KAMLOOPS – The playoff hopes of the Thompson Rivers WolfPack men’s volleyball team took a hit Friday night inside the TCC, as they were defeated by the UBC Thunderbirds in three sets (25-16, 28-26, 25-22).
A game behind the eighth-place Manitoba Bisons with just one left to play, even a win tomorrow against the T-Birds combined with a Bisons loss would see the WolfPack even in the standings but still significantly behind Manitoba in the sets won / sets lost tie-breaker.
For the Thunderbirds, the win was crucial as it saw them clinch at least fifth-place in the Canada West standings with a shot to move up to fourth tomorrow.
On his senior night Michael Svab was the picture of efficiency for the WolfPack, finishing the game with four kills on seven attempts to go along with four blocks. Sam Flowerday had a team-high 10 kills to go along with one ace, while Rylan Ibbetson pitched in with five kills and three block assists. Rookie Gavin Margerison continued his fine form from last weekend, hitting over .444 per cent and racking up two huge solo blocks along with a block assist.
“It’s a lot of reminiscing, I’ve been doing this for a long time and it’s kind of hard to see it come to an end,” said Svab after a postgame ceremony. “It’s been a really sweet career and I’ve had a really good opportunity with a great group of guys, so I can’t say enough good things about the team and about everything I’ve had here.”
Matt Neaves led the way for the Thunderbirds, finishing the night with a game high 14.5 points including 11 kills, three aces and one block assist. Michael Dowhaniuk also finished with 11 kills, hitting .409 per cent on the night. Coltyn Liu rounded out the Thunderbirds attack with 10 kills, while Gerard Murray made his presence at the net known with five blocks to go along with five kills.
A back and forth first set saw the two teams trading points early on, with the Thunderbirds taking a slight advantage. The ‘Pack hung around in the set through the offence of Flowerday and Margerison who were racking up kills to go along with a huge solo block from each. The Thunderbirds started to pull away mid-way through the set through a couple kills and a Matt Neaves ace. Michael Downhaniuk led the charge for the Thunderbirds with five kills, scoring on all his attempts, as UBC went on to finish the set with an 8-1 point run to take the set 25-16.
The Thunderbirds continued their momentum into the second, jumping out to an 8-3 lead. Neaves came to life in the second for the Thunderbirds with five kills to go along with two aces. The WolfPack started to find their rhythm and refused to go away quietly, as they clawed their way back into the set, closing the gap to just two-points at 22-20. Rylan Ibbetson shone for the WolfPack as he racked up three kills, hitting at 0.600 per cent, to go along with three block assists. The Thunderbirds found themselves with two-set point opportunities as the score was 24-22 but the ‘Pack showed their fighting spirit, as back-to-back collective blocks from Ibbetson and Svab tied the set up at 24-24. From there, the teams traded points back and forth before the Thunderbirds were able to see the set out 28-26 thanks to a block from Neaves and James Vincett.
The WolfPack used their last set as fuel and came out hot in the third set, finding their first lead of the game at 6-5. Flowerday led the charge for the ‘Pack, racking up another five kills. The two teams would trade points throughout the set as they found themselves all tied up at 21 apiece. UBC’s offence was evenly distributed with Neaves and Dowhaniuk putting down three kills each, while Coltyn Liu had four himself. The Thunderbirds were able to take the set as they, finishing the night with a 4-1 run.
“It showed that these boys have a lot of fight and they’re not willing to give up which is huge moving forward, especially with a younger squad,” said Svab on his team rebounding after a slow start. “It shows that they’re going to be able to fight back through adversity in the coming years.”
The two teams will square off again tomorrow afternoon at 3:00 p.m. inside the TCC.
“Not everyone gets to finish their season on a win so we just need to get out there, have some fun and play our last game,” said Svab.