In what was their first game on home court since Feb. 8, 2020, Saskatchewan was unable to keep pace with visiting Manitoba.
Huskies outside hitter Dylan Mortensen led both teams with a game-high 17 kills, while Manitoba’s Ben Carleton led the Bisons with 15 kills.
Manitoba moved to 2-1 with the win, while Saskatchewan falls to 0-3, after two five-set defeats on the road last weekend to the nationally ranked Brandon Bobcats.
After dropping the opening set, the Huskies bounced back in the second, taking the set off a huge Levi Olson kill, hitting .300 in the second set.
The game was relatively back-and-forth until the Bisons found their footing in the third set, and Manitoba ultimately put the game to rest with a Ben Carleton kill in the fourth set.
The story of the match likely was efficiency, evidenced by the two programs hitting percentages in the fourth-and-final set, as the Huskies offense sputtered in the last set hitting .167 compared to Manitoba who hit a game-high .455. Ultimately, the Huskies struggled to garner momentum on the night hitting a mere .196 compared to the Bisons .299. Darian Koskie of the Bisons led all players hitting .700.
Fouth-year setter Jake Rapin led the Huskies with 32 assists on the night. On the opposite side of the net, Manitoba’s Jack Mandryk tallied 35 assists.