The University of Regina’s women’s volleyball team got a massive night from Jessica Lerminiaux as the Cougars took a five-set road victory over the Manitoba Bisons on Friday night at the Investors Group Athletic Centre in Winnipeg.
Lerminiaux finished with a career-high 27 kills, the last of which sealed the win for the U of R in the fifth and deciding set.
Following a wild third set that saw Manitoba pull out a 33-31 win to go up 2-1 in the match, it looked as though the Bisons might go on to victory late in the fourth after going up 23-19. But the Cougars reeled off five straight points and closed out the frame with a Devyn Grimsrud ace on their second attempt at set point, then rode that momentum into the fifth. The Cougars went on an early 6-1 lead in the deciding set and led by at least three points at all times following the side switch.
“We called a late timeout and really turned it around there late in the fourth set,” Cougars head coach Melanie Sanford said. “But I think the most important factor was that we didn’t have a negative response to losing the third set when we had such a big lead there. The team really impressed me with the way they were able to manage themselves mentally and emotionally.”
The teams had split the opening two sets, with Manitoba taking the first 25-23 and Regina replying with a 25-17 win in the fourth.
Lerminiaux also had 10 digs, three blocks, and a pair of aces for the Cougars to help them improve to 2-3 on the season. Caitlyn Spurr also had a big night offensively with 19 kills, while Katie House had 11 kills and hit a team-leading .346 for the match. Sierra Parris-Kruger led Regina with 19 digs, while setter Cassadi Klapak dished out 58 assists and piled up 17 digs for a huge double-double.
Four different Manitoba players hit double figures in kills, led by Julia Horne’s 13. Ella Gray added 12, while both Brenna Bedosky and Keziah Hoeppner both finished with 11 kills. Bedosky led all players with a .409 hitting percentage and also had a match-leading six digs, while Katreena Bentley finished with 56 assists and 14 digs. Bisons libero Julia Arnold had a match-high 24 digs.
Manitoba falls to 2-5 with the loss.
The two teams will meet again on Saturday night at the IGAC. First serve is set for 5:00 PM.
NOTES: Lerminiaux’s previous career high was 21 kills, which she set three weekends ago against Brandon.
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