CALGARY – The UBC Thunderbirds will not be heading back to a third straight Canada West final after falling in four sets (15-25, 25-20, 25-23, 25-22) to the Calgary Dinos Saturday night, losing the best-of-three semifinal series in two matches, both in four sets.
Like game one, the Dinos found themselves trailing after a difficult first set at Jack Simpson Gym. The home side found a way to respond to win three consecutive sets to close out their Canada West semi-final series.
"We showed some high-end play, especially in the first set and we had several strong individual performances while (
Olivia Furlan) ran the offence well," said UBC head coach
Doug Reimer. "If it wasn't for the obvious fact we missed far too many serves in the first three sets, we probably could have had a different result."
Calgary will now have the chance to defend their conference title, matching up against the Trinity Western Spartans next week while the T-Birds will next face game action at the U SPORTS national championship hosted by the Alberta Pandas in two weeks' time.
In the first set, the Dinos defence was not at its best, and the Thunderbirds made them pay. UBC collected 14 kills in the opening set while holding the home team to only five. Calgary ended the first with seven service errors, compared to just two by UBC as they took the set 25-15.
Strong serving by Emma Kastelein and Hannah Tanasichuk gave the Dinos a five-point lead in the early moments of the second set. The Thunderbirds closed the gap to two by the technical timeout and had the Jack Simpson Gym on edge as they were within striking distance of taking a 2-0 lead in the match.
With senior setter Leah Shevkenek at the line, the Dinos went on a run and closed out the set with a 25-20 win.
The pace did not slow down in the third with the Dinos and Thunderbirds exchanging leads throughout the set. UBC was in front by as many as four points, but ultimately had their worst hitting performance of the night in the frame, finishing at .220. The Dinos tied the game at 22-22 and later at 23-23 before scoring the final two points of the set to win 25-23.
The Dinos dominated for portions of the fourth set, but a massive run by the Thunderbirds kept everyone on their toes until the final play. With Calgary leading 21-12, the visiting team scored six straight points to make it a three-point game.
The Thunderbirds cut the deficit to two, but that was as close as they came. The series would end with a huge block and eventually a kill by Beth Vinnell.
Calgary was led offensively by Tanasichuk, who ended the night with 14 kills. UBC's
Kiera Van Ryk finished with a game-high 22 kills.
The two Canada West rivals may possibly met yet again at the national championship in Edmonton which begins Friday, March 15.
