MVB: Huskies Hold Off Heat Comeback, Win in Five Sets

KELOWNA, BC – Winning Friday’s matchup in three sets against the UBC Okanagan Heat, the Saskatchewan Huskies looked to continue that momentum into Saturday’s matchup. The Heat would not make things easy for Saskatchewan, pushing the game to a fifth set.  
The Heat were much more offensively driven on Saturday afternoon but the Huskies prevailed, winning in five sets (25-21, 26-24, 21-25, 18-25, 15-12). 
 
THE HIGHLIGHTS 

• The first set was evenly matched throughout, with neither team having any significant leads. The Heat pulled away in the end and won the first set 25-21.   
• The Heat dominated early in the second set, with some big blocks from Thys Weststrate. After a big rally, Isaiah Mamer had a huge kill for the Huskies followed by a service ace to bring the Dogs within two points at 11-13.
• Scoring was neck and neck throughout the rest of the set, but Saskatchewan would be victorious, winning 26-24.  
• A service ace from Emmett Graham would push the Huskies to an early 6-4 lead. Two service aces from Weststrate helped the Heat gain momentum and brought the set to an 8-8 tie. The Heat gained a 17-14 advantage and while the Huskies battled back, they were unable to overcome the deficit, leading to a 21-25 set loss.
• Noah Opseth started the fourth set with a kill that set the tone for the set. Jefferson Morrow would add two service aces for the Huskies in set, as they cruised away to a 25-18 win, and a 2-2 set tie to push a fifth set. 
• Lucas Musschoot had three massive blocks in a row to give Saskatchewan an early lead. That momentum would take the Huskies all the way to a 15-12 set win, taking the game 3-2.  

THE STATS 

• Emmett Graham led the way for the Huskies in kills with 12, followed closely by Jacob Baird and Jack McGeough with 11 each. UBC’s Renn Petryk was once again the leader in kills with 16. 
• Setter Noah Opseth had 40 assists and seven digs in the matchup, with his counterpart Zach van Geel notching 53 assists and four digs for the Thunderbirds.  

THE STANDINGS 
The win gives Saskatchewan a 7-1 record and second spot in the Canada West standings. UBC Okanagan moves to 1-7 and second last place in Canada West.  
 
THE NEXT ONE 
The Huskies are heading back out to BC next weekend to take on the TWU Spartans on November 24 & 25. Friday’s match up will start at 9:00 PM CST, with the Dogs hitting the court at 8:00 PM on Saturday. Fans can watch the game live on CanadaWest.TV.