VANCOUVER - After earning a split against the second-ranked Calgary Dinos last weekend, the UBC Thunderbirds (4-10) still have a shot at a Canada West playoff spot. With two road games against the always strong Alberta Golden Bears looming following this weekend, the T-Birds will need to make the most of this week's home series against the no. 10 ranked Manitoba Bisons (5-8) if they want to keep their playoff hopes alive. Game times are 8:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday night at War Gym.
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A look at the Thunderbirds
The T-Birds got a big lift against Calgary last week with the return of team kills-leader
Demijan Savija, who has been injured for much of the season. UBC looked like a much better team than a 4-10 record would suggest with Savija back on the court, as he led the 'Birds to an upset of the second-ranked Dinos in game one with 19 kills and six aces.
That was a big win for the T-Birds because with just four games remaining they have to pass both Manitoba and Saskatchewan in the standings to make the playoffs, both of whom have five wins heading into this weekend. Manitoba has one game in-hand over UBC, while Saskatchewan has two, making things even tougher on the 'Birds as they will need some help to grab a playoff spot. Furthermore, the T-Birds play the 11-3 Alberta Golden Bears on the road to close out the season.
The T-Birds have struggled defensively, as their opponent hitting percentage of .263 is the second-highest in the conference. Their blocking has been surprisingly good though, ranking second in Canada West with 2.73 blocks-per-game. Savija and
Joe Cordonier have both been instrumental in the block effort, each averaging about one block-per-game.
Another bright spot of the T-Bird defence has been libero
Blair Bann, who is head-and-shoulders above the rest of the conference with 3.44 digs-per-game.
A look at the Bisons
Manitoba played Alberta tough last week but still ended up losing both matches (3-2, 3-1), allowing the T-Birds to gain some ground on them in the standings. They are a half-game back of Saskatchewan and a playoff spot right now, so they will be just as desperate for wins as UBC this weekend.
Their offence ranks second-last in Canada West with a .214 hitting percentage, but solid defence has kept them in games this year. The Bisons rank fourth in both opponent hitting percentage and team blocking. Steve Goertzen leads the team in blocking, averaging just over one per game. He's had a solid offensive year as well, as he is the only Bison with a hitting percentage better than .254. Goertzen is hitting .407 on the year with just over two kills-per-game.
Dane Pischke and Chris Voth get the majority of the swings on offence, each having been set just over 370 times this year. Pischke leads the team with 3.12 kills-per-game, while Voth averages 2.82.
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