Matchup
The UBC Thunderbirds are gearing up to defend their 2016-2017 U SPORTS National Championship title, and it all gets going this weekend in the Canada West Quarter-Final at War Memorial Gym. After finishing second in the division, the 20-4 'Birds will host the seventh-seeded Regina Cougars (12-12) in a best-of-three series starting Friday at 6:00 p.m. Game two is slated for Saturday at 6:00 p.m. and, if needed, a deciding game three will take place Sunday at 5:00 p.m. PT all on the Point Grey campus.
UBC boasts an impressive 12-1 record on home court this season, and has the highest home attendance total in all of U SPORTS. With his team entering the playoffs on a five-game win streak, T-Bird Head Coach
Doug Reimer hopes the home crowd will give his squad an added boost. "We have served great, improved our blocking and been more balanced offensively. I know we are comfortable serving and passing in our gym and it is nice to be at home."
The 'Birds certainly won't be
too comfortable with Regina coming to town - the Cougars demonstrated their resilience earlier this season by clawing back to pull off an improbable 3-2 win over UBC on February 2nd in Saskatchewan...after being down two sets to none
and facing a T-Bird match point. The reigning U SPORTS champions responded the following evening with a 3-1 victory over the Cougars, and haven't lost a single match since.
Last Action
A week ago, the Thunderbirds closed out the regular season in style - picking up a 3-1 and 3-0 sweep over the Saskatchewan Huskies at War Memorial Gym to solidify their second-place finish and eliminate the Huskies from the postseason.
Alessandra Gentile was recognized for her outstanding contributions to the UBC program over the past five years, and the starting setter will look to continue her strong form into her final Canada West playoffs beginning this weekend. Conversely, Regina dropped their final three matches of the season (including the loss to UBC), but will be well rested after sitting out the final week of play on a bye.
By the Numbers
1156 – Gentile's consistency as a veteran setter has been increasingly valuable to the T-Bird attack, as the Thunderbirds finished the regular season with the most assists (1156) and the most assists per set (12.30) in the country.
99 – With a 12-12 record coming into the postseason, the Cougars have totaled the most sets in all of U SPORTS - 10 of their 24 matches have gone the distance to five sets - an indication of Regina's persistence.
Players to Watch
Gabrielle Attieh – (#1, Middle) – The second-year Surrey, B.C. product has been an excellent starting middle for the T-Birds all season - both offensively and defensively. Attieh totaled the second most blocks on the roster with 60, while adding 201 kills and the third best hitting percentage in the Canada West at a 0.323 clip.
Kiera Van Ryk – (#3, Left side) – In her rookie regular season with the 'Birds, the 6'2 hitter finished in a tie for first in the Canada West with 352 kills, and averaged the second highest kills per set with 3.74. Van Ryk also racked up an impressive 226 digs and 47 blocks in her first year.
Coach's take
Coach Reimer knows his team is ready to face a tenacious Cougars squad who have demonstrated the ability to compete with top teams in the Canada West.
"There is no doubt you always need to respect your opponent and that fact is crystal clear to our team since the memory of playing Regina is fresh. Regina has had a great season and shown that they can play determined volleyball, and they are never out of it. The match we lost to them we were up 2-0 and had match point before they turned it around."
