KAMLOOPS – In their first game back at the TCC in 56 days, the Thompson Rivers WolfPack men’s volleyball team earned their first win of 2023, in a five-set thriller (25-22,20-25,25-21,31-33, 15-10) over the University of Fraser Valley Cascades.
Sam Flowerday led the way with a game- high 25 kills to go along with two aces. Thundersky Walkingbear and Corbin Ockerman chipped in with 10 kills each with Ockerman also throwing in an ace. Second-year middle Riley Brinnen came up clutch in key moments for TRU, bringing energy off the bench.
“Pat (Hennelly, WolfPack head coach) always tells us to come in with energy when you get subbed in and I tried doing that as best I could and carry that into the game,” said Brinnen. “Communication with the guys was key. I’ve been working quite a bit with my timing and it was kind of nice to have a break-out game this season and hopefully I can carry it throughout the rest of the season.”
Caleb Kastelein was the driving force for the Cascades finishing the night with 17 kills. Nimo Benne had 14 kills to go along with an impressive five aces and two block assists. Jonas Van Huizen also showed his attacking prowess as the setter finished the night with 11 points, including two aces, to go along with 42 assists.
The first set saw both teams trading points back and forth. Two kills and an ace by Benne gave the Cascades their first lead of the match at 15-12. The WolfPack responded with a six-point scoring streak that was capped off by an ace from Michael Svab. After the teams found themselves knotted up at 21-21, a Flowerday ace and a huge kill sent the WolfPack three points clear of the Cascades as they took the first frame 25-22.
The second set started like the first, a tight affair, but the Cascades started to pull away thanks to a Van Huizen serving streak that got the visitors out to 17-11. The WolfPack tried to surge late but the Cascades managed to finish out the set led by Kastelein who had five kills in the set as the Cascades finished the set with a team attack per cent of 0.481.
Much like the first two sets, the third set saw both teams stay neck-and-neck. The score line was tied up at 17-17 but that’s when the ‘Pack pulled away. Flowerday led the charge for the WolfPack putting down seven kills in the set to go along with an ace as TRU took the set 25-21.
Both teams refused to quit in the fourth set. Trailing 24-22, Fraser Valley fought off three set points before tying the match at 25-25. The two squads then took turns earning set points only to see the other team fight back and the score jumped all the way to 31-31 before a Tyson Ardell kill and a Van Huizen ace allowed Fraser Valley to take the set 33-31 and force a fifth and final set.
The WolfPack were not about to let the game slip out of their hands, however. They got out to an early lead thanks to a serving streak from Matthew Hamilton, which included an ace. Despite some late push from the Cascades, the WolfPack took the final set 15-10 with Flowerday recording the final two kills of the match.
“Energy was a huge lift for us,” said Brinnen. “We struggled a little bit with our serve-and-pass at the start of the game but it was strong in the fifth.”
With the win TRU moves to 7-8 on the year and strengthen their hold on eighth place in the conference. The Cascades meanwhile, fall to 4-13 on the year. These two teams will be back in action tomorrow afternoon inside the TCC, with a scheduled start time of 3:00 p.m.
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