T-Birds fall to Huskies in five-set thriller

EDMONTON – Opening their 2022 post-season with a thrilling five-set win, the Saskatchewan Huskies erased a 2-1 set deficit, defeating the UBC Thunderbirds 3-2 (25-19, 17-25, 19-25, 25-21, 15-13) Thursday afternoon at Saville Community Sports Centre.

Following back-to-back convincing wins for UBC in the second and third sets, the Huskies regained their rhythm for the fourth and fifth, en route to the upset win.

The win gives the Huskies more hope in advancing to next weekend’s Round of 6. Dylan Mortensen led the Huskies with 16 kills on 28 attempts, with Skyler Varga adding 14, and Levi Olson scoring 13. Jake Rapin finished with the game-high 45 assists.

Michael Dowhaniuk led UBC with 16 kills with Mason Greves adding 36 assists.

Thanks to a staggering .500 attack percentage in the opening set, the Huskies opened with a 1-0 lead thanks to a 25-19 set win. Olson led the Huskies with four kills on six attempts, with Rapin serving nine assists.

The ‘Birds offence found their groove in the second as they cruised to a 25-17 win. Cole Brandsma had five kills in the second and Dowhaniuk added three. The T-Birds took advantage of nine attack errors from from the Huskies in the second set.

The T-Birds strung together another competitive set, taking the 2-1 match from a 25-19 third set victory. UBC notched four blocks in the third, as well as another clean attacking set, finishing with nine kills on just 16 attempts.

Mortensen was excellent in the fourth, scoring five kills for the Huskies, with Varga adding five, in a 25-21 set win for Saskatchewan.

The fifth set was an outstanding way to cap off a thriller, with neither team holding a lead of more than two points. Varga sealed the win with a his 14 kill on match point.

The Huskies will look to start their playoffs with a 2-0 record tomorrow, when they take on the top-ranked Alberta Golden Bears. UBC will look to stay alive with an afternoon match against the UFV Cascades.