‘Birds complete weekend sweep of Cascades

ABBOTSFORD, B.C. – The UBC Thunderbirds completed the weekend sweep with a second consecutive straight sets win Saturday afternoon over the host Fraser Valley Cascades.

A strong start for UFV (0-12) was quickly snuffed out by the T-Birds (7-5) who found their footing and rallied to win the first set 25-19, and continued to carry the momentum from there, taking the next two 25-13 and 25-18.

“We went into the weekend understanding it was going to take a gritty effort to get a result on either night,” said UBC Head Coach Michael Hawkins whose team started the weekend with a short bench and finished with an even shorter one with some added injuries. “We knew the guys that we had on the floor needed to get the job done and I was really proud of the way the guys were able to be resilient.”

Cascades outside hitter Comrie Engbers had a pair of early kills as the Cascades led 8-5 in the first set, but the T-Birds rallied to take seven of the next eight points, headlined by four Michael Dowhaniuk kills, and they pulled away from there.

In the second, a Zarley Zalusky service run allowed UBC to open a 7-2 lead, and a Mason Greves run at the line midway through the set – highlighted by a pair of aces – paved the way for the visitors to take it in decisive fashion, 25-13.

In the third, back-to-back kills from Duncan Clark helped the T-Birds gain some separation at 10-7, and they kept the Cascades at bay the rest of the way, with Dowhaniuk going to work from the service line late in the set to help UBC close it out.

Engbers set the tone for the Cascades, posting seven kills to go with four digs. Libero Reece Wilson had six digs while Ryan Adams and Bailey Burdick contributed four kills apiece.

Dowhaniuk had a huge game for the T-Birds, racking up 17 kills and hitting .636, while adding four service aces. Setter Greves had four aces of his own to go with 30 assists, Jonathan Lee had nine digs, and Clark chipped in with five kills.

“I’m really, really happy for Mikey that he was able to have this weekend,” added Hawkins. “He really is our team’s rock in all senses of the word. He’s our emotional leader and tonight he really just proved that he can take on the burden of being our statistical leader as well. He’s a guy that plays with a lot of fire and I think our team needed every ounce of that and I think for him to put in that type of performance it just shows the incredible skill level he has.”

With four matches left in the regular season, the ‘Birds return to War Memorial Gym for their final home series next Friday and Saturday, February 18 and 19, as they host the UBC Okanagan Heat. Tickets are available for free but must be reserved online in advance.