Italian Cucine Lube Civitanova continues to rely on Canadian volleyball players. After the club extended the contract of outside hitter Eric Loeppky until the summer of 2028, the "red-and-whites" officially signed national middle blocker Jackson Howe.

The 27-year-old Howe (200 cm) arrives from German SVG Lüneburg, where last season he won the German Cup and played in the finals of the Bundesliga, the Supercup, and the CEV Cup.
The Canadian is in excellent form and impresses with his performances in the Volleyball Nations League. After the first two weeks of the tournament, he is #1 among blockers with 33 successful blocks, having a full 10 more than the second in the ranking – Turkish national team player Bedirhan Bülbül.
In Civitanova, Howe will reunite with his compatriot and close friend Eric Loeppky, with whom they were teammates since Trinity Western University. Just days ago, Lube also announced Loeppky's contract renewal until 2028, which guarantees that the two will be together on the team for at least the next two seasons.
Thus, the Canadian tandem becomes the second pair of national team players from the same country in Lube's squad that is not Italian. The other is the Bulgarian one – brothers Aleksandar Nikolov and Simeon Nikolov, who will also defend the colors of the Civitanova powerhouse in the new season.
Howe's career began precisely at Trinity Western University, where he won three titles in the Canada West Championship and one in the U Sports Championship. This was followed by three seasons with French Poitiers, and in 2025/26 he transferred to Lüneburg.
With the Canadian national team, the middle blocker is a two-time winner of the Pan American Cup (2023 and 2024), has silver medals from the Pan American Cup (2021) and the NORCECA Championship (2021), and among his individual accolades stand out the awards for Best Middle Blocker at the 2024 Pan American Cup and Best Blocker in the German Bundesliga in the 2025/26 season.
"I felt tremendous excitement when I learned about Lube's interest. This is one of the biggest clubs in the world with a rich history and incredible fans. I wanted to prove myself at the highest level and continue my development. The club's ambitions align with mine, and I can't wait to start this challenge," Jackson Howe stated after signing his contract.