VANCOVUER - It took a nail-biting five sets, but the UBC Thunderbirds women's volleyball team did enough on Saturday night to top the Brandon Bobcats 3-2 at War Memorial Gym. Coupled with their straight sets win from last night, the T-Birds will now advance to the Canada West Final Four.

The final set scores for Saturday's contest were 25-22, 22-25, 24-26, 25-17, and 15-12.

Like the match, the final set went down to the wire. With her 'Birds up 14-12 in the final frame, UBC outside hitter Laura MacTaggart (Lacombe, Alta.) went off the block and out for the win, capping a terrific performance from the sophomore that saw her record 11 kills, six digs, and an ace.

"You're definitely picking the right player," said UBC head coach Doug Reimer when asked about MacTaggart's performance. "Laura's energy and athleticism provided some real jump for us tonight. Sh's played like a starter, and been key in both wins this weekend."

Late in the first set, it was MacTaggart that gave UBC their first lead of the contest, as her dime of an ace put the 'Birds up 20-19 after Brandon had dictated much of the play in the early going. That ace from MacTaggart proved part of an 8-3 run for the 'Birds that ended with them up 24-22.

Danielle Brisebois (Bolton, Ont.) ended the set quickly after that, delivering a bullet kill, one of her game-high 14, to give the Blue and Gold the 25-22 decision.

Early in the second frame, two kills apiece from Gillian Leech and Breanne Sytnyk helped Brandon climb out to a 13-10 lead.

The 'Birds did well to rebound, and four Brandon attacking errors proved huge, as the two sides battled to a 19-19 deadlock.

Behind a couple of kills from captain Shanlee McLennan, Brandon regained control of the match late. With the Bobcats up 24-22, a Brisebois kill just missed the back corner, and Brandon took the second set.

With the two teams knotted up at 24-24, the third set came down to service execution. With the 'Birds in possession of the ball, senior Alissa Coulter (Calgary) hit the net on the serve, and then, taking over, Sytnyk stepped up and dropped an ace right into the heart of the 'Birds receive formation, giving Brandon the win.

The two sides went back-and-forth in the fourth frame, with the 'Birds sitting on a 12-11 advantage early, and a set of back-to-back Brisebois kills helped the Blue and Gold take a 16-13 lead into the technical timeout.

The 'Birds continued to push in the later stages of the set, and a 9-4 run, a stretch that saw Juliana Kaufmanis (Richmond, B.C.) put down three kills, gave UBC the 25-17 decision.

The 'Birds will now head up to Kelowna next week, as they're set to face the No. 1-ranked UBC Okanagan Heat on Friday at 6 p.m. in the conference semifinals.

They're a very experienced team, and a good team," said Reimer. "But It's one match, and I think we've proven this season, that at our best, we can play with anybody. We just have to find our best next week."