CALGARY – The UBC Thunderbirds pulled out a dramatic five-set victory in Calgary Saturday night, clinching a weekend sweep of the Dinos. The wins gave UBC head coach
Kerry MacDonald a successful return to the Jack Simpson Gym where he was part of the Dinos coaching staff for the better part of a decade. With the 3-2 (25-19, 25-12, 18-25, 26-28, 15-17) win, UBC jumps to 12-6 on the season and sole possesion of fourth place in the Canada West standings. The Dinos drop to 7-11.
In the first two sets, the Calgary were able to edge out the 'Birds with the game looking like it would end in a 3-0 sweep for the Dinos. In the third set, however, the T-Birds capitalized on attack and service errors with key kills to change the trajectory of the game. Led by
Irvan Brar (17 kills, 7 digs), UBC would win a close fourth set and eventually seal the deal in the fifth.
"Our guys showed a lot of character to again battle back from being down 2-0," said MacDonald. 'There is obviously concern in our execution at times tonight but this group is resilient and learnt a lot of lessons this weekend."
Riding a four game winning streak and now nestled firmly in a playoff position, the 'Birds take a bye next weekend before a two week home stand where they face Regina and Alberta on successive weekends. The home dates will go a long way in determining the Thunderbirds playoff seeding and if they will start the second season on the road or at War Memorial Gym.
