The Matchup

The UBC Thunderbirds (10-2) hope to begin the new year where 2017 left off, riding a four-match winning streak into the second half of the season which begins this weekend against the Manitoba Bisons (5-7) Friday and Saturday, January 5 and 6 at War Memorial Gym.

The 'Birds enter 2018 as the second-ranked team in the country while tied with the No. 3 Calgary Dinos for top spot in the Canada West.



While aiming to keep their current win streak alive, the 'Birds are also hoping to remain undefeated on home court, currently boasting a 6-0 record at War Memorial.

First serve Friday is set for 6:00 p.m. PT with Saturday's rematch at 5:00 p.m. PT.
 

Last Action

The T-Birds closed out 2017 with a weekend sweep over the Mount Royal Cougars in Calgary back in early December. UBC finished off the Cougars in straight sets on the Friday night before gutting out a five-set marathon the following day.

The Bisons dropped back-to-back four-set matches at home to Saskatchewan to close out the first half of the season. Prior to their series with the Huskies, Manitoba had posted four wins in their previous five matches.
 

By the Numbers

13.67 – UBC leads the Canada West with 13.67 kills per set. The T-Birds' conference leading offence is also bolstered by a .237 hitting percentage.

18 – The Thunderbirds have a sets win/loss differential of +18, tops in the conference. UBC has won more sets than any other team with 32 while tied with Calgary for the fewest sets dropped with 14.
 

Players to Watch

Alessandra Gentile (#17, Setter) – The fifth-year setter is currently fourth in the Canada West in assists per set with 8.96. Gentile led the 'Birds with 41 assists in their last conference match before the break, shortly after setting a season high 47 a week prior.



Samantha Patko (#2, Libero) – A big part of UBC's stellar defence, the fourth-year libero's 3.67 digs per set is good for sixth in the Canada West. The Kinesiology student has started every set this season for the 'Birds and set a new career high 26 digs in a five-set UBC win over MacEwan in November.
 

Coach's Take

It's been just over a month since the 'Birds last saw Canada West action, but UBC head coach Doug Reimer has been using a week of scrimmages with both the No. 1 Montreal Carabins and No. 3 Calgary Dinos to get re-tooled out of the break.

"I always find the first weekend of matches are pretty early and often it's not surprising that you'd see some inconsistent play coming off the exam break, at least historically that's been the case," said Reimer. "So I'm hoping that by diving right into a controlled but competitive approach that we can hit the ground running come Friday."

Finding themselves at the top of the Canada West standings at the halfway point of the season, the T-Birds know they need to kick things up a notch, especially against hungry competition gunning for wins against a top team.

"We want to make sure we're building off a successful first half and not giving away opportunities because there's a lot of parity in our conference," added Reimer. "Heading into the second half you need to be fine-tuning things as a group and you need to be just focused, improving consistency of play and reducing errors."