VANCOUVER – The UBC Thunderbirds downed the Calgary Dinos 3-0 (25-19, 25-15, 25-20) on Saturday evening for a weekend sweep at War Memorial Gym. With the win, the ‘Birds improve to 5-3 on the season, while the Dinos (0-8) are still in search of their first victory.
“I think we saw some real progress this weekend,” said UBC head Coach Doug Reimer. “We play a lot of tough teams in a long season, so we should be encouraged by how we rebounded this weekend. I was pleased with the number of contributions we got from a lot of different people.”
A run midway through the opening set turned the tides for the home team. Tied at 12-12, the T-Birds went on a 4-1 run, taking a three point lead into the technical timeout. It was an edge the ‘Birds would not relinquish, as they took the opening set 25-19.
UBC jumped out to a 10-7 lead in the second set, before Calgary’s Autumn Davidson stepped up and delivered two clutch aces. The Dinos then came all the way back to tie it at 12-12, but the T-Birds used a mid-set run to pull away and took a 16-12 lead into the technical timeout. The ‘Birds continued to pour on a relentless attack and captured the second set 25-15.
The third set was another back-and-forth affair early on, but the Dinos broke through to snag a 12-10 lead forcing UBC to use a timeout. Calgary’s momentum continued out of the break as Trinity Solecki added a pair of kills to her total and the Dinos led 16-12 at the technical timeout.
The teams exchanged points down the stretch until the ‘Birds brought in Kacey Jost, who up 20-19, delivered not one but two crucial aces to extend her teams’ lead to three. The T-Birds pulled away as Heather Pippus dropped an ace to propel UBC to a 25-20 victory.
“Coming back from 16-12 I thought was key,” said Reimer. “I thought Calgary was still coming after it. We needed better focus and energy, and that started with our body language.”
Gabrielle Attieh led the T-Birds with a game-high 17 kills, while Jayde Robertsen and Courtney Hillier added nine kills apiece. The Solecki sisters came out on top for the Dinos, as Trinity Solecki had a team high six kills while Rachel Solecki totalled five kills.
The ‘Birds remain at home to host the Thompson Rivers University WolfPack for a special Thunderstruck event next Friday, while Calgary heads to Regina to take on the Cougars.
[SOURCE: UBC]