VANCOUVER – The UBC Thunderbirds (8-5) fell 3-2 (25-22, 24-26, 18-25, 25-16, 18-16) to the UBC Okanagan Heat (7-5) to close out their regular season schedule inside War Memorial Gym. The T-Birds have now won three of their last four games and hold a two-point lead over UBCO in the west division with just over a week remaining before the Canada West playoffs.
“I’m proud of the determination and courage that our team showed,” said UBCO head coach Steve Manuel. “They didn’t give up. It’s not easy playing here against a talented Thunderbirds team, and even though they struggled with nerves at times they kept fighting back. There were several times throughout the match that we could have packed it up and went home with our heads held high, but they didn’t do that. They battled and fought right to the end. Even at the end, down a match point after being up six, to show that type of courage and determination speaks a lot of our young team and the character of these athletes.”
Claire Cossarini and Brynn Pasin each had a team-high 13 kills for UBC, with Cossarini putting up six total blocks and Pasin adding 16 digs in the thrilling five-setter. Erika Vermette contributed 8 kills and five blocks, while Elise Petit totalled seven kills with three aces and 10 digs.
Sydney Grills led the Heat with 14 kills and six total blocks, Jade Bussard had 12 kills with a team-high 15 digs, and Natalie Funk tallied dive kills with three aces and five blocks in the win.
With the first set tied 6-6, the Heat took a one-point edge on a UBC net violation and made it a two-point lead with a block. Grills put UBCO up 10-7 with two straight kills and Funk lifted the Heat to a 12-7 advantage with a first touch kill. Laura MacTaggart briefly stopped the UBCO run with a kill, but the visitors continued to cook and led 16-11 at the technical timeout. The T-Birds drew within one on a Pasin kill at 17-16 and evened the score at 18-18 with a Danielle Price block. Kendall Stephan responded to give the Heat a 22-20 lead before a UBC error made it 24-21, and Bussard capped off the set with a kill at 25-22.
The Heat raced out to a 14-6 lead in the second set with a Grills ace and led by nine at the technical timeout. Cara Kovacs came up with a huge dig that led to a Pasin kill at 16-8 UBCO and Kacey Jost entered the game to serve an ace at 19-14 Heat. Vermette earned a kill to cut the deficit to four at 21-17, then capped off a marathon rally with a tip at 21-19 UBCO. Petit served an ace on the next point and Emma Doyon completed the comeback with a left-handed tip at 21-21. With the score knotted up at 24-24, setter Kayla Oxland came up with a huge block and Cossarini closed it out with a kill at 26-24.
Between the second and third sets, the multigenerational performers of Tsatsu Stalqayu (Coastal Wolf Pack) shared a performance of Salish song and dance as the weekend presented in partnership with the Musqueam Indian Band continued. The members of Tsatsu Stalqayu, with pride, represent the following Coast Salish communities: Musqueam, Sto:lo, Lil’Wat, Squamish, Okanagan, Tsartlip, Nanaimo, and more.
UBC led 8-5 in the third set before a Bussard kill made it 8-7 and an Abigail Dueck tip tied it up. With the score even at 16-16, Doyon earned a block to retake the lead and Vermette gave the T-Birds a 23-17 cushion with a block. Petit dropped an ace and Pasin put the set away on a tip at 25-18.
Tied 7-7 in the fourth, the Heat rattled off a 5-0 run – punctuated by a Grills and Funk block at 12-7 UBCO – and led 16-13 at the break. Grills scored from the right side for a 21-16 lead and the visitors captured the fourth set on a Grills kill at 25-16 to force a fifth and deciding set.
Petit opened the fifth set with a kill and UBC took a 2-0 lead with a Price ace. Grill put up back-to-back blocks for a 5-5 tie and UBCO led 8-6 at the technical timeout. Bussard made it 11-7 on a kill before MacTaggart scored with a kill to keep UBC within three. Dueck served an ace at 13-8, but a Petit block brought UBC within two at 14-12 and a pair of UBCO errors evened the final set at 14-14. After a T-Bird service error, Amaya Perry won it for the Heat on a kill – 18-16.
“We’ve only play six matches in the last 95 days,” said Manuel, as the Heat prepare for a rescheduled series over the next two days. “We’re now playing six league matches in nine days, so we want to be healthy and keep an eye on preparation so we’re playing lineups that we’ll use later in the playoffs. We need to find that fine line between resting players and still being game sharp with a core that we need.”
Next up, the Thunderbirds will close out their regular season with a series against the Thompson Rivers University WolfPack in Kamloops on February 25th and 26th, while the Heat face the University of the Fraser Valley Cascades on Sunday and Monday (February 20th and 21st) in Abbotsford before hosting the Trinity Western Spartans.