Rustlers Recap 2026: Men's Volleyball
Record:
Regular season: The Rustlers went 7-12, finishing 5th in the North Division.
Team Awards:
Top Defensive Player: Lukas Sarna
Most Improved: Josh Bell
Rustler Award: Elijah Rayner
MVP: Noah Pigott
Graduating Athletes:
One: Cam Craft leaves after three seasons. Liberos Lucas Sarna and Ty Obara are transferring, along with local athletes Lynden Bender and Kalan Billard.
Year in Review:
2026 was a transition season for a men's volleyball program that has shown steady improvement since 2018.
The Rustlers started the year in the loss column and had to work through a new starting lineup, taking several weeks of league play before they found some rhythm. Several athletes in their first or second seasons of eligibility played major roles, including setter Noah Piggot and middle Nathan Espetveidt.
At their peak, they pulled off three straight set victories in a row, including over the eventual bronze medalist NWP Wolves. Ultimately, close losses against playoff teams kept them one win out of the postseason, as they went 7-8 to finish the year, including a pair of losses to the CCAA 5th place finisher the NAIT Ooks.
Coach Taylor Dyer's main takeaway was how important the amount of learning for the younger core of players was, even if some don't start next season.
"The game experience that happened was earlier than anticipated," he said. "It will add to depth and caliber of training going into next year."
Veteran players Brock Tomyn, Gabe Bjorkas, Elijah Rayner, Aiden Maier, Kiefer Sinclair and more will return in 2026-2027, with Tomyn, Bjorkas, Maier and Rayner competing in their fifth and final season of eligibility. The Rustlers also have a few recruits coming in, including Lloydminster Comprehensive graduate Jory Wagner.
Dyer said expectations for their competitive ceiling and standards haven't changed.
"We try to be a team that works harder than anyone else and the guys will be doing a lot of work over the summer for when we start in the fall," he said. "We're challenging each other to be the best that we can, while supporting one another."
Several players will be in Lloydminster participating in local beach volleyball. The team will be back in late August as they finish coaching at Lakeland's summer volleyball camps.