Fraser Valley (Jordie Arthur) – It was tip off for the 2022-23 Basketball Season and a good night for Volleyball.
Women’s Basketball: Rathler, Tuchscherer, propel Cascades to opening night victory over the Griffins
Edmonton, AB – Natalie Rathler’s double-double and Deanna Tuchscherer’s game-high 23 points helped the UFV Cascades start their 2022/ 2023 Canada West campaign off with a 75-62 victory over the MacEwan Griffins on Friday night.
Despite UFV leading the game almost wire-to-wire, the Griffins kept the Cascades close throughout. UFV, who was voted the number two team in Canada West in the preseason coaches’ poll, led 20-17 after the first and 36-32 at the half, before opening it up in the third and fourth quarters.
“We just couldn’t get ourselves going in the first half” noted UFV assistant coach Dan Nayebzadeh. “The second half was a bit better, we didn’t foul as much, and we adjusted”.
UFV led by as many as 16 in the third quarter, but the Griffins cut that lead to just four in the final frame. However, the Cascades would prove to be too much down the stretch, as Maddy Gobeil scored 10 points in the final 3:07 to seal the victory.
“The last three minutes we really took it to them I thought. [Gurveer Sidhu] was unbelievable in the last three minutes defensively. Julia had a couple of buckets, Deanna went to work, and Nat was rebounding.”
“We stayed together, and we didn’t panic.”
Deanna Tuchscherer led the Cascades in scoring with 23 points on the night, while Rathler had 16 points to go with her 13 rebounds, and Gobeil finished with 15 points.
“Nat was a beast tonight. She rebounded hard, defended the best player on their team all night long, and she scored for us.” Naayebzadeh applauded postgame.
Noelle Kilbreath paced the Griffins with 14 points, while Mackenzie Farmer added 12 points and 10 rebounds in the game.
The result moves the Cascades to 1-0 on the season, while the Griffins fall to 0-1. The two teams face off once again on Saturday (1 p.m. (PT)., Canadawest.tv).
Men’s Basketball: Lopez, Bhogal, have big nights as Cascades open the season with a big win
Edmonton, AB – Dario Lopez had game-highs in points and rebounds, while Dhivaan Bhogal followed closely behind, as the Cascades Cruised to a 102-71 victory over the MacEwan Griffins to open the Canada West campaign.
With the win, the Cascades start the season 1-0, while the Griffins fall to 0-1.
The Cascades shot out to a fantastic start, leading 26-5 in the first quarter thanks in part to Bhogal’s 12 points in the opening frame.
UFV carried a 31-14 lead into the second, but the Griffins started to find their footing. MacEwan outscored the Cascades 42-40 in the middle two frames, but still found themselves trailing 71-56 headed into the fourth. The Cascades pulled away once again in the final quarter to finish it off.
“We jumped on them early” noted UFV head coach Joe Enevoldson. “I thought our energy was really good early. We were really dialed in on the task at hand and we did a really good job of following the scout.”
Lopez had 21 points and 12 rebounds on the night, while Bhogal had 20 points and nine rebounds, and Courtenay Anderson added 18 points in the Cascades win.
Job janda, Scottie Austin, and Taylor Cook all had 12 points on the night for the Griffins.
“Our bigs really made a difference. Dhivaan had a really great performance in the game — and when he has a great performance, we are going to be a really tough basketball team.”
“I thought we rebounded really well tonight, and Dario had a great night both rebounding and scoring for us.”
The two teams face each other again on Saturday (3 p.m., canadawest.tv) to close out their opening week.
“In Canada West it’s always tough to win on the road” explained Enevoldson, “we just have to come in and try to grind out another one tomorrow”.
Women’s Volleyball: Lauren Attieh shines in Cascades five set comeback victory
Abbotsford, BC – Lauren Attieh was dominant all match as she led the UFV Cascades to a five-set comeback victory over the Saskatchewan Huskies on Friday night.
The Cascades dropped the first two sets, before storming back to take it by scores of 21-25, 18-25, 25-13, 25-16, and 15-9. The win is the Cascades first of the year, moving their record to 1-4, while the Huskies fall to 2-3.
With the score level at 18 in the first, a side out and a four-serve run from Olivia Mattern gave Saskatchewan a 23-18 advantage on the way to a 25-21 set win.
The Huskies built up a 7-2 lead in the second, before extending it to 20-12 following a three-serve run from Mattern, and they made no mistake closing it out 25-18 on a kill by Mandi Fraser.
The Cascades held a 15-12 lead in the third, but they would take over from there. Three kills from Kristen McBride, and a pair from Lauren Attieh helped as UFV scored 10 of the next 11 points to take the set 25-13.
UFV continued their strong play in the fourth as sisters Gabrielle and Lauren Attieh combined for 11 kills in the set. With the Cascades up 18-16, a service error from the Huskies put the ball in Lauren Attieh’s hands, who would serve out the frame for UFV as they took it 25-16.
The Cascades grabbed a 10- 6 lead in the fifth and Lauren Attieh continued her strong play, knocking down three kills down the strectch before capping off the match with an ace to take it 15-9.
“It feels so good — we’ve been waiting for a game like this all season,” noted Cascades outside hitter Lauren Attieh post game.
Lauren Attieh notched a game-high 28 kills in the match, as well as two aces and 20 digs. Gabrielle Attieh added 15 kills and 18 digs of her own, while Emily Matsui provided 21 digs.
“It feels awesome, but it’s not a reflection of anything I’m doing,” Lauren Attieh noted on her big offensive night.
“It says more about my team and the people I have supporting me on the court, on the bench, and the support staff, so I’m just thankful to be given the opportunity and I hope I can keep doing it for my team.”
Devyn Ethier paced the Huskies with 11 kills on the day, while Julia Howell Bourner added 10 kills and three aces in the effort.
The two teams are back in action on Saturday evening at 7 p.m. for the rematch at the UFV Athletic Centre. You can also catch all the action live on canadawest.tv.
Men’s Volleyball: Strong-serving Benne helps Cascades pick up first home win of the season in four sets
Abbotsford, BC – Nimo Benne hammered home six service aces as the UFV Cascades took down the Saskatchewan Huskies in four sets (25-20, 25-23, 21-25, 25-20) for their first home win of the season on Friday.
A pair of early runs in the first set gave the Cascades a 16-9 lead, and despite some late pressure from the Huskies UFV took it 25-20.
Saskatchewan built a 16-10 lead in the second, but kills from Ryan Adams, Jonas Van Huizen, and Benne helped them level the score at 17. The teams traded points, but with the score 22-21 for the Huskies, UFV would pick up four of the next five points to finish it 25-23.
The Huskies edged out a 13-10 lead in the third, after a pair of kills from Jack McGeough and an ace from Jake Rapin on their way to a 25-21 set win.
Benne’s serve proved crucial in the fourth set, as the outside hitter notched four aces in the early part of the frame. The teams battled to a 20-20 score line, but it was the Cascades who would snatch victory scoring the final five points to close it out 25-20.
“We prepped really hard for this game. We knew we had a chance, and it just feels really good to get it done” noted Benne post game.
Benne had a team-high 14 kills to go with his six aces on the night, while Ryan Hampe tallied six blocks, and Jonas Van Huizen notched 29 assists and 11 digs.
“Our service pressure is part of our whole team structure. Nimo is a part of that, and he’s done a good job for us with that so far” explained UFV head coach Nathan Bennett. “We have players like Ryan Adams, Jonas, Ryan Hampe, so we are putting service pressure on guys at all times”.
Dylan Mortensen paced the Huskies with a game-high 17 kills, while McGeough had nine, and Quinn Buchanan had eight.
The two teams face off again on Saturday at 5 p.m. at the UFV Athletic Centre. You can also catch all the action live on canadawest.tv.
