VANCOUVER – The UBC thunderbirds had to settle for a split in their key series with the Brandon Bobcats, winning Friday’s match but losing 3-0 on Saturday (25-19, 32-30, 25-23) at War Memorial Gym.
In a possible preview of a first-round playoff match up, the T-Birds and Bobcats played each other very close for the second night in a row. The Bobcats’ nail-biting second set win was the turning point, as they overcame an early deficit to earn the win in an emotionally and physically draining frame.
The ‘Birds had a shot at game point up 24-23, but some key blocks and big kills from Paul Robidoux kept the Bobcats afloat, and middle blocker Jonathan Sloane capped off the set with one of his nine kills on the night.
Sloane gave the T-Birds fits all weekend, racking up a total of 21 kills on 32 attacks. He also added three aces from the service line on Saturday.
The third set was another tight one from start to finish, but again it was the Bobcats stepping their game up in crunch time and coming up with the big plays to finish sets. After two straight UBC points tied it at 23, freshman hitter Sam Tuivai ended the night with a kill and then a brilliant ace on match point that seemed to dive straight into the ground once it crossed the net.
Tuivai tied for the match-high with 16 kills and added 10 digs.
UBC’s Robert Bennett also had 16 kills to put an exclamation mark on potentially his last home match in a UBC uniform. He was recognized for his contributions to the program along with fellow fifth-years Yari Kozel, Cary Brett, Chris Klassen, Tanner Kozak, and inactive players Joe Cordonier and Demijan Savija, as part of UBC’s seniors’ night.
Kozel also had a strong match, although in limited action, as he injured his ankle in Friday’s game. He still managed to rack up five kills on just nine swings to go with four blocks, most of those numbers coming in the second set.
Both teams now sit at 10-8 on the year, but Brandon has the advantage based on head-to-head sets won. That means they currently occupy fourth place while the T-Birds are fifth, which would have UBC playing at Brandon in the opening round of playoffs.
