A pair of southwestern Saskatchewan products have been inducted into the Sask Volleyball Hall of Fame.

Swift Current's Marlin Olfert and Richmound's Jerome Hepfner made up one-sixth of the 1985 Men's Team Sask that dominated the Canada Summer Games capturing gold.

Saskatchewan went 4-0 in pool play brushing aside Newfoundland, New Brunswick, Alberta, and British Columbia. They followed up their exceptional play by downing Nova Scotia in the semi-finals and beating Manitoba in the finals to finish the tournament without dropping a set.

"It's amazing to be a part of a team that can accomplish that," Olfert said. "Looking back or at the time, we were just doing our job."

The team of 12 was announced as inductees in 2020 but the COVID-19 pandemic spoiled the 35-year reunion of champions until this past Saturday in Saskatoon.

sask_1985_vballFront row third from the right is Jerome Hepfner and to his right is Marlin Olfert (both holding the ball)

"One thing that shows the dedication and commitment of all those players, all the players were there but one who resides in Australia now and one of the assistant coaches," he said. "That's how important it was to all of us."

Olfert's process to make the team began in the spring of 1983 at an identification camp in Moose Jaw.

"At that time we had no club volleyball system in the city," the power hitter recalled.

Once he graduated from the Swift Current Comprehensive High School in 1984, he then took his talents to the University of Saskatchewan joining the junior Huskies squad that was under the tutelage of Team Saskatchewan's Head Coach Frank Enns.

"That coach always was keeping an eye on who was available in the province, I found my way onto that [1985 Men's Sask] team," he said.

The former O.M. Irwin School student believes Enns guidance was critical in helping them win at the 1985 Canada Summer Games.

"He had just come into the province in 1983 and he was an amazing coach that assembled the team," he said. "Frank was ahead of his time, we were so prepared for everything."

canada_1985_summer_games_medalOlfert's gold medal from the 1985 Canada Summer Games