Bisons women’s volleyball open pool play against host Huskies

Peaking at the right time, Bisons women’s volleyball enter conference playoffs looking to play spoiler in Saskatoon.

Manitoba begins first round pool play tonight (Mar. 3) at the Physical Activity Complex, hosted by East division champ Saskatchewan, as they play the host Huskies for the first of three matches in three nights.

After tonight’s match, the Herd will face the Mount Royal Cougars on Friday and the UBC Okanagan Heat on Saturday afternoon. Each squad in the four-team pool will play each other once, with the top two teams advancing to round two next weekend. There, six teams will be whittled down to the Canada West Final Four.

Winners of three straight matches, including two in straight sets, the Bisons (6-10) are a confident team heading into the post-season. During their win streak, they’ve shown the ability to balance their strong defensive play with some offensive firepower, hitting over .245 as a team.

Success starts with their ability to rally, though. The Bisons rank second in the conference in digs per set (17.06), fifth in blocks per set (1.86) and third in assists per set (11.59). At the centre of this success has been setter Katreena Bentley (10.53 assists per set, first in CW) and libero Julia Arnold (3.45 digs per set, fifth in CW), as both have made highlight plays to keep rallies alive throughout the year.

Manitoba’s top attacking arm is second-year Keziah Hoeppner, who’s averaged 3.05 kills per set on .179 hitting percentage. Hoeppner is also dangerous behind the service line, ranking sixth in the conference with 27 aces this season.

All first round matches can be watched on Canada West TV presented by Co-op.

HOOFPRINTS

• First-year middle Brenna Bedosky led Manitoba’s block with 42 total
• First-year left side Ella Gray has been a big part of Manitoba’s wins, averaging 2.95 kills per set in Bisons wins this season (2.26 in losses)

Conference Statistics
U SPORTS Top 10