VANCOUVER - The UBC Thunderbirds welcome the SFU Clan to War Memorial Gym this Friday for their final regular season action of 2009 in a match-up of crosstown rivals on opposite ends of the standings. The no.1 ranked and undefeated T-Birds (8-0) will look to close out the year with a perfect record while the 1-7 Clan will try to build on their first win of the year picked up last weekend against Saskatchewan.
It has been a tough road for SFU who faced ranked opponents in their first three weekends and now they go toe to toe with the nation's number one squad. Meanwhile, the T-Birds have made short work of their opponents to this point only dropping two sets in eight contests, with both coming on the road against #8 Trinity Western.
The two-time defending CIS national champions sport a balanced but potent attack that promises to give the Clan all they can handle. The 'Birds lead the Canada West in hitting percentage (.290) and kills (13.65 per game) thanks to the strong swings of outside hitters
Liz Cordonier,
Kyla Richey and
Shanice Marcelle while
Jen Hinze gives the T-Birds a top offensive weapon in the middle. Cordonier sits sixth in the conference in kills (3.32 per game) and eighth in hitting percentage (.299) while accumulating the fourth most points (4.22 per game).
The Clan won't be able to cue on Cordonier alone as Hinze and Richey have been making the most of their attacking opportunities as well hitting .400 and .328 respectively which ranks them first and third in the Canada West. Marcelle makes it a quartet of threats for the Clan to deal with as the 2008-09 CIS All-Rookie team member pitches in with 2.10 kills per game.
Supporting the UBC attack is fifth year setter
Katie Tyzuk who is playing the best volleyball of her Thunderbird career gathering 9.83 set assists per game, good enough for second in the conference.
The Clan attack is centered around fifth-year outside hitter Colleen Douville. The Creston, BC native ranks ninth in the conference in kills with 3.19 per game. Douville is supported by left side and fellow fifth-year Krystyna Adams (2.90 kills per game) and middle Kristjana Fridfinnson (1.94 kills per game).
Stephanie Senges runs the offence for the Clan and the fourth-year setter currently sits tenth in the conference with 7.61 set assists per game.
It promises to be a long day for the Clan attackers who face the toughest defence in the conference as the T-Birds have held their opponents to a Canada West best .083 hitting percentage. Hinze anchors the defensive effort as she sits second in the conference in blocks with 1.24 per game. Also thwarting opposing attacks will be newcomer
Nicky Osborne. The Lymington, UK native and British national team member has fit right in on this side of the Atlantic recording 0.75 blocks per game and has shown an offensive flourish of late recording nine kills in last weekend's first game against Thompson Rivers.
If the Clan manage to get through the UBC block getting the ball on the floor will be easier said than done as 2009 Canada West Libero of the Year,
Claire Hanna, promises to be honed in on every ball that gets passed the block. Hanna sits second on the squad with 2.50 digs per game while Cordonier is having a strong defensive start to the season collecting 2.68 digs per game.
The UBC attack will have to get through two second year middles to execute their game. The Thunderbirds should not overlook the youth on the other side of the net as Fridfinnson along with Cheryl Windhorst have done well in spite of their relative inexperience as the duo average 0.71 and 0.62 blocks per game. Combine them with the strong defensive game of Douville (0.77 blocks per game) and the Clan will be no pushover for the T-Birds.
Should the youngsters not turn away the UBC attack they can rely on their teammates to get to the ball as six Clan players are averaging better than two digs per game with libero Brooke Halvorsen leading the way with 3.13 digs per game, putting her ninth in the conference.
One area that could lead to success for UBC is at the service line. The Thunderbirds boast an impressive service game sitting second in the conference with 1.92 aces per game. Hot-serving
Liz Cordonier, fresh off a four ace performance against Thompson Rivers, leads the conference with 0.64 aces per game. While the Clan have had success at the line, sitting fifth in the Canada West with 1.42 aces/game, they face a T-Bird team that has allowed a conference low 0.73 aces per game.
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