SASKATOON, SK – On a chilly night in the Bridge City, it was nothing but fire in the PAC between the Saskatchewan Huskies and the visiting UBCO Heat. The Friday night thriller went to five sets resulting in a Huskies victory over the visiting Heat.
The first set saw both teams going back and forth, with an 11-11 time tie through the opening points of the set. The Heat would find a groove, storming out to a 20-14 lead and eyeing the first set win. The Huskies would battle back, shrinking the UBCO lead to 24-22, but they were unable to close out the set, leading to a UBC win at 25-22.
The Heat came out starong in the second, moving quickly to a 4-1 lead. Back and forth the set would go, with neither team gaining a big advantage until Saskatchewan’s Julia Howell Bourner headed to the service line. The Huskies would go on a four-point run and take the lead 16-11. The offence would continue to put pressure on the Heat and would take the set 25-21.
Saskatchewan’s offence continued their streak, jumping out to a quick 10-4 lead in the third set. A six-point run for UBCO would eliminate the momentum the Huskies had built to tie the set at 10-10. Teams would trade points for the remainder of the set until a run for the Heat at 21 points would see them take the set 25-21, forcing a must win fourth set for Saskatchewan.
The fourth set saw two evenly matched teams who would battle neck and neck to a tie at 10-10 before the Huskies would go on a roll to take the 18-12 lead. UBCO turned up their offence to bring the game within four points before a well executed timeout by Head Coach Mark Dodds settled the Huskies. The Dogs would take the fourth set 25-19.
The fifth and final set saw the Huskies start with a three-point run to open it up, and the Heat would counter that with three points of their own. Both teams struggled to take the lead until the Huskies came alive late in the set to take the fifth by a score of 15-12, and the 3-2 match victory.
The Huskies were led by veteran Mandi Fraser who had 19 kills in the contest. Olivia Mattern chipped in with 13 of her own, while Averie Allard had 38 assists. Jolene Sibley would have a game high three aces for the Huskies. UBCO’s Sydney Grills was the star for the Heat with a game high 23 kills, supported by an incredible 54 assists from Abigail Dueck.
Game two of the series between the Huskies and the Heat will take place on Saturday afternoon, with the the game starting at 5:00 PM at the pack. Tickets can be purchased at HuskieTickets.com.
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