VANCOUVER - The no. 1 ranked UBC Thunderbirds (20-0) begin their playoff journey this weekend with a trip to Winnipeg for the Canada West Final Four hosted by the University of Manitoba.
The T-Birds begin their Canada West title defence against the no. 5 ranked Regina Cougars (13-7, 2-0) in the second of two CW semi-final matches scheduled for Friday, February 26 (6:00 p.m. PST). Also joining the T-Birds and Cougars in Winnipeg are the no. 3 ranked Manitoba Bisons (15-5) and no. 4 ranked TWU Spartans (13-7) who face-off in the first semi-final at 4:00 p.m.
Regina opened their post-season last weekend with a convincing sweep of the no. 6 Brandon Bobcats on the road in the CW quarterfinals. Both the Bisons and Spartans earned equally dominant victories over the Calgary Dinos and Alberta Pandas, respectively.
On the line this weekend will be the title of Canada West Champions as well as a berth at the CIS National Championship scheduled for March 5 to 7 in Edmonton. The three medalists from this weekend's Final Four will join the the host's from Alberta to make up one half of the CIS Championship field.
The T-Birds will need at least one win this weekend, either in their semi-final on Friday or their medal game on Saturday, in order to earn a spot at the CIS Championship and the right to defend their CIS titles from 2008 and 2009.
Even though his team has found a way to come out on top in every CIS match so far this season, UBC head coach
Doug Reimer is taking nothing for granted heading into an extremely competitive CW Final Four that features four of the top five teams in the nation.
"The top four teams definitely made it to Winnipeg. Everyone is playing at a very high level and it is going to be key for us to win that first game," said Reimer. "The adversity of going on the road for the Final Four is something that maybe we can utilize as a positive thing as we try to achieve our goals this season."
Although this weekend will feature some of the top teams in the nation, there is no denying the dominance UBC has displayed so far this season.
The T-Birds lead the conference in hitting percentage (.275), opponent hitting percentage (.110), assists (12.54/game), kills (13.48/game), blocks (2.60/game), and are second in service aces (1.64/game).
Depth and breath have been key to UBC's success this year, as they boast a well-rounded and deep roster that has players excelling in every facet of the game.
Fifth-year outside
Liz Cordonier is one of the most dynamic attackers in the nation and she spearheads the T-Birds vaunted attack, ranking third in the CW in kills (3.37/game), fifth in service aces (0.36/game), and eighth in hitting percentage (.281).
Cordonier doesn't have to do it all herself, however, as UBC's lineup features five players averaging more than 1.50 kills per game.
Kyla Richey and
Shanice Marcelle are the T-Birds other primary attackers, while middles
Jen Hinze and
Jessica von Schilling are ultra consistent up the middle.
Hinze leads the conference with a .395 hitting percentage, more than 76 points ahead of her nearest competitor, while von Schilling sits third at .318. The duo combine for more than four kills per game and anchor UBC's CIS-leading block. Von Schiling is second in the conference with 1.21 blocks per game while Hinze is tied for sixth with Richey at 1.07 per game.
Directing the UBC attack is fifth-year setter
Katie Tyzuk who ranks second in the CW with 9.94 assists per game while another senior,
Claire Hanna, is the conference's reigning Libero of the Year.
Trying to thwart UBC's chances at defending their CW title, the Cougars bring to the table one of the conference's best attackers and arguably a defence that nearly matches the top-ranked 'Birds.
Beth Clark is the key on offence of the Cougars. She ranks fourth in the CW with 3.29 kills per game and second with a .319 hitting percentage. Megan Onstad is Regina's next best weapon and she is averaging 2.87 kills per game, however, outside of Clark, no Cougar is hitting above .250 on the season.
As a squad, the Cougars only rank sixth in kills (11.62/game) and seventh in hitting percentage (.167) but what they lack in offensive explosiveness, they more than make up for with a tenacious defence.
Regina ranks second behind UBC in opponent hitting percentage (.134), second in digs (15.49/game), and a respectable sixth in blocks (1.95/game).
"Regina is probably the best team, player-for-player, in terms of serving and they play great team defence," noted Reimer of his squad's semi-final opponent. "When we played them earlier this year they did a great job in both of those areas. Our passing is going to have to be on as that allows us to get our offence rolling. We can't get frustrated as they aren't going to make it easy on us."
Libero Rebecca Rink leads Regina with 3.76 digs per game, good enough for fourth in the CW, and their roster features eight players averaging more than 1.10 digs per game. Clark anchors the Cougar block, sitting eighth in the league with 1.03 per game, and is also the team's most dangerous server averaging 0.34 aces per game. As a team, Regina sits third in the conference with 1.62 service aces per game.
The winners of Friday's semi-final matches will meet in the Canada West Championship game on Saturday (6:00 p.m. PST) while the losers will tangle in a do-or-die bronze medal affair (4:00 p.m.). All the games will be webcast by the Bisons
HERE.
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