There is no getting away from the fact that the Collège Boréal Vipères men's volleyball team have not yet won their first set of the year.

That said, in closing out the first half of the 2025-2026 schedule with a 15-25, 23-25, 23-25 home court loss to the Redeemer Royals, the Vipères not only came as close to snatching victory as they have to date, with 23 points, but they did it as often as they had in their first eight matches combined.

Led by the likes of Hamed Sana (14 kills) and Kalan Payzant (6), the Boréal lads are trending in the right direction as they welcome a solid handful of newcomers to the team, including starting setter André Blais.

"Everything here is a lot faster," said Blais, who developed his skill-set with the Horizon Aigles and is now adjusting to the fast life of the OCAA (Ontario Colleges Athletic Association).

"Running middles faster means that they are going up with me instead of me setting a little arch. It's just lots of setting and getting to know my players that is needed."

On eleven different occasions to date, the Vipères have scored 20 or more points in a set - all while boasting a roster that includes three freshmen in their starting lineup.

"We've been working on blocking a lot, so that's getting better - and our defensive systems are getting there too," said Blais. "The team, the practices, all of the emotions are positive."

With just a point or two needing to be slipped to turn defeat to victory, Blais suggested that it's those critical end of game rallies that so often make or break these games.

"It's a matter of keeping our momentum through when we get to twenty and up," he said. "We have to stay out of our heads, know that we can win and keep pushing until the end of the game."

The Boréal team, which next sees action on the weekend of January 17th/18th, travelling to face the St Clair Saints and Niagara Knights, also includes Ashton Giroux, Madrix Bouchard, Michel N'Goyet, D'Mitri Mantha, Dax Winch, Cameron Dupuis, Nicolas Dalcourt, Tyler Young, Jacob Doucette and Brayden Bertrand.

Still battling the injury bug, the Boréal women's team also dropped three straight to Redeemer (14-25, 16-25, 14-25), though the squad have taken sets this year from both Niagara and Sheridan.

Struggling to convert consistently at the net, the locals would receive four kills apiece from veteran Angelica Lapensée and rookie Michelle Scratch, with libero Jayme Landry showing the way defensively with eight digs.