EDMONTON – The University of Calgary Dinos provided a stiff test for the country’s No. 1-ranked team.
The Alberta Golden Bears dropped the opening set but rebounded to defeat the Dinos 3-1 (23-25, 25-21, 25-21, 25-21) at the Saville Community Sports Centre.
Alberta leads the conference with a blistering .362 hitting percentage – and outdid themselves on Friday, ticking in at .426 percent. That was enough to get past the Dinos, who also performed well offensively and recorded a .372 hitting percentage.
The Golden Bears remain undefeated with a perfect 9-0 record in Canada West action, while the Dinos slide to 3-4.
Not much separated the teams in four sets, but in the first, mistakes in the final points hurt the home team. Trailing 22-19, the Dinos benefit from four errors by the ‘Bears, including attack errors on the final two points to take the first set.
In set two, neither team could grab a significant lead until the late stages. Alberta led by three at 21-18 before a pair of Louis Kunstmann kills forced a timeout. The Golden Bears used that time well and launched a 4-1 run before closing on a lethal kill by Trent Cherewaty.
The Golden Bears built some separation from the Dinos in the middle of the third set with another 4-1 run that took a 17-16 game and quickly made it 22-18. While the third proved to be Calgary’s best-hitting set – registering a .611 percent – three late service errors took away momentum and gave Alberta the lead in the match.
Liam Espedido took control of the fourth set for Alberta with an incredible run at the service line early. The fourth-year outside hitter recorded fourth consecutive aces, which took a tie game and put Alberta ahead 10-6. Espedido was a constant presence throughout the final set, countering Calgary’s points with much-needed kills to cap off the night.
Isaac Heslinga led all Golden Bears with 17 kills, while Espedido added 15. On the other side, Kunstmann and Erik Godwin topped Calgary with 15 and 13 kills each.
The Dinos and Golden Bears will return to the court for a rematch on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. at the Saville Community Sports Centre.