EDMONTON – Opening their Canada West title quest at home, the U SPORTS No. 5 ranked Alberta Golden Bears opened their post-season with a 3-0 win (25-22, 25-13, 25-20) over the visiting Fraser Valley Cascades, Thursday night at Saville Community Sports Centre.
The heavy underdog Cascades gave Alberta a tougher fight that expected, with two of the three sets highly competitive.
Isaac Heslinga led Alberta with a game-high 10 kills, with Jordan Canham and Billy Johnstone adding nine and eight each, respectively.
Nimo Benne led UFV with 10 kills on 26 attempts, adding six digs and two aces.
The win for Alberta matches the win put up by the Saskatchewan Huskies in the men’s pool earlier in the day, while UFV falls to 0-1, along with the second-seeded UBC Thunderbirds.
Alberta paced the way on the attack in the first, with Canham’s four kills leading for the Bears. However, a poor serving set, one in which the Bears recorded eight errors, gave Fraser Valley life.
Heslinga’s third kill of the set sealed a 25-22 first set win.
Alberta dominated the second, needing just over 20 minutes to earn a 25-13 win.
The Cascades gave another push in the third, thanks to 11 kills and one ace.
Four blocks from the Bears, and four powerful kills from Johnstone, were the difference in a 25-20 third set, clinching the 3-0 match win.
The 1-0 Bears will take on the 1-0 Huskies tomorrow night at Saville, while the 0-1 Cascades take on the 0-1 Thunderbirds on Day 2 of their men’s playoff pool in Edmonton.