VANCOUVER - The UBC Thunderbirds (0-6) return home to the friendly confines of War Memorial Gym after two straight weekends on the road to host the Manitoba Bisons (2-2) for a two game set on Friday at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday at 5:30 p.m. (PST). UBC will be looking to get in the win column against a rested Bisons squad who split their previous regular season head-to-head series with the 'Birds. These two teams also met in last season's Canada West Quarter-Final, when UBC won 3-1 & 3-0 en route to the national U SPORTS title.
 

Last Action

 
UBC took on the U SPORTS No. 2 ranked Bobcats last weekend and fell 3-0, 3-1 to the Canada West powerhouse in Brandon. James Takken led the T-Bird attack with 22 kills on the weekend while Danny Aspenlieder added 16 kills with 9 digs. Setter Ben Hooker racked up 62 assists over seven sets of action on the road.
 
Manitoba is coming off a bye week, but swept MacEwan 3-1, 3-0 on home court two weeks ago for their first two victories in Canada West play. Fourth-year right side Kevin Negus had a monster performance over the series win with 45 kills to improve his average to a conference-high 4.69 kills per set.

 

By the Numbers

 
237 – The T-Birds' attack has totalled 237 kills over 6 matches to date - good for third in the conference - with James Takken topping the roster at 45 kills in just 15 sets played.
 
322 – UBC has totalled the second most points of any team in the Canada West - just behind the Canada West's top team University of Alberta who hold a 5-1 record on the season.


 

Players to Watch

 
James Takken – (#5, Outside Hitter) – Takken has made an impact in his rookie season as a Thunderbird after coming to B.C. from Australia. The first-year outside hitter averages a team-high 3.00 kills per set while adding 18 digs and 5 blocks.
 
Tyson Smith – (#16, Libero) – In his third year with UBC, the Surrey native starting libero is fifth in the Canada West with 40 digs so far this season. The 'Birds' 193 digs is the 3rd highest total in the conference.
 

Coach's take

 
UBC Head Coach Mike Hawkins liked how his team responded following a difficult loss on the road.
 
"It was a tough weekend in Brandon against a strong, veteran team. After a poor performance by our team on Friday night, I thought the guys came to the gym Saturday with clear intent and much better preparation for our game plan and how we wanted to execute. Though we didn't get the result I thought we deserved on Saturday, it was a massive opportunity for growth on how we need to prepare – coaches and athletes – for each training session and match. We left the weekend a significantly better team."
 
Coach Hawkins is looking forward to another opportunity to fire on all cylinders against the Bisons and pick up a victory.
 
"Manitoba is going to be a good test for our group. They have some athletic outside attackers, but I'm confident that if we come with the same level of preparedness throughout the week of training and into our two matches as we did last Saturday, that we should leave the weekend happy with our play with some positive results. It's been a tough start to our season so far, but the guys have been working hard and have been focusing on developing in all areas and we're looking forward to starting off the second half of the first semester strong."