VANCOUVER – The No. 6-ranked UBC Thunderbirds women's volleyball team (9-1) will host a pair of games against the MacEwan Griffins (3-7) this weekend in Vancouver.
 
The T-Birds experienced their first loss of the regular season when they fell 3-1 to the Mount Royal Cougars (5-5) last Saturday. 
 
After shutting out the Cougars the night prior and securing their ninth straight victory, Saturday night's matchup was a hard-fought four set contest that could have gone either way.?The team got 17 kills from Juliana Kaufmanis (Richmond B.C.), 14 from Danielle Brisebois (Bolton, Ont.) and 34 assists from Alessandra Gentile (Port Moody, B.C.), but it wasn't enough to edge the Cougars for a second time. 
 
UBC's excellent offensive performance has been on display all season long, as the team has outscored its opponents 631.5 to 435.5.
 
Currently ranked first in Canada for kills per set (13.62) and points per set (18.6), fourth in hitting percentage (.252) and seventh in total kills (463), the Thunderbirds have shown scoring depth.
 
Brisebois has a team-leading 124 kills and is currently ranked seventh in the country with 4.6 points per set. Veteran Alissa Coulter (Calgary) has 85 kills, averaging 2.83 per set. Gentille has logged an impressive 319 assists, 10th nationwide, and is averaging 9.38 assists per set. 
 
While the Griffins haven't been victorious since October 30, it has been largely due to the calibre of opponents. Their last four matches were against the Trinity Western Spartans (10-0) and the Alberta Pandas (10-0), who are tied for first in Canada.
 
UBC will be on the lookout for Griffin's point leader Cassidy Kinsella, who has 135 kills and 150.5 points so far this season. She is also third in Canada with 406 total attacks. 
 
MacEwan has relied heavily on a talented trio of third-year players, including Kinsella, Michelle Bodnarek (68 kills) and Jasey Hook (56 Kills).
The teams will first meet at 6 p.m. (PT) on Friday and again at 5 p.m. (PT) on Saturday. Both games will be played at UBC's War Memorial Gym. 
 
Last season, MacEwan won both matches, at home in Edmonton, against the Thunderbirds.