VANCOUVER - The UBC Thunderbirds (3-3) are back at War Memorial Gym to host the Calgary Dinos (5-1) after an early bye week away from Canada West action. Both teams earned back-to-back home victories in their last series, and the Dinos will be coming in hot off of four straight wins. Game one is slated for 7:30 p.m. PT on Friday, November 15, with game two on Saturday, November 16, at 6:30 p.m. PT.
The 'Birds swept the Dinos a season ago, winning 3-2 and 3-0 on the road in Calgary to close out their 2018-2019 season on a high. Calgary native Matt Neaves put up a career high 21 kills in the five set win and added ten more the following match to go along with eight total blocks in the series win. Neaves currently sits third in the Canada West with 81 kills and is fourth with 188 total attacks.
Last Action
Prior to their bye week, UBC took down the Mount Royal Cougars (4-4) with back-to-back 3-1 victories in their home opening series at War Memorial Gym. The Thunderbirds cranked 28 service aces over the eight sets and were led by Coltyn Liu who blasted eight aces to add to his Canada West-best 21 aces to date. Second-year outside hitter Michael Dowhaniuk had a team-high 25 kills over the weekend and added six aces in the sweep.
Calgary hosted the MacEwan Griffins (1-5) last weekend, winning 3-0 and 3-1 to extend their win streak to four games. Former Thunderbird Mac McNicol put up 25 kills for the Dinos and added three aces, while Mitchell Higgin led Calgary with 11 total blocks. The Dinos have the second most total blocks in the conference with 53 and are third with 9.92 digs per set.
Coach's Take
UBC head coach Michael Hawkins recognizes the value of having an early bye week away from conference play.
"I think we're really fortunate for the timing of our bye," said Hawkins. "It's directly in the middle of our first semester of Canada West play, allowing us to objectively evaluate our first six matches while working on the things we need to improve on for our last 6 matches of 2019. It also gave our guys a chance to have an emotional/mental reset after the grind of midterms."
Hawkins expects to see some stiff competition from a well-tested Calgary squad.
"I think Calgary is always a difficult team to play against, as they've proved this season beating tough teams like TRU and Saskatchewan. They play tough defence and force you to score your points, so it poses a tough challenge that I'm confident we'll be up for."
