As UFV volleyball goes through its transition to the Canada West conference within U SPORTS, you may notice that many of its players are brand new to the program. That said, if you attended the Cascades games with Columbia Bible College (CBC) last season, there’s one you might recognize. Graham Walkey made the switch to the Cascades for the 2019-20 season, which is great for UFV volleyball and its supporters considering his experience. He joins Landon Uy as a team captain for the 2019-20 team.
Long before Walkey played in the PacWest conference or even at the club level, he knew that volleyball was something he wanted to be part of his journey.
“That’s actually throwing back to about grade five. So, 11 years old, just playing with family out at a summer camp. They’d always have tournaments there, so I kind of got involved as early as I could and that led into playing in elementary school, then [in] club up in Prince George,” Walkey said. That’s where it all began for Graham, who played his entire highschool and club career in Prince George.
The moment his game became recognizably transferable to higher levels came in his first year of club play, where Walkey would realize he was capable of taking his career to the university level.
“My first year playing club in grade eight I had a lot of support from coaches. With that, I had a really strong group of guys I was playing with. We all played on the same club team, went to the same highschool. We kind of collectively fell in love with the sport.”
For Walkey, it’s the parts of the game fans don’t always see that he enjoys the most.
“There’s a lot of behind-the-scenes work that goes into having a successful team.”
Having a successful team will be very crucial to UFV this season more than most, not only due to their move to the Canada West conference, but also due to their 2-22 record last season. It’s hard to imagine the Cascades playing any worse this year considering the roster moves they’ve made thus far. Walkey is certainly a part of that positive reinforcement the roster has seen this year. As a third-year setter, his veteran knowledge will help a lot.
Relationships with coaches ultimately led to Walkey taking his career to CBC, before his move to UFV. Helping out with youth programs in the summers alongside CBC coaches helped develop their relationship, which serves as further learning for Walkey as he continues to grow as a leader. He spent time this past summer working with the Cascades to build team chemistry. Now named a team captain in his first year with the Cascades, it only adds to the resume Walkey has built for himself as both an athlete and a person. There are challenges that come with that honour, but Walkey is up for the test.
“I think a challenge is that I’m still new to the program and new to how things run, but with that I see that as a fresh start — a way to start building a new culture at the school with the team, as well as with our new coach.”
There is no doubt that the program has changed and has been impacted by its latest additions, so Walkey hopes for the best.
“Hopefully I can make an impact on that. It’s been really great getting to know the guys. I think those of us that are halfway through our career are looking to stay here; I’m really excited to keep working with them.”
Walkey and the team will now hit the road, heading to Vancouver Island University this weekend before returning home to play the College of the Rockies here at UFV.
