LANGLEY, B.C. – The Langley Events Centre was electric in Saturday night’s match between the no. 2 ranked Trinity Western Spartans and the UBC Thunderbirds, resulting in a 3-2 (32-30, 21-25, 25-17, 26-28, 11-15) victory for the visitors.
The Spartans (3-1) were ousted by a fiery, and driven UBC (2-2) team who made no mistake in asserting themselves as a valid competitor within Canada West.
Savannah Purdy (Victoria) led the way for the Spartans on the offensive end, putting down 17 kills with a significant amount of volume received from Spartans setter Olivia Heinen (Langley, B.C.).
For the Thunderbirds, Claire Cossarini hit an efficient ball, putting down a total of 12 kills on 24 attempts. The second-year middle was outstanding from the service line as well, completing three aces en route to UBC’s second win of the season. Cossarini intertwined well with Elise Petit who put down 10 of her own kills.
AS IT HAPPENED
The first set of action dictated the course of Saturday’s game as a whole, resulting in a 32-30 win for the Spartans. The Spartans took a commanding lead off the bat, going up 16-8 to result in a Spartans timeout. Still, UBC refused to bow down as the Spartans surrendered their control, eventually bringing the set to a 21-21 tie. Each team traded blows with each other until Avery Heppell (Langley, B.C.) sealed the deal, blocking a UBC attack to finish the set emphatically.
The Thunderbirds carried their strong run of play into the second set, running away with a 25-21 victory
The Spartans regained control in the third, taking a 25-17 win to take a 2-1 stranglehold on the game.
Once again, the Thunderbirds continued to play a gutsy brand of volleyball, squeaking out a 28-26 win in the fourth to force a dramatic fifth set.
The fifth set was intense, being controlled by the visiting Thunderbirds from the get-go. UBC took an 11-6 lead, constantly putting pressure on the home side through a stellar array of defensive efforts put on by Claire Cossarini and Lucy Borowski. With the Spartans making a late surge to take back their control of the match, Danielle Price rose up to stuff Heppell’s attack from the middle emphatically, ending the set at 15-11 in favour of the Thunderbirds.
QUOTABLE
TWU Head Coach Ryan Hofer
“Every UBC game is a hard-fought game. There is a common respect between the two of us every game that forces both teams to play some really good volleyball. Rallies are extended and people are adjusting throughout these games.
“It is neat coming out of these matches and going into the next week to make tweaks in our game. These games can help us be a better team heading into the next game, so we’re going to work on ourselves. We’re excited for UFV next weekend.”
NOTABLE
- After an undefeated preseason and a 3-0 start in Canada West, Saturday’s loss comes as TWU’s first in the 2021-22 season.
UP NEXT
The Spartans will split a series between the Langley Events Centre and the Envision Financial Athletic Centre on Dec. 2nd and 3rd against Fraser Valley.
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 12 U SPORTS team championships and 29 Canada West team championships.
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