MVB: Bisons record nine aces, take down TRU 3-0

WINNIPEG – The Manitoba Bisons put down nine aces in their home opener on Friday night, rallying multiple times to defeat the Thompson Rivers Wolfpack 3-0 in a physical affair. The win improved the Herd’s record to 2-1, while TRU fell to 0-1.
 
Right side Karil Dadash Adeh led the way for the hosts, putting down three of his team-leading four aces in the third set, including multiple blasts at key times late. Left side Kai Boyko led all players with 11 points in front of a raucous home crowd.
 
The Wolfpack were led by ten kills and ten points overall from Sam Flowerday.

“We had a good game. Serving, for me is mostly mental. It’s about how you see the game. If you can handle, and tolerate mental pressure, you can be a better server,” said Dadash Adeh.

“I think we did a good job on serve-recieve being aggressive. We controlled the pressure.”
 
The two sides combined for 15 total blocks in the first set in a defensive showcase. Jonah Dueck had two assisted blocks for the Herd, while Lincoln Wagner, Gavin Margerison and Matthew Hamilton had two each for the visitors.
 
Offensively, a back-and-forth set was blown open by a few TRU errors, and strong service pressure from the Bisons, including an Eric Ogaranko ace.
 
Manitoba’s Kai Boyko led all players with six kills after set one, including an impressive roll shot into the pot where he took a bit off his attack in mid-air.
 
Manitoba opened up a five-point lead at 20-15 and didn’t trail the rest of the way. The Wolfpack were led by three kills from Rylan Ibbetson, who also had an ace.
 
The Wolfpack continued to gain momentum from their block in set two. They had 14 total blocks in the match, with four players recording at least three. Ibbetson and Wagner combined for an assist block to give TRU a 10-7 lead on a left side attack, and Hamilton and Margerison made it 12-9 on another massive denial.
 
The longest rally of the game, a Manitoba point, shifted momentum.
 
Multiple Bisons kept the play alive, with Sammy Ludwig and Jonah Dueck combining for an assisted block to make the score 12-11 for TRU. Karil Dadash Adeh put down an incredible line shot ace after that, and the Herd started to roll.
 
An Ogaranko line shot off hands gave the Bisons a 16-14 lead, and they didn’t trail the rest of the way. True freshman Owen Weekes subbed in on the left for Dadash Adeh with the score 21-20 for the Bisons and had two monster kills, including an off-angle blast off hands as Manitoba won 25-23.
 
The Wolfpack opened up a 7-4 lead in the third off a few Bisons errors, but once again service pressure gave the Herd momentum.
 
An aggressive serve from middle Jordon Heppner resulted in an easy put-down for Ogaranko, and Heppner added an ace right after to give the hosts a 10-8 lead.
 
Shortly after, Dadash Adeh got the fans on their feet with a roll shot serve that had the visitors guessing. The impressive play gave the Bisons their biggest lead of the game, 14-9, and they didn’t rail again.

“I’m really proud of this team I’m here with,” added Dadash Adeh.

“I’ve played in different countries, for different teams. I think the best guys I’ve ever been with are on this Bisons team. Everyone is amazing. I’m very blessed to be here.
 
Both teams will be back in action tomorrow at 4 pm.