WVB: Huskies Storm All the Way Back

SASKATOON – The Huskies took on the Regina Cougars in the Bridge City Friday evening in the first of two matchups for the Volleyball edition of the U-Prairie Challenge.  
 
The Huskies stormed all the way back from two sets to none, to win it in five sets in an absolute barn burner.
 
The first set saw the Cougars come out ready to play going up 3-0 thanks to some solid serving from Annika Hufnagel.  In an all-prairie matchup both teams were unwilling to give an inch resulting in a back-and-forth battle. It was all tied up at 22 before Regina clawed their way to a 25-23 set win. 
 
The second set was much of the same with both teams fighting for every point. Tied up at 18 the Cougars were able to squeak out another set win 25-22. The Cougars came out hard fighting for their first win of the season. Leading 2 sets to none the Huskies were backed into a corner going into a third set. 
 
The third set saw the Cougars go up 4-0 before Saskatchewan’s Head Coach Mark Dodds called a timeout. The Huskies looked to find a groove after that tying it up at 9-9. The rest of the set was very evenly matched with the Huskies taking it 25-19 to force a fourth set. 
 
The fourth set was all Huskies early as they jumped out to a 5-0 lead before the Cougars Interim Head Coach Lee Hamilton called a timeout. Unable to slow the Huskies momentum the Huskies were able to cruise to a 25-15 win in set 4 to force a fifth and deciding set. 
 
The fifth saw the Huskies jump out to a 5-2 lead before Regina clawed back into it to tie it up at seven. The Huskies looked like they were on a mission and would not be denied taking the win 15-11 in the fifth set. The Dogs would come all the way back.
 
Julia Sprentz came in during the third set and played well for the Huskies finishing with six kills and three blocks on the night. Claire Sheppard played well for Regina finishing with a hitting percentage of .571 on the night.
 
Caet McCorkell had a Saskatchewan team high 13 kills while Averie Allard had 43 assists on the night. Bailey Balaberda led Regina in kills with 15. Hufnagel had 46 assists on the night to lead the Cougars.
 
Head Coach Mark Dodds had high praise for both teams. “They played a heck of a game. Both teams were playing well, and they took the first two sets before we were able to get on a bit of a roll and were able to hang on long enough to get the win.”
 
These two teams will be back in action tomorrow evening at 5:00 PM at the PAC in Saskatoon. Tickets are available at HuskieTickets.com.