NO. 1 SPARTANS DROP TWO TO NO. 8 BISONS IN WINNIPEG

WINNIPEG, Manitoba – The No. 1 Trinity Western Spartans lost their second match in as many nights as they dropped a 3-2 decision to the No. 8 Manitoba Bison team Saturday night at the IGAC in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The 18-25, 25-10, 18-25, 25-17, and 15-7 loss drops the Spartans to 12-1, while the win improves the Bisons to 14-2.

Second-year outside Maryn Boldon (Okotoks, Alta.) with 19 kills, three aces, three blocks, and 11 digs, and Kaylee Plouffe (Sherwood Park, Alta.) with eight kills, and four blocks led the Spartans. Raya Surinx 20 kills, four aces, and 13 digs, and Ella Gray with 10 kills led the Bisons.

Third-year setter Kendra Kern (Edmonton, Alta.) with 24 set assists led the Spartans’ attack, while Katreena Bentley finished the night with 47 set assists for the Bisons.

AS IT HAPPENED
The Spartans didn’t trail in the first, as solid team defence led to a seven-point set win. 
 
Trinity Western got solo blocks from Jayda Harder and and Grace McGillivray, along with a combined 14 digs, while Boldon and Plouffe combined for eight kills, including the latter’s set winner from the right. 
 
Bisons middle Eve Catojo provided a spark in the middle for her side, with four kills and no errors, including multiple tips into open spaces. 
 
Manitoba dominated set two, winning by 15. Their service pressure was a problem for TWU, with Katreena Bentley laying down three aces, while Ella Gray also had an ace. The duo’s presence at the back line let to a stellar transition game and kept the Spartans out of system often. 
 
The Spartans took a 2-1 lead into the fourth after a seven-point set win. Their service pressure played an important role, as Grace McGillivray and Boldon both got in on the act with aces. Boldon’s gave her side a 9-8 lead and the visitors didn’t trail the rest of the way, with McGillivray adding a second ace to finish the set. 
 
With the game on the line, the Herd didn’t relent. They took a 3-0 lead and controlled play at the service line in a 25-17 set win to take things to five. 
 
Service pressure from Surinx was a major reason for her side’s momentum, as her challenging jump-spin serve (clocking in at an average of around 90 kilometres an hour) kept the T-Birds out of system, and also resulted in two aces. 
 
Surinx went on an early run with the score 5-4, helping her side score four points in a row. A Bentley ace increased Manitoba’s lead to 16-8, while captain Light Uchechukwu — who was one of the best players on the court in the fourth and fifth sets and had nine kills — made the play of the game with the score 18-11 for the Bisons. 
 
A Spartans attack had trickled past Manitoba’s front row defence and appeared to be settling in the left corner for a point. That’s until Uchechukwu sprinted halfway across the court, sprawling with one hand to keep the rally alive. A Spartans attack error eventually gave the Bisons the point.
 
Manitoba opened up a 5-0 lead in the fifth and did not trail, completing the comeback. An Ella Gray tip into the pot (ten kills, ten digs, two assisted blocks) on a triple block to make it 2-0 was the highlight of the set. 
 
Bentley made a perfect pass on the play, dishing a back set to the national team playmaker for the finish. 
 
Boldon nailed a cross-court kill from the left and also had an assisted block to narrow the host’s lead to 5-3, but impressive defence from Bentley, libero Julia Arnold (12 digs), Surinx and company kept the hosts in front. 
 
Surinx then closed the game out at the service line, as the Bisons scored four points in a row in transition, including two kills from middle Brenna Bedosky and one from Uchechukwu, while Surinx also notched an ace. 
 
QUOTABLE
TWU Head Coach Ryan Hofer
“A tough weekend for us. Full respect to Manitoba this weekend, they played super well. I really liked how we responded, we played really tough volleyball in sets one and three this evening. We are just learning how to sustain pressure over long periods against another really solid team. There is a lot of learning that we can take away from this weekend. Lots of growing and lots of reflection on individually, and collectively as to what we can do to move forward and make the next weekend ahead of us even better.”
 
NOTABLE

• TWU finished the night hitting at .116 (45-28-116), while Manitoba finished at .221 (53-23-136)
• The Spartans had 11 team blocks, while the Bisons had 10.
• Manitoba finished with a 10-9 advantage in service aces.
• The Spartans had 52 digs, while the Bisons finished with 64.
• TWU lost 3-1 to the Bisons Friday night in Winnipeg, Man.
• The Spartans are 28-23 lifetime against the Bisons.

UP NEXT
The Spartans will now return home to host the Brandon Bobcats on Friday, January 19, and Saturday, January 20. Match times are set for 5 p.m. (PT) and 4 p.m. (PT), and can be seen live on Canada West TV.

About Spartan Athletics
As official members of U SPORTS, the Spartans currently compete in 13 sports in the Canada West conference, including women’s and men’s soccer, volleyball, basketball, hockey, cross country, and track & field, as well as women’s rugby sevens. TWU also competes as an independent team in men’s rugby. Since TWU entered U SPORTS in 1999, the Spartans have won 14 U SPORTS team championships and 34 Canada West team championships.
 
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