Vancouver, BC - Saturday afternoon, the No. 1 ranked UBC women's volleyball team won the first of two contests this weekend against the University of Calgary Dinos with an authoritative 3-0 (25-17, 25-22, 25-11) win. With the victory UBC improves to 9-0, while the Dinos fall to 4-5 on the year.
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UBC immediately grabbed the momentum in the first set with a quick kill by
Abbey Keeping. In the front row, Keeping and
Mariah Bruinsma put-up strong blocks to deter Dino attacks, while
Rosie Schlagintweit championed the offense with four kills in the opening set. As play progressed, the 'Birds kept up this momentum, leading by six in the middle of the set. The Dinos struggled to respond to Thunderbird attacks and UBC's
Kirsty Setterlund kept Calgary guessing by alternating her sets across the court. After a five-person substitution late in the set by head coach
Doug Reimer, the 'Birds would close the set 25-17 with a commanding block by
Juliana Kaufmanis and
Mariah Bruinsma.
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UBC found itself first on the scoreboard in the second set with an ace by Kirtsy Setterlund. Early in the set, play was far more competitive than in the first, as the Dinos managed to fall into a comfortable rhythm. UBC responded with commanding attacks from
Alissa Coulter,
Lisa Barclay, and
Mariah Bruinsma.
Abbey Keeping came alive in the middle of the set, creating opportunities for the 'Birds through strong serves, consistent blocks, and hard attacks. The game was tied 16-16 and the scoreboard then oscillated between teams until the set ended with a block from
Alissa Coulter and
Mariah Bruinsma to put UBC ahead for good, winning the set 25-22.
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The Dinos went on a 3-0 run to start the third set. UBC answered and regained the lead as
Abbey Keeping and
Lisa Barclay led the 'Birds with fierce attacks, while libero
Briana Liau Kent established her defensive position, tallying seven digs by the end of the third set. In the middle of the set, the 'Birds were ahead by five with no intention of letting up. As the set continued, UBC strengthened their lead and after a kill by
Danielle Brisebois, UBC clinched the third set, 25-11.
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The 'Birds offense was led by
Rosie Schlagintweit,
Lisa Barclay, and
Abbey Keeping, who tallied 12, 9, and 9 kills, respectively. Barclay also led the team in digs, with 11;
Kirsty Setterlund contributed 35 assists.
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Ali Woolley led Calgary with 8 kills while Maura Hayes tallied 10 digs.
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Tomorrow, these two teams will face-off again at 1:00 pm at War Memorial Gymnasium. Come out and support your Thunderbirds or tune into
canadawest.tv to watch a live-stream of the game.Â