiaks women’s volleyball adds local libero to roster

The Kodiaks women's volleyball team is adding libero and local talent Sydney Speelman to the roster for the 2026-27 season. 

Speelman currently plays for the Panther Volleyball Club's U18 team and has also played senior varsity volleyball for Catholic Central High School, where she received the Defensive Player of the Year Award the past two seasons and was recently named Second Team All-Star for the Prairie Sky Conference.  

Being a lifelong Kodiaks fan, Speelman says it's a dream come true to be part of the program.  

"When I was younger, I would always come to watch, so just always watching them here was kind of my favourite thing," she says.

Anna Schwark, head coach of the women's volleyball team, says Speelman has shown her tenacity both on and off the court. She recalls one instance a few years ago, when Speelman stayed after a Kodiaks camp to help some of the post-secondary players who were looking to get some extra reps in. 

"She was reading third-year outsides swinging with no block and I was pretty impressed," says Schwark.  

While she may have already been on Schwark's radar, Speelman says she reached out to the program via email, which really kick-started the recruitment process. 

Schwark says Speelman may be quiet, but she shows strong leadership through her communication and body language. Current Kodiak players were quick to comment on how comfortable and trusting they felt playing with Speelman.

The coaching staff believes that as she gains more experience at this level, she will begin to use those qualities to take charge in the back row.

"She will be one of two liberos, so our goal is to get her a lot of contacts in training. Hopefully, we can reward that with some court time in her first year," says Schwark I would like to see her stick with the program for a while," said Schwark.

She will be entering the General Arts and Science – Kinesiology Pathway program in September. 

Speelman says she credits her success in her sport to her parents who always supported and pushed her to be the best she can.