Men’s Rugby
The Trinity Western Spartans men’s rugby 15s team fell 31-13 against the Surrey Beavers Friday at Sullivan Heights Park.
With a try, two penalties and one conversion Ethan Kelt (Port Coquitlam, B.C.) scored all of the Spartans points in the match.
It was just the second Spartans 15s match since re-launching the Rugby program that competed from 1988 to 2004.
Andy Evans – TWU Head Coach
“They’ve been a powerhouse in the BC first division for the last number of years. We knew we’d be in tough against them. Josh Halladay (White Rock, B.C.) was outstanding at tight head, prop and second row. Erik Niebuhr (Surrey, B.C.) was also phenomenal in the scrum and around the field with tackling.
“Defensively we were strong for most of the game, but Surrey was able to score off of our turnovers on our attack where we gave them the ball a bit too easily. Overall it was a positive game for us as they put us under a lot of pressure which we need as we prepare for Saint Mary’s in California on January 4th.”
NOTABLE
- The Spartans were coming off their first 15s match since re-launching the rugby program, a 43-20 win against UBC Okanagan three weeks ago (Nov. 2) in Kelowna.
- The previous iteration of TWU men’s rugby program competed from 1988 to 2004 and as a varsity program from 1996 until 2004.
- Formed in May 1970, the Surrey Beavers were one of the founding members of the Fraser Valley Rugby Union in 1973-1974.
NEXT UP
The Spartans take on Vancouver Island next Friday (Nov. 29) at the Langley Events Centre Northwest Field.
Men’s Volleyball
A career night from Eric Loeppky (Steinbach, Man.) propelled the Trinity Western men’s volleyball team to a straight sets victory over the visiting Saskatchewan Huskies Friday at the Langley Events Centre.
Loeppky set the TWU record in the first set, earning his 130th career ace and surpassing Spartan alum Josh Howatson (2003-2007) in the process.
With the win the Spartans regular season record improves to 8-1 on the season, while the loss drops Saskatchewan to 5-4.
Loeppky led the Spartans attack on the night, finishing with 10 kills, five serving aces and two digs on .833 hitting. Jacob Kern (Edmonton) added eight kills, three aces and five digs, while Derek Epp (Saskatoon, Sask.) had a game-high 20 assists in the win.
The Huskies were led by Dylan Mortensen’s five kills and three digs, along with 10 assists from CJ Gavlas.
Loeppky guided the Spartans in the first set, adding four kills and two serving aces as TWU took the first set 25-19.
TWU kept rolling into the second set, scoring 10 straight points to take a 13-4 lead before ultimately taking the second set 25-14.
Into the third set the Huskies provided some pushback, with both teams trading points up to 10-10.
The Spartans then went on to outscore Saskatchewan 15-7 to take the game in straight-sets and earn their seventh consecutive victory.
TWU has now won 21 straight sets and have dropped a mere three sets through nine games this season.
The Spartans held a .386 hitting percentage compared to Saskatchewan’s .226 in the match.
Women’s Volleyball
The Trinity Western Spartans women’s volleyball team dropped their first game of the season Friday night, falling 3-1 to the Saskatchewan Huskies at the Langley Events Centre.
The No. 1 ranked Spartans falls to 8-1 on the season with the loss, while Saskatchewan moves to 7-2.
Hilary Howe (Calgary) had a game-high 14 kills, while Emma Gamache (Abbotsford, B.C.) chipped in with a team-high 12 digs for TWU.
Spartans setter Dora Komlodi (Calgary) added 32 assists in the losing effort.
Emily Koshinsky led the Huskies with game-highs in kills with 18 and digs with eight. Huskies outside hitter Olivia Mattern added 12 kills while hitting .364.
The first set was a back and forth affair, with each team trading points throughout the entire set up to 19-19 before TWU pulled ahead and took it 25-21.
Into the second set, despite coming out to a 7-3 lead before the Spartans came back to tie it midway through the set 14-14, the Huskies pulled ahead and handed TWU just their second lost set of the season winning 25-21.
The third set saw Saskatchewan continue rolling, coming out to an early lead and never looking back, winning it 25-18.
Into the fourth set was much of the same, as the Huskies hit .267 compared to the Spartans .167 and took the final set 25-21 to hand TWU its first loss of the season.
Saskatchewan hit .259 compared to TWU’s .198 through the match.
Men’s Basketball
The Trinity Western Spartans men’s
basketball team fell 112-74 on the road against the Calgary Dinos on Friday at the Jack Simpson Gym.
With a number
of key names out of the lineup, the Dinos improved their record to 5-0,
while handing the Spartans their fifth straight loss to open the season.
Ja’Qualyn Gilbreath (Amarillo, Tex.) who led the charge with 15 points and four rebounds. Isaiah Reimer (Abbotsford, B.C.) and Gabe Mannes (Chilliwack, B.C.) were also key players for the Spartans and offered up 13 and 12 points apiece.
After a slow
start to the game with only six points scored between the teams in the
opening three minutes, the Dinos turned up the heat to go up 17-2
against the Spartans just over halfway through the quarter. Mason
Foreman and
Brett Layton led Calgary through the quarter with six and seven points
apiece.
The Dinos
continued rolling through the second quarter as Layton had already
posted a double-double heading into halftime. The Spartans closed off
the first half with a 30-point deficit.
Foreman led the charge for Calgary in the third as he posted 13 points to see the Dinos extend their lead to 42 points.
While TWU struggled through the first three quarters, they came to play in the fourth, outscoring the Dinos by four. The Dinos struggled through the final 10 minutes of play, however they ended the night with a comfortable 112-74 win over the Spartans.
Leading the Dinos was the trio of Foreman, Layton and Jackson Bayles. Foreman offered up 30 points and 14 boards. Brett Layton shot 84.6% from the field and finished the night off with 23 points and 12 boards, while Jackson Bayles collected 18 points.
Women’s Basketball
In a close-fought battle, the Trinity Western Spartans
women’s basketball team fell 69-61 on Friday night at the Jack Simpson Gym.
The Dinos maintained their perfect record to open the season and improved to 5-0, while the Spartans fell to 1-4.
Reigning Canada West rookie of the year Nicole Fransson (Edmonton) and third-year guard Kianna Wiens (Regina, Sask.) led the Spartans with 16 points each, with Fransson hauling down a career-high 17 rebounds, 10 of which were offensive.
Both teams saw a slow start in the first quarter, with the Dinos coming out on top 14-9 after an 8-3 run in the last half. Both teams were matched for 10 rebounds, but the Dinos defence had the edge with six steals and nine forced turnovers.
In
the second quarter, the Spartans closed the gap with 18 rebounds, 10 of
which were offensive. A 7-2 run in the last two minutes let the
Spartans
lead in points (17-15), but the Dinos still ended the first half on top
with 29-26.
The Dinos
widened the margin in the third quarter with an impressive 61.1 field
goal percentage and a 12-3 run late in the quarter. The Spartans were
outshot 16-4 in the paint.
The Spartans battled closely in the fourth quarter, managing to outscore the Dinos 19-16 in total points, thanks to 6 points each from Fransson and Wiens. Despite the edge in points, three-pointers from Erin McIntosh and Sascha Lichtenwald sealed the deal for the Dinos.
For
Calgary, Sascha Lichtenwald led with 17 points, while Erin McIntosh,
Liene Stalidzane, and Michaela Nieuwenhuizen scooped up 12 points each.
