YOUNG SPARTANS RALLY FOR BIG ROAD WIN

KELOWNA, British Columbia – The No. 1 Trinity Western Spartans rallied to avenge Friday night’s loss with a back-and-forth five set match Saturday night against the UBC Okanagan Heat. The Spartans finish the season with a 23-25, 25-19, 17-25, 25-19, 16-14 win and finish the Canada West season at 15-1. While the loss drops the Heat to an even .500 on the season at 8-8.

Henry Rempel with 17 kills, five aces and six blocks and 25 points, was a dynamic offensive force for the Spartans tonight, particularly in the fourth and fifth sets. Isaiah Olfert also had a solid night for TWU finishing with 15 kills, six digs, and three blocks for 17.5 points. Maxwell Heppell was the standout for the Heat finishing with 16 kills, three digs, two aces and 18 points. TWU setter Mathias Elser finished the night with 47 set assists for the Spartans, while Zach van Geel finished with 29 set assists for the Heat.

AS IT HAPPENED
The Spartans and Heat were even in the early part of the opening set, with UBC-O holding a slight lead 9-8 early. The Heat were able to get some distance from the Spartans and took a fourt points, 16-12, lead into the technical timeout. UBC-O expanded their lead to 20-15, but TWU responded with a 7-2 run to tie the set at 22-22. After siding out the Heat were able to put together two straight points to take the opening set 25-23. Both teams struggled with their attack in the opening set. TWU hit just .074 (11-9-27), while the Heat where at .000 (7-7-28).

Trinity Western jumped out to an early five point, 10-5, lead in the second set, but UBC Okanagan quickly tied the set up at 11-11. The two teams matched each other to the technical timeout with TWU holding a two point lead, 16-14. With the Spartans leading 17-16, TWU was able to get on a 5-1 run and lead 22-17. The Spartans finished off the set winning 25-19 and evening the match up at 1-1. TWU had a much improved offence in the second set hitting .389 (9-2-18), while UBC-O hit at .286 (7-3-14).

The third set was even early with the teams tied at 9-9. Then the Heat broke the set open with a 7-2 run to lead 16-11 at the technical timeout. UBC-O expanded their lead to 21-12, before taking the third set 25-17 and a 2-1 lead in total sets. TWU hit at .174 (10-6-23), while UBC-O finished the set hitting at .250 (8-4-16).

In the early part of the fourth set the young Spartans seemed to find themselves. With TWU leading 7-6, the Spartans were able to go on a run and take a 16-13 lead into the technical timeout. From there the Spartans were able to outscore the Heat 9-6 to force a fifth set with a 25-19 win. TWU hit at .160 (12-8-25), while UBC-O hit at .095 (7-5-21).

The fifth set was one of momentum shifts. TWU had it early as they jumped out to a 6-2 lead. But UBC-O would rally and take an 8-7 lead into the switchover. Then with the two teams tied at 10-10 the Spartans would get back-to-back aces from Rempel to take a 12-10 lead. But momentum went back to the Heat as they tied the set at 13-13. The teams exchanged points and UBC-O held off one Spartan match points, but they could not stop Rempel as second time as the Spartans took the final set 16-14 and the match 3-2. TWU’s offence found its grove in the fifth set hitting .400 (8-2-15), while holding UBC-O to .118 (6-4-17).

NOTABLE

• The Spartans have never been undefeated in Canada West conference play. Their best season to date was in 2011-2012 when they finished 19-1.
• Finishing the season with a .938 winning percentage, second only to the 2011-12 season when they finished at .950.
• Last night first time UBC Okanagan has beaten Trinity Western in Canada West conference play. The Spartans are now 21-1 lifetime against the Heat.
• TWU finished the night hitting .213 (50-27-108), while UBC-O finished at .103 (38-27-107).
• The Spartans had eight aces and 25 serving errors, while the Heat had seven aces and 18 serving errors.
• Having sewed up top spot in the Canada West Conference West Division the Spartans only took one starter to Kelowna for this weekend’s series against the Heat.

QUOTABLE
TWU Assistant Coach Adam Schriemer
“It was a super up and down game. Lots of runs for both teams. The serving battle was very intense, with lots of heavy serves going back and forth with high errors so it made for a weird flow of the game.”

“Impressed with the way our guys competed with toughness and togetherness through the whole game.It was pretty unique for that group to play in a game together with the intensity and togetherness that they had.”

“Really happy with the way Henry, Mathias and Isaiah played. We always talk about how our best players have to be our best players especially when the game is on the line and that is exactly what they did. Super proud of the guys and really happy with how they competed.”

UP NEXT
The Spartans will host the opening round of the Canada West playoffs March 4-6. TWU will host Brandon (E2), Mount Royal (C3) and Thompson Rivers (W4). With the top two teams advancing to the next round. The match can be seen live on Canadawest.tv.

About Spartan Athletics
As official members of U SPORTS, the Spartans currently compete in 13 sports in the Canada West conference, including women’s and men’s soccer, volleyball, basketball, hockey, cross country and track & field, as well as women’s rugby sevens. TWU also competes as an independent team in men’s rugby. Since TWU entered U SPORTS in 1999, the Spartans have won 12 U SPORTS team championships and 29 Canada West team championships.

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