WolfPack go toe-to-toe with reigning champion Golden Bears

KAMLOOPS – It was a strong start to the 2023-24 Canada West season for a Thompson Rivers WolfPack men’s volleyball team that fought hard but couldn’t pull out the victory in a 3-1 (25-23, 21-25, 25-17, 27-25) loss to the Alberta Golden Bears.

Facing the reigning CW champions in Edmonton, the ‘Pack took the second set and nearly forced a fifth before bowing out.

“We had a solid effort tonight,” said WolfPack head coach Pat Hennelly. “We had some serving issues in the fourth but also played some great volleyball and overall, it was a great start to the season.”

Sam Flowerday paced the ‘Pack with 19 kills on an efficient 36 swings to finish with a hitting percentage of .389. Kelowna product Rylan Ibbetson added 14 kills while Sam Elgert racked up 44 assists.

Defensively Hennelly highlighted the play of libero Dylan VanSpankeren as having his best effort of the year so far, including the WolfPack’s 14-game preseason slate. VanSpankeren finished the night with seven digs and three assists.

TRU kept the first set tight. After falling behind 21-16 they rallied to make the score just 24-23 with a massive kill through the middle by Corbin Ockerman before the Golden Bears took it 25-23.

The WolfPack would maintain their momentum out of the break, attacking and defending effectively en route to a 14-9 advantage to start the second set. Ibbetson and Matthew Hamilton were huge contributors on the offensive end for the ‘Pack, as they were able to find their way through the Alberta block line. The Bears fought all the way back to a 23-21 deficit, but the WolfPack hung on for a 25-21 set victory after a finishing kill by Flowerday. Ibbetson led all players with five kills, hitting an impressive .355.

Alberta found their groove in the third, jumping out to a 16-11 lead due in large part to an efficient attack. They w hit .500 in the frame which, coupled with an effective defence at the net and in the back, would lead to a 25-17 set win.

The fourth set would be a battle, with both sides showing some great attacking. Flowerday led the WolfPack in this set, finishing with a set-high seven kills and providing some consistency in a back-and-forth mid-set. The frame amazingly went point-for-point from a 16-15 Alberta advantage all the way to a 26-25 Alberta lead that they would finish 27-25 for a set and match victory. There were 11 ties in the frame, with surprisingly only one lead change.

The teams meet for the final time in the CW season tomorrow night at 5:30 PT.