Matchup

Coming off their first loss of the season, the No. 2 ranked UBC Thunderbirds (7-1) are back at War Memorial Gym to face the MacEwan Griffins (1-7) Friday and Saturday, November 24 and 25.
 
Points are at a premium in the Canada West with four teams recording just a single loss to date, and the T-Birds will look to get back in the win column and stay in the upper echelon against the Griffins in a Friday matinee.
 


"I didn't feel that we played that well against UA last weekend," said UBC head coach Kerry MacDonald. "[I] expect a stronger performance from our guys this weekend."
 
The last time these two teams met the 'Birds picked up a pair of victories (3-1 and 3-0) in Edmonton.
 
First serve Friday is at 1:30 p.m. PT for a special elementary school student matinee. Saturday's match is set to begin at 6:30 p.m. PT.
 

Last Action

After extending their winning streak to seven straight with a 3-2 win over the Golden Bears last Friday, UBC dropped a 3-1 decision in Alberta on Saturday. Over the two-match series, Irvan Brar led all players with 34 kills, Joel Regehr had 14 kills and 10 blocks, while Byron Keturakis ripped 5 aces and picked up 15 digs.

MVB: 1-5 of the @USPORTSca Top 10 is all @CanadaWest #TheNewWest pic.twitter.com/BFqRYHXUo1

— Canada West (@CanadaWest) November 21, 2017

MacEwan earned their first victory of the season last weekend with a 3-2 win over Manitoba after losing to the Bisons in straight sets the day before.
 

By the Numbers

0.286 – UBC has the second highest hitting percentage in the Canada West behind the top-ranked Spartans.
 
9.94 –  the Griffins lead the league with almost 10 digs per set.
 

Players to Watch

Irvan Brar (#4, Left Side) – Through 32 sets of action, Brar is in the top attacking tier in the league with 126 kills (3.94 per set) and the third highest hitting percentage (0.326).
 


Fynn McCarthy (#11, Middle) – In his first season with the T-Birds, McCarthy has tallied 25 kills and 15 blocks. Coach MacDonald is happy with his progression so far. "We are very fortunate to have quite a bit of depth and Fynn has done well these past two weekends as a rookie middle blocker."
 

Coach's take

MacDonald isn't looking past the 11th place Griffins in such a tough conference.
 
"Every match in [Canada] West is important and there are no easy weekends," said the second-year head coach. "This weekend is just as important as the last and the next. In particular we need to do a better job from the service line."