Estevan Extreme Volleyball Club (EEVC) coach Bryton Such has been honored with the Sask Volleyball Don Laing Male Development Coach of the Year award for his outstanding contributions and success in guiding young athletes to provincial competitions.

Such has led the EEVC 14U and 15U teams to provincials three years in a row. 

“I’d be lying if I said that I wasn’t super excited to be recognized for their success and my success as their coach.”

He began his coaching career at 15 as an assistant for a Dome Club team in Calgary.

“I grew under one of my mentors and he ran the program. Kind of got younger athletes to start a sort of club-type system before club was offered for their age group, so it was kids that were 10-11 years old.”

Coaching has been a long journey for Such, who has been coaching as long as he has been playing volleyball.

“I had some amazing role models for me as coaches throughout my playing career and so it kind of made it an easy decision that once I was done playing volleyball, I wanted to do that same sort of thing for other athletes.”

A highlight for Such was taking his U15 teams to nationals. Even though they didn’t win, he valued the experience.

“It was awesome to see the growth that comes from losing, being able to be a good teammate in a tough situation like losing, being able to use losing to make yourself into a better player. Because sports aren’t just about winning. It’s about creating good human beings that can deal with success graciously, and also individuals that can deal with losing and struggle and being persistent. Those are all the attributes that come out of sports.”

“Coaching is an awesome way to give back, and it’s also an awesome way to impact kids' lives positively. Lots of times sports are an escape for kids. Whether you had a bad day or you’re just not dealt the best deck of cards life-wise. Sport is always the great equalizer that everyone can play it, and everyone can work hard and succeed at sports.”

In addition to coaching, Such is a teacher at Hillcrest School. With a mother who was a kindergarten teacher and a father heavily involved in coaching, the roles were a natural fit for him. 

“Whether it was a part of sports or whether it was a part of tutoring or being part of a club, that was kind of a family motto that the Such family had—that you just gave back to the community in whatever way you could.”

Although the EEVC season has ended, Such will now head to Saskatoon to work with the future selects program, which brings together the best 13U and 14U players and coaches for a summer clinic. 

He expressed gratitude for the support he’s received.

“I’m extremely grateful that I have a good group of people that I can rely on, that I get to work with, and hopefully we as a team can get some more accolades to our resumes as we keep moving forward.”