Trinity Western University Men’s Volleyball Coach Ben Josephson solidified his 2015 recruiting class as the Spartans bench boss announced the signing of middle Leigh Goossen (Kelowna, B.C.) and outside Jacob Kern (Edmonton) Friday.
Goossen (6’6″) transfers to TWU via Columbia Bible College and will join the Spartans for his final two years of CIS eligibility, while the 6-foot-6 Kern comes to Langley out of high school, having recently graduated from Edmonton’s Jasper Place High School.
Leigh Goossen
Goossen, who graduated from Kelowna Christian School in 2011, comes to the Spartans after playing with CBC for the past two years. Prior to his time with the Bearcats, he also spent one semester with the UBC Okanagan Heat.
Goossen is coming off a 2014-15 campaign in which he was named a CCAA (Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association) All-Canadian after averaging 0.77 blocks, 2.61 kills, 0.64 aces and 4.02 points per set.
While with the Bearcats, he was also a two-time PACWAST First Team All-Star.
Beyond his college exploits, Kern has also represented Team BC on three different occasions – in 2010, 2011 and 2013.Rec
“Leigh is an absolute freak of an athlete. He is extremely long and explosive and learns at an incredible speed. He is an absolute joy to coach, because, one, it’s really fun to coach an athlete who can almost do anything you need him to do physically, and, two, he is just a happy young man who has the joy of the Lord radiating from him.
“With the departure of both our senior middles (Danny Grant and Branden Schmidt), Leigh gives us a veteran presence in the middle to go along with our freaky young middles.”
Goossen arrives at TWU after graduating from CBC with a certificate in Biblical Studies.
Jacob Kern
Kern will join fellow Jasper Place teammate Nathan Hayashi (Edmonton) this fall at TWU, as the outside hitting Albertan will help complete a formidable recruiting class for the Spartans.
At the club level, Kern played with the Nooks Volleyball Club and most recently earned a silver medal at the 18U Canadian Championships and was named a tournament all-star.
Kern also helped his high school team to an Alberta provincial title this year, which capped an impressive three-year run that also saw Jasper Place capture three consecutive city championships.
At the provincial level, Kern also had two opportunities to play with Team Alberta, both at the U16 and U17 levels, and with the latter team captured a national gold medal.
He was bigger and higher and he hit harder and was becoming a great passer. After that tournament he was a ‘must-have’ recruit. Since then, he has only continued to improve.
“Beyond the obvious physical ability, when Jacob came on his campus visit, the team fell in love with his personality. He was charming, funny and smart and has an engaging nature. After Jacob left, the players were all very excited about the possibility of him joining us. I cannot wait to get to work with Jacob.
He has a great work ethic, tremendous physical skills and is one of those players who makes being in the gym very fun and enjoyable. He will be a great addition to our group and will fit right in.”
Kern, who plans to study human kinetics at TWU, said: “I went to an Athletes in Action camp when I was in Grade 9 and (former Spartans) Rudy Verhoeff and Brad Kufske were coaching.
That was my first introduction to TWU and I thought it would be awesome to play where they played, since they were such great role models. They talked so highly of the Spartans program and had won multiple national championships.
They definitely made a big impact on a 14 year old kid. I knew if I ever had the chance to go to TWU, I would take it. I’m really grateful for the opportunity to work hard to become a better player and to deepen my faith as I study and play in a Christian environment.
The weekend I spent with the team at TWU showed me what a unique culture the coaches have created and I’m excited to be a part of that and become a Spartan.”
Goossen and Kern round out Josephson’s 2015 class, which also includes middles Pearce Eshenko (Banff, Alta.) and Hayashi and setter Jordan Koslowsky (Abbotsford, B.C.).
Thanks to TWU for the press release.
