LANGLEY, B.C. – It was never going to be an easy weekend for the T-Birds, as they headed to the Langley Events Centre to take on the undefeated Trinity Western Spartans. In the battle of the No. 3 and No. 4 ranked teams in the country, it was the blue and gold who came out on top with a 3-1 win (25-17, 25-18, 19-25, 27-25).
Lucy Borowski dominated offensively with 21 kills and just four attack errors, while adding nine digs for good measure.
Aimee Skinner wasn't too far behind with 15 kills and 10 digs, while
Kylee Glanville had 13 kills, four digs and four blocks.
Maryn Boldon tallied 10 kills and a match-high 16 digs for the home team, while setter Tayana Dmitruk dished out 35 assists to go with three digs, five blocks and two aces.
The T-Birds' offence was electric in the opening set, as they racked up an incredible 17 kills on a .406 hitting percentage. Glanville led the way with five, while Borowski and Skinner each had four in a very well-rounded offensive attack.
UBC led wire-to-wire in the set, with a couple kills from
Leonora Barbulovich-Nad staking the visitors out to a 4-1 advantage. The Thunderbirds maintained a lead of around three to five points for much of the frame, before they reeled off a 6-0 run – capped by an
Issy Robertshaw ace – to go up 22-14.
A kill from each of their starting outside hitters ended the set at 25-17, with Glanville landing the finishing blow following a clean serve reception by Skinner and a nice back-set by Robertshaw.
It was the Spartans who came out hot to start the second, going up 7-4 before the T-Birds capitalized on a couple of errors by the home team to tie up the score. Skinner gave UBC their first lead of the set at 12-11 with her sixth kill of the match, one of the first points in a 13-4 run that blew the set wide open.
That run featured a number of Trinity Western attacks errors as well as some powerful kills by Borowski, putting the Spartans on their heels and unable to string more than two points together in a row.
Entering the third down 2-0 overall, the Spartans again came out with plenty of force. A kill by Sienna Driedger made it 10-5 for the home team, with the T-Birds going down by as many as eight points.
Elizabeth Lee provided a spark off the bench and landed back-to-back kills to cut the deficit to 15-12, but that was as close as UBC would get in the frame, as the veteran duo of Boldon and Kaylee Plouffe led the charge to keep their team alive with a 25-19 win.
The two teams traded points to begin the fourth, with neither side establishing a multi-point lead until Emma Graca made it 6-4 for the Spartans with a kill over the middle, followed by an ace from Plouffe.
The T-Birds responded immediately, following a TWU service error with an ace of their own by Skinner and a Borowski kill to draw even once again.
Both teams struggled to create any real separation from each other until the set neared its conclusion. That's when Barbulovich-Nad did just that as she dropped an ace into the middle of the Spartans' back row to make it 19-16 UBC and force a Trinity Western timeout.
The stoppage didn't quiet the T-Birds' momentum, as
Mackenzie Campbell set up Lee for a cross-court kill, before Borowski stepped into a swing to deliver a five-point advantage.
The night wasn't over just yet though, as the Spartans came roaring back. Plouffe staved off the first UBC set point with a kill to make it 24-23 UBC, and a Glanville attack error on the following play meant there would be some extra volleyball in the set.
In the end, the Thunderbirds prevailed 27-25, with a kill by Skinner followed by a Trinity Western attack error that put a pin in their unbeaten start to the season.
With just one match in this weekend, the Spartans will have to wait another week to try and avenge this defeat. The home-and-home regular season series concludes in Vancouver next Friday, November 21.
