CALGARY – In an intense rematch of Friday night’s sweep by the Dinos, the University of Calgary men’s volleyball team turned in another big win with a 3-1 victory of the MacEwan Griffins Saturday night from the Jack Simpson Gym.
The two teams split the first two sets before Calgary took control down the stretch for the win, 25-14, 18-25, 25-22, 25-12.
Calgary improves to 2-0 on the young season, while MacEwan starts the year at 0-2.
“After two matches, we’re very pleased with the outcome,” Dinos head coach Rod Durrant said after the win.
The Dinos finished the night hitting .252 for the match, including a .458 clip in the opening frame, while holding MacEwan to just a .071 attack on the night.
Zack Durrant tallied a double-double with 41 assists in the four-set win to go with 13 digs.
Tyler Funk was one of four Dinos in double figures in kills on the night, finishing with a career-high 19 kills and a .486 hitting percentage to go with four blocks, three digs and three aces. Louis Kunstmann (13), Jackson Meier (10) and Erik Godwin (10) all also had double-digit kills on the night.
Mitchel Gorman led the way for MacEwan with 10 kills, five digs and three aces. Mason Natras added another eight kills on just 12 swings.
In the first set, the Dinos pulled away early. A triple block by Max Penner, Funk and Godwin made it 13-7 for the home team before two straight aces from Funk stretched the lead to 21-12. Penner closed things out with a solo block.
In the second set, the Griffins decided to show their claws and won their first set of the season. MacEwan used an early run to create some separation at 13-9 before extending things to 16-10. A block by Gorman and Seth Birkholz tied the match at 1-1.
The third set proved to be the decisive moment of the night. The Griffins went ahead early, only to see the Dinos tied things up at 19-19. Two straight kills by Kunstmann and an ace by Godwin suddenly gave Calgary a 24-20 advantage before Funk ended it with another kill.
Calgary coasted in the fourth, capping the match on an 8-0 run to send the Dinos fans home happy after the strong start to the season.
“We put the pressure back on them and I’m very pleased with the outcome,” Durrant said.
The Dinos now hit the road for the first time on the young season, heading to Kamloops to take on Thompson Rivers next weekend, starting Friday. Meanwhile, the Griffins have their home opener against Saskatchewan from the David Atkinson Gym.
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