SPARTANS SEASON ENDS IN LOSS TO PANDAS

LANGLEY, British Columbia – The No. 6 Trinity Western Spartans (19-5) saw their 2023-24 season come to an end with a 3-0 loss to the Alberta Pandas Friday night at the Langley Events Centre in Langley, B,C. The Pandas 25-18, 25-21, 25-17 victory gives Alberta the best of three series 2-0 and send the Pandas to the Canada West semifinals next weekend.

The Pandas controlled the match at the net and from the end line. Alberta finished with a 9.5-4.5 edge in total blocks, and an 8-1 edge in service aces.

Second-year Maryn Boldon (Okotoks, Alta.) with 10 kills, and six digs, and third-year middle Kaylee Plouffe (Sherwood Park, Alta.) with nine kills, and one block led the Spartans. Lauryn Tremblay with 12 kills, and 11 digs, and Ronnie Dickson with 10 kills, three blocks, and two service aces led the Pandas.

Second-year setter Sydney Gill (St. Catharines, Ont.) finished with 22 set assists, while Alberta’s Justine Kolody led the Pandas with 33 assists.
 
QUOTABLE
TWU Head Coach Ryan Hofer
“I just want to give full props to my colleagues at Alberta and the team they played outstanding volleyball this weekend and I just wish them all the best.”
 
“One of the things I just said to my team in the locker room is that we played this game and we invest a lot of time in it and you get wins and losses, but if you invest in people you win every time. We can’t control winning and losing and sometimes you’re going to win and sometimes you’re going to lose. But if you invest in people and in relationships you win every time. And I feel that this group did that, and I have the staff that did that. I’m just proud of them and all the effort that everybody put in through the season.”
 
Everything in life is here to teach us to help us learn and to help us grow and I know that this is going to be something that’s going to help us learn and grow and we’re going to get better and we’re going to improve and we’re going to bring our best again.”
 
NOTABLE

• The Spartans finished the night hitting at .182 (32-16-88), while the Pandas finished at .396 (41-9-98).
• The Spartans finished with 39 digs, to the Pandas 35.
• Last night the Spartans lost the opening game 3-1 to the Pandas.
• The Spartans are 30-46 lifetime against the Pandas.
• Prior to tonight the last time the Spartans and Pandas met in the post-season was March 19, 2022. TWU defeated Alberta 3-1 to win the 2022 Canada West championship in Edmonton, Alta.
• The last time the Spartans did not advance to the Canada West Final Four was the 2017-18 season when TWU lost to Alberta 2-1 in Edmonton, Alta.
• TWU had one four straight Canada West Championships.­
• The Spartans had been to 11 of the last 12 national championship tournaments.

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.
 
-TW-