WVB: One in the win column for MRU Cougars
Ellery Platts
CALGARY – The Canada West semi-finals kick off in Kenyon Court tonight with a Manitoba Mount Royal battle. After four sets, the Cougars took the game one victory 3-1 over the Bisons.
It was a strong first set appearance for the Cougars, putting them in a good stance for the remainder of game, but the Manitoba Bisons weren’t about to give up this semi-final series easily.
The opening set saw huge kills from both Nyadholi Thokbuom and Haley Roe, demonstrating why the duo were named Canada West first team all-stars. Thokbuom was versatile, mixing up attacks between powerful swings and cheeky pushes just out of reach of the Bison blockers.
“Haley has been so huge for us lately and such an important part of our team, we know we can always count on her to come out and play and laugh and smile and bring us energy,” said MRU head coach Shane Smith. “We played good defence. [Manitoba’s] tough to play against so I am proud we hung in there and were able to finish.”
Manitoba put up their best effort against the highly ranked Cougar squad but struggled to find their rhythm, giving up the set 25-16 in favour of MRU.
It didn’t take long for the Bisons to bring the heat. Manitoba opened the second set with a quick five point run. They held the gap and forced the Cougars to rely heavily on their defensive leaders to keep them alive.
Raya Surinx was a notable player tonight for MAN, putting her impressive right side attack to use. Surinx was just named to both the Canada West second team and the all-rookie team for her skill and leadership ability shown on the floor this season.
It seemed like an easy set win for the Bisons before MRU was able to make up some ground with back-to-back points. Unfortunately it wasn’t enough to overpower what the visitors had built up. Manitoba took the set, 25-19.
The third set looked similar to the first, with a strong start from the Cougars putting them up 4-0 before Manitoba could retaliate. MRU worked to maintain their lead throughout the set, with both Thokbuom and Roe continuing to make magic with sets coming from fellow first team all-star Quinn Pelland.
“[Manitoba] is a gritty team,” said Roe. “We know when we are in control and that’s how we get our result.”
Emma Benson stepped onto the floor and was flawless defensively, throwing herself in front of every attack Mount Royal tried to throw down. Her defensive efforts couldn’t match up with Mount Royal, with the Cougars having their best set of the night, winning 25-16.
“MRU was the better team tonight, they kind of took it to us. We just gotta be better everywhere tomorrow,” said Manitoba head coach Ken “It’s not just one thing it’s all the things. They had a really good match tonight.”
It was a tight start to the fourth set that looked to sway either direction. It was Roe who managed to tip the momentum towards MRU, pushing them into a seven point lead midway through.
With things looking up for the Cougars, Pelland made the best of their high energy, perfectly distributing the ball across the attacking line and reading the Bison defense.
The trio of all-stars sealed the game one victory for Mount Royal, with an impressive fourth set win 25-18 over Manitoba.
Roe and Katreena Bentley were named the Mikasa players of the game; Roe for her unstoppable offence, Bentley for her precision positioning and passing.
“It was up and down,” said Bentley on her team’s game one performance. “We have to even out the highs and lows, and be more consistent.”
Game two begins at 5 p.m. tomorrow night in MRU’s Kenyon Court. Make sure to catch the game live on Canada West TV.