RECRUIT ANNOUNCEMENT: Women’s volleyball adds Team Manitoba middle Nicole Hildebrand

The Gee-Gees women's volleyball program is pleased to announce the commitment of middle Nicole Hildebrand.

Hildebrand brings a plethora of provincial team experience to the Gee-Gees, and is slated to represent Team Manitoba at the upcoming 2022 Canada Summer Games.

"I hadn't really thought of Ottawa as a potential destination until I met Lionel [Woods] and Kaly [Soro] at our Nationals practice," said Hildebrand, who can also play wing. "I did some research and saw that the University of Ottawa has all the courses I'm looking for and is an amazing school.

"Both my parents are immigrants and neither had the opportunity to go to university, let alone participate in sport. I am very grateful to them for helping me through my volleyball career and being incredibly supportive."

"We have been aware of Nicole as a player for a number of years, and when we realized she was still looking at options for school and volleyball, we jumped at the chance to have her visit and consider uOttawa," said Gee-Gees head coach Lionel Woods. "We couldn't be more excited to add Nicole to our group of five young rookies this season."

In addition to her Canada Games experience, Hildebrand was named a Volleyball Manitoba Grad All-Star and to Team All-Manitoba. Competing for Cobras Volleyball Club based in Winnipeg, she appeared at the 2022 National Championship.

Playing for Steinbach Regional Secondary School, the future Human Kinetics or Health Sciences student racked up numerous academic and athletic accolades, and helped the Sabres to a SCAC Championship in 2021-22. Her success on the court and in the classroom merited the 2022 Dr. Dale Iwanoczko Memorial Scholarship from Volleyball Manitoba. 

"The great thing about Nicole is her potential to help us on the court at a variety of positions over her career," added Woods. "Her talent and physical presence are at an elite level, but even more impressive is her maturity, court leadership and work ethic, which we know will be contagious to those around her."

Despite hailing from Mitchell, Man., a town of roughly 3,000 in the south-east corner of the province, Hildebrand says she is looking forward to arriving in the nation's capital.

"Coming from a small country town, seeing a city like Ottawa for the first time was incredible," she said. "Everyone told me 'it's a big city with a small city feel' and they were absolutely right. The girls on the team were so welcoming. I admired how competitive they were in the gym and how close they were off the court."

With the addition of Hildebrand, the women's volleyball roster now boasts at least one player from each of the western provinces. Fellow incoming freshmen Brynn Lewis and Denae Bristow are from Saskatoon, Sask., Grace McKale is from Cold Lake, Alta., and Alana Leung calls Burnaby, B.C. home.

Hildebrand is the fifth member of the 2022-23 Gee-Gees recruiting class, joining Lewis, Bristow, Oseremhen Audrey Odigie and Meghan Kociancic.

Ottawa opens their RSEQ regular season on the road against the UQAM Citadins on Friday, Oct. 14 and play their home opener against the UQTR Patriotes on Sunday, Oct. 30. Tickets are on sale at tickets.geegees.ca.