Fraser Valley (Dan Kinvig) – Women’s Volleyball: Fifth-set comeback lifts Heat past Cascades
The UBC Okanagan Heat made a stunning fifth-set comeback, staving off three match points on their way to victory over the University of the Fraser Valley women’s volleyball team on Saturday evening in Abbotsford.
The Cascades appeared to be in control in the fifth set, leading 14-11, only to watch the Heat reel off four straight points and eventually close out the match (25-22, 22-25, 20-25, 25-19, 17-15).
The Cascades (5-10) and Heat (8-5) clash again on Monday (3 p.m., UFV Athletic Centre) in the regular-season finale for UFV.
“I think our athletes are still working towards figuring out our identity in tight games and big games,” UFV assistant coach Katie Ball analyzed afterward. “The more experience we have with them, the more sure they’ll feel of themselves in those situations.”
The Cascades had a solid start to the match, opening a 6-3 lead in the first set behind an Alicja Hardy-Francis service run. The Heat answered with a four-point surge of their own, and it was closely contested the rest of the way. But with the score tied 22-22, UBCO got a kill from Sydney Grills and benefitted from a pair of UFV attacking errors to take the set 25-22. The Heat’s Jade Bussard led all players with five kills in the set.
Amanda Matsui got going in the second set for UFV, notching five kills of her own in the frame, and the Cascades were able to pull away late to take it 25-22, capped by a Hardy-Francis block.
Matsui continued to cook in the third set, and key kills down the stretch from Kristen McBride and Mo Likness helped the hosts to a 25-20 victory.
The Heat were on fire to start the fourth, taking a 10-4 lead after back-to-back kills from Kendall Stephen and Natalie Funk. They stretched that advantage to 23-15, and while a four-point UFV run featuring a pair of Matsui kills with McBride at the service line gave the Cascades momentary hope, Bussard blasted consecutive kills to extend the match, 25-19.
The Cascades dominated the early portion of the fifth, building an 8-3 lead at the technical timeout, and they were up 14-11 after a Bussard service error. But the next four points went the Heat’s way, with Grills registering a pair of kills. While UFV was able to survive one match point, UBCO made good on the second as a Grills ace ended it 17-15.
Matsui had a big night for the Cascades, racking up a game-high 25 kills on .422 hitting, to go with 16 digs. Sadie Wilson contributed seven kills, and Emily Matsui and Kristen McBride posted 15 digs apiece.
Bussard (17 kills) and Grills (15 kills) were the most potent members of the Heat, and setter Abigail Dueck registered 39 assists.
“This is a (UBCO) team that loves to swing . . . and they have a bunch of threats,” Ball said afterward, noting that the Cascades did a lot of good things against a tough Heat squad. “I think that our middle blockers did a great job of reading their offence and getting their hands in the right spot. We had some pretty cool blocking performances from Mo and Alicja. I think our outsides found their swing against really big blockers, and that was cool to see. That’s a big step for our team – playing against teams that have three huge blockers in the front row and still having the courage to put the ball away.”
The Cascades honoured their three graduating seniors – Amanda Matsui, Stephanie Demeules and Sadie Wilson – over the course of their home games this week.
“What they’ve meant to the program is, they had the courage to stick with the program in the jump from college to U SPORTS,” UFV head coach Janelle Rozema said, reflecting on the contributions of the graduating trio. “They rose to a new challenge and were the leaders who have led this group on a tough endeavor.”
Men’s Volleyball: Cascades break through, douse Heat in five sets for first CW victory
After a litany of close calls this season, the University of the Fraser Valley men’s volleyball team finally broke through and tasted victory.
The Cascades earned their first-ever Canada West conference win in their 15th attempt, outlasting the UBC Okanagan Heat in a five-set thriller (26-24, 23-25, 23-25, 25-20, 15-10) at the UFV Athletic Centre on Saturday evening.
Head coach Nathan Bennett’s squad had been on the verge so many times this season – they’d played four five-set matches prior to Saturday, only to be met with heartbreak each time.
This time it was different, and the Cascades carved out their long-awaited slice of history.
“Having been in this situation a few times already, I think the moment was finally not too big for us,” Bennett said afterward. “We were ready to go. It was nice to see, and the crowd support we got was phenomenal – it really gave energy to our team.
“It’s been a grind of a year, honestly, looking at the standings after every weekend and seeing that goose egg beside our name. I just know that we’re a better team than what the results have been showing, and I’m really, really pleased for the guys. They deserve this, and it sets the table for what’s to come here in the future.”
The Cascades (1-14) and Heat (6-7) clash again on Monday afternoon (1 p.m., UFV Athletic Centre) in the regular-season finale for the UFV squad.
The result moved the Cascades just ahead of the MacEwan Griffins (1-15) in the race for the last Canada West wildcard playoff berth.
The hosts started the match strong, building an 8-5 lead in the first set, but the Heat quickly drew even and the two teams traded points the rest of the way. Nimo Benne was red-hot for the hosts, hammering seven kills and two service aces in the set – his kill off a UBCO overpass gave UFV a 25-24 lead, and Eduardo Ferreira finished it off with a clutch ace.
The second set played out in much the same fashion, as the teams were within two points for much of it. The Heat grabbed a 16-14 lead at the technical timeout, but the Cascades responded with three straight points, and they two teams went back and forth to inside of 20 points. UFV struggled with errors down the stretch, though, paving the way for a 25-23 Heat win. Maxwell Heppell came up big for UBCO, racking up eight kills in the set.
The Heat got rolling in the third, grabbing a 16-10 lead at the technical timeout after a Cameron Vanderveen ace. Benne single-handedly got the Cascades back into it – he notched a block, a kill, an ace and another kill consecutively to cut the deficit to 17-15 and force a UBCO timeout. The Cascades were able to twice get within a point, at 20-19 and 24-23, but Noah Carlson came through with a kill from the right side to end it 25-23 for the visitors.
Back-to-back aces from Jonas Van Huizen gave the Cascades an 11-10 lead in the fourth, but it was UBCO taking a 16-15 lead at the technical timeout. Van Huizen took over at the service line once again, helping his team surge ahead 23-19. A resounding kill from Noah Bouius would give the Cascades a 25-20 win, extending the match and sending the home fans into hysterics.
UFV would not be denied in the fifth – they raced out to a 6-1 lead highlighted by a pair of Bouius kills, and they led 8-4 at the technical timeout. The Heat were able to get back to within 13-10, prompting a timeout from Bennett. A UBCO service error created a UFV match point, and Benne converted it with an ace, setting off a celebration.
Benne finished with a game-high 20 kills on 51 swings and added six service aces and six block assists. He racked up 29 points in total, and added a team-best 13 digs for good measure.
“He attacked 51 balls – that’s a lot for anyone,” Bennett marveled afterward. “But good for that guy – he was dialed. Nimo’s not a real rah-rah personality, but he really dialed in his job and went after them.”
Eduardo Ferreira also had a big game for the Cascades, notching 14 kills, and Caleb Kastelein had nine. Rookie setter Van Huizen also sparkled, with 48 assists, 11 digs and three aces.
Carlson (18 kills) and Heppell (14) led the way for the Heat, and Zach van Geel finished with 39 assists.
The Cascades honoured graduating players Justin Peleshytyk and Graham Walkey in a pregame ceremony, and Bennett noted how fitting it was for the team’s first win to coincide with that occasion.
“Those two have done so much for our program,” he said. “To witness the first win in UFV Cascades’ U SPORTS history, on our home court, I think it was something special for them to be involved with. And also for us – they’ve been such instrumental pieces of the puzzle for us.”
