CALGARY – The University of Calgary Dinos men’s volleyball team will play for a berth at the U SPORTS Men’s Volleyball Championships this weekend when they face the Saskatchewan Huskies for Canada West bronze.
The one-game showdown will take place on Friday, Mar. 10 at 6 p.m. MT from USask’s Physical Activity Complex and can be streamed on Canada West TV.
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW
1. PLAYOFF JOURNEY – The Dinos opened the postseason locally as they faced the nationally-ranked Mount Royal Cougars in the conference quarter-final. After stunning the Cougars with a three-set win in the opener, the Dinos rallied for a reverse sweep and won the series in two games. Calgary then travelled to Langley, B.C. to face the Trinity Western Spartans last weekend. The Dinos fell in a spirited five-set battle in Game 1, followed by a four-set win by the Spartans the next night to earn their spot in the conference final.
2. HOT AT THE RIGHT TIME – Calgary has played some of its best volleyball in the late stages of this season. Before last weekend’s semifinal defeat, the Dinos had won 11 of their past 15 games. Two of those setbacks came against the Huskies though, when Calgary visited Saskatoon from Feb. 10-11.
3. BACK FOR BRONZE – it is the second consecutive season where the Dinos have found themselves playing for the conference’s bronze medals. Last season, the Canada West Final Four was hosted by Trinity Western, where Calgary faced the Brandon Bobcats. After defeating the Bobcats in three sets, the Dinos moved on to nationals for the first time since 2014 and placed fourth.
4. RECORD BREAKER – Calgary will need to contend with Saskatchewan’s Dylan Mortensen on Friday, who became Canada West’s all-time kills leader this season with 1490. Mortensen was also named a first team all-star, while fellow Huskies outside hitter Levi Olson cracked the second team, and libero Ethan Smith made the all-rookie squad. Senior middle Lincoln Baines was Calgary’s lone all-star on the second team, while Zack Durrant earned a spot on the all-rookie team after transitioning to setter mid-season.
5. THE HAMMER – The winner of Friday’s match will join the eight-team field at the U SPORTS Men’s Volleyball Championship in Hamilton, Ontario. Hosted by McMaster University, this year’s tournament begins Thursday, Mar. 16, with the Alberta Golden Bears and Trinity Western Spartans already set to represent Canada West.
-UC-
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