As the Gaels gear up for their OUA playoff opener against the Guelph Gryphons on Saturday, we get ready for the CIS Men's Volleyball Championships which will be hosted at the ARC from March 2-4, 2012.
KINGSTON, Ont. (February 14, 2012) - This year's Gaels squad is filled with veteran talent that looks poised to make some noise as the hosts of the CIS Championships with eight graduating players on the roster. Let's take a look at the eight Gaels who will be graduating this season.
A fifth year Gender Studies major, Amoroso graduates from the Gaels men's volleyball program as a two-time OUA First Team All-Star and 2009-10 OUA Champion. He has developed into one of the OUA's top attackers and defenders from his middle position, ranking among the provincial leaders in both blocks and kills. He finished the 2011-12 season with 115 kills, and a kill efficiency of 41% as he continues to be the Gaels most efficient attacker, averaging upwards of 55% over the last four seasons. Amoroso has previously played with the Team Ontario Canada Games program and Canada's Junior National Team.
A fifth year honours student, Fautley will graduate from Queen's and the Gaels men's volleyball program with a degree in Physical and Health Education. During his time with the Gaels he has been named an Academic All-Canadian twice. On the court, Fautley broke out during the 2010 CIS Championships, as he was named a CIS Tournament All-Star for his efforts and subsequently became involved with the Canadian National Team. In 2011, Fautley was an OUA Second Team All-Star, contributing 193 kills and a 3.2 points per set average with an efficiency of 31.7%.
Oneid came to the Gaels as a left side hitter, before learning the libero position as a rookie. A fourth year History major, became one of the Gaels top defensive contributors and was the team's most productive digger during his third season on the squad, earning 120 digs in 62 sets. In 2011, Oneid switched back to his hitter position and averaged 1.5 points per set at a 21% efficiency. He has still upheld his defensive numbers despite the switch, as he is the team's second most productive defender with a total of 77 digs in 57 sets.
Pitfield, a fourth year mechanical engineer, has developed into one of the strongest middle players in the OUA and has been a mainstay in the Gaels starting lineup for the last two seasons. During those two seasons he has finished in the top 20 blockers in the OUA. The 2011-12 season was a career year for Pitfield as he finished the season with 69 kills and 38 blocks while boasting an attack efficiency of 41%. His 2.1 points per set average ranked among the top five on the team.
Despite injury problems which have sidelined him for much of the past two seasons, Rosenbaum has made an immense contribution to the Gaels volleyball program over his five years. Rosenbaum was the Gaels setter during their 2009-10 championship season and has served as the team's captain and student representative in many capacities at Queen's. As a Biology major, Rosenbaum has been a four time Academic All-Canadian, and has been nominated by Queen's for a Rhodes Scholarship. Rosenbaum finished among the CIS top ten in assists during his second and third seasons and is a former member of Team Ontario.
Rukavina will graduate from the Gaels volleyball program with an honours degree in Health Studies and has been a key member of the lineup since his rookie season. In 2011-12 while recovering from ankle surgery, Rukavina made his mark as one of the top liberos in Canada, leading the OUA in digs and digs per set with 161 - which was 30 more than the next closest libero - and 3.58 respectively. During his career best season as a left side attacker, Rukavina earned 176 kills while maintaining an efficiency of 34%. He will join the National Team upon graduation.
Taylor has been one of the Gaels most versatile players in his four years and has been the ultimate team player in his time on the team. His attacking ability on both sides of the court has been a top player when called upon. He has been named player of the match twice in his career and had a career high 17 kills in a single game during the 2011 season. Taylor, an Academic All-Canadian, is a former member of Team Ontario and will graduate Queen's with a Commerce degree.
Zeeman is one of the top athletes to ever come through the Gaels volleyball program. He made an impact immediately as a rookie and earned a CIS All-Rookie Team nod and was named OUA Rookie of the Year. Since then, he has been named a CIS All-Canadian three straight times. In his career, Zeeman has earned 1107 kills, surpassing Queen's previous all-time top scorer by over 200 points. He has represented Canada multiple times on the world stage, including at the World Junior Championships and at the FISU games in China this past summer.
