Vancouver - The surging UBC Thunderbirds (13-7) are back at War Memorial Gym this weekend to host the Winnipeg Wesmen (4-16) in their final regular season home series with a special Thunderstruck Festival on Friday, February 8 at 7:00 p.m. In addition to the fantastic Thunderstruck festivities, graduating seniors Victoria Behie, Samantha Patko, Ciara Hanly and Danae Shephard will be recognized Friday night for their contributions to the UBC volleyball program. Game two of the Canada West showdown is slated for 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 9.


 
Thunderstruck will be packed with prizes - including a brand new Santa Ono bobblehead giveaway to the first 300 fans at the game, a draw to win a $250 gift certificate to the UBC Bookstore and a week-long social media contest for a chance to win James Bay tickets. Furthermore, the supremely talented Thunderbird dance team will perform after the second set and the "Man In Motion" himself, Rick Hansen, will be in attendance to present the Rick Hansen Difference Maker Award.
 
UBC is coming off their most impressive series of the season and are still within striking distance of hosting a Canada West quarter-final series come playoff time. With 26 points, the 'Birds' five-game win streak has put them just one win behind the third and fourth seeds - Alberta and Regina each sit at 28 points - with two games in hand on Regina. The T-Birds are playing their best volleyball of the season with four pivotal matches remaining in the regular season.
 
Winnipeg is currently tied for eleventh place in the Canada West and has been eliminated from postseason contention following a three-game losing streak. The Wesmen have yet to win a single set against the Thunderbirds since November 13, 2015 and have lost seven straight matches to the T-Birds.


 

Last Action

 
Prior to their bye week, the 'Birds travelled to Langley to face the first-place Trinity Western Spartans and stunned the Canada West powerhouse with a pair of road wins against the former No. 1-ranked team. UBC won 3-1 & 3-0 in an upset over the first seed in the Canada West to snap the Spartans' 18-match regular season win streak and hand them their first losses of the season. Kiera Van Ryk put up a team-high 36 kills and seven aces, while fifth-year Victoria Behie had 12 kills with five aces through seven sets.
 
The Wesmen were swept last weekend by the Manitoba Bisons, 3-0 and 3-2, with second-year  left side Emma Parker leading Winnipeg with a massive 32 kills and 37 digs over the eight sets.


 

Players to Watch

 
Kiera Van Ryk – (#3, Outside Hitter) – The Canada West women's athlete of the month for January continues to lead the league with 4.60 kills per set and 0.80 service aces per set in her second season with UBC. Defensively, Van Ryk's 159 total digs is tops on the Thunderbird roster while her 37 total blocks is third most on the team.
 
Samantha Patko – (#20, Libero) – In her fifth and final season with the T-Birds, the standout libero has averaged a team-high 2.55 digs per set and the third most assists per set with 0.57. Patko picked up an impressive 25 digs in seven sets of action against Trinity Western last weekend.


 

Coach's take

 
"We are looking forward to an exciting weekend for a number of reasons," says UBC Head Coach Doug Reimer.  "The chance to try and build off our best weekend of the year against TWU, and our last regular season home games...therefore the time to recognize our four graduating seniors – hopefully in front of an enthusiastic crowd during the Thunderstruck feature on Friday night."
 
Reimer knows the significance of earning a good result against Winnipeg with playoffs on the horizon.
 
"It's obviously a key weekend, as want to give ourselves a chance to play the Canada West [quarter-finals] at home. We will have to bring a consistent and high level of play against the Wesmen, who have competed very hard against all teams evidenced by their most recent close five set loss to Manitoba."