The remarkable success of Brandon University (BU) students has been front-and-centre in The Brandon Sun sports section in the past week with the announcement of the newspaper's year-end award winners.
The Bobcats men's volleyball team celebrates their U SPORTS championship title in March 2025 at BU's Healthy Living Centre.
The 2025 U SPORTS national champion Bobcats men's volleyball team was lauded by the Sun as the Mike Jones Team of the Year in western Manitoba. Meanwhile, Brandonite Evan Nachtigall, who recently completed his bachelor degree studies at BU, was honoured by the Sun with the H.L. (Krug) Crawford Award was Westman's sportsperson of the year.
The Bobcat men's volleyball team claimed the program's first national title and the fifth overall U SPORTS title for a BU team on home court this past March. The Bobcats entered the event as the bottom seed before thrilling sellout crowds at BU's Healthy Living Centre with a series of upset victories, culminating with a four-set victory over the defending champion University of Alberta Golden Bears in the final.
"I look back and think how much we became a family, that group," Bobcats setter J.J. Love told Sun sports reporter Thomas Friesen. "We were just so close-knit, and it was awesome to see."
While this was BU's first Canadian title in volleyball, it was not the first time the program has been named The Brandon Sun team of the year. The Bobcats also earned that acclamation in 2019 after earning silver at nationals. More recently, the Bobcats men's futsal and soccer squad was named Mike Jones Team of the Year in 2023.
Read more about the Bobcats' accomplishments in 2025 in The Brandon Sun.
Nachtigall received plaudits for his efforts away from BU. He was recognized for his accomplishments on the golf course, which included first place in the provincial men's amateur golf championship. He also teamed with partner Drew Jones to win the Golf Manitoba men's four-ball championship and competed in the Canadian men's amateur championship as well as playing as an amateur in the Manitoba Open, a professional golf tournament. Nachtigall's stellar season also recently earned him Golf Manitoba's Male Amateur Golfer of the Year award.
"The more mature I get, the smarter I get, I'm able to think my way around the golf course better," Nachtigall told Friesen for the Sun. "The past three years has probably been the hardest I've worked at any sport I've ever played.
"And I did some pretty cool stuff."
More about Nachtigall's golf 2025 success can be found in The Brandon Sun.
