Abbotsford’s Brad Kufske helped Team Canada to an 11th-place finish at the World Junior Championships in Brazil.
The Canadian junior nats wrapped up the tournament with a three-set victory over Japan (25-23, 25-20, 25-19) in the 11th-12th placing game on Wednesday.
Kufske, a Yale Secondary grad who plays his university volleyball for the Trinity Western Spartans, was a key contributor for Canada throughout the tournament.
He racked up a team-high 22 points, including 19 kills, in a win over Egypt, and scored the final two points of the game. He also led Canada with 17 total points (16 kills, one block) in a four-set loss to Germany in Tuesday’s consolation semifinal.
Canada had gotten off to a rocky start at the World Juniors, dropping all three games in pool play to Iran, Belgium and Serbia. They rallied in the consolation round, winning three in a row over Japan, Egypt and Tunisia before falling in the consolation semis to Germany. The Canadians knocked off Japan for the second time in the tourney to seal the 11th-place finish.