Lancer men's volleyball graduating senior
John Moate signed his first professional contract Monday, agreeing to join the Giesen Grizzlys of the German Bundesliga for the 2019-20 season.
The Human Kinetics major from Oakville had fielded offers from several clubs throughout Europe but Giesen felt like the best fit for his first professional season. "The top German division is a very strong league that will offer tough competition and a great learning environment to better my skills," said Moate. "Speaking with Giesen's coach Itamar Stein set my mind at ease that I'll be with a club that will give me the best chance to continue to grow. They are also a club with a great team culture and excellent fan support."
The signing caps an amazing five year journey for Moate at the University of Windsor. Arriving on campus in September 2014 as a walk-on who hadn't played competitive volleyball, Moate was declared a redshirt and began a slow transformation into a dominating presence for the Blue & Gold.
His first season on the court in 2015-16 saw Moate named to the OUA all-rookie team. He was then selected as a first team OUA all-star following the 2016-17 season and named to the 2017 Team Canada FISU team that competed at the 2017 Universiade in Taipei, Taiwan.
The 2017-18 season saw Moate establish himself as one of the premier volleyball players in Canada. He once again received first team OUA honours and was also named a U SPORTS all-Canadian, becoming only the second Lancer in program history to receive that honour. Moate also won the Olympic Shield that season as the University of Windsor's male athlete of the year.
The fourth year middle capped his tremendous career this past season by once again being named an OUA first team all-star for the third time in his career.
"John is a great success story," said Lancer head coach
James Gravelle. "His hard work and drive to be the best have allowed him to continue to grow every day. I am so fortunate to have had the chance to work with John the last five seasons and owe so much to him for all he has done for our program."
Most importantly was the transformation of his team's performance during Moate's time in Windsor. The Lancers went 7-13 during his rookie season in 2015-16 and missed the OUA playoffs. The past two seasons, with Moate as team captain, have been two of the best in program history with the team winning OUA Bronze medals each season, qualifying for the U SPORTS Championship tournament for the first time in program history in 2018 and being consistently ranked within the national Top 10.
We wish John all the best in his professional career!
