UBCO Roundup: Heat teams defeat MacEwan Griffins

Late heroics from Bornemann give Heat four-set victory over Griffins

The UBC Okanagan Heat men’s volleyball team took down the visiting MacEwan Griffins in the UBC Okanagan gymnasium on Friday night. Set scores were 25-15, 20-25, 25-19, and 25-22.

As a team on Friday night the Heat had the better attack, finishing with 56 kills and a .389 hitting percentage while the Griffins had 44 on .205. Total blocks were 7-6 for MacEwan, and digs were 45-32 for UBC Okanagan.

The Griffins took the lead early in the fourth set, going up 2-0, before the teams traded three-point runs putting MacEwan ahead 5-3. Another three-point run by the Heat put them up 10-9, and at the technical time-out it was still close as an off-handed kill by Lars Bornemann put them up 16-15. The teams traded points and leads from then on, another kill from Bornemann gave the Heat match point at 24-21. Crushing another kill, Bornemann closed out the set and the match with the final point.

Individually it was Lars Bornemann with the best night on the attack, finishing with 17 kills on a .375 hitting percentage. Behind him for the Heat were Kyle Hinchey and Devon Cote with 12 kills apiece.

For MacEwan, Jordan Peters and Kai Hesthammer led the way with 13 kills each. They also finished tied for a team-high in service aces with two apiece.

The Heat were dominant in the first set, winning it 25-15. They had 12 kills and made zero errors to hit .600 while the Griffins had 11 and hit .172. The Heat had far more success stringing consecutive points together in the frame, and they only allowed the Griffins to score more than twice in a row once. A four-point run put UBCO up 9-6, and from then on they didn’t relinquish the lead.

MacEwan elevated their game in the second set, which they would win 25-20. At the technical time-out the Heat were ahead 16-15 after the Griffins went on a run to tie it at 15 after being down 13-9. Six straight points for the visitors after they were down 17-16 made all the difference for MacEwan, as they jumped ahead 22-17. A pair of kills from Devon Cote provided the Heat’s 19th and 20th points, but a kill from Kai Hesthammer in response for the Griffins cemented their set win.

The third set saw the Heat once again take control, as they never allowed the Griffins to lead. There were three ties early on, but a three-point run by the Heat to go ahead 11-7 was the turning point. At the technical time-out UBCO were up 16-11, and as close as MacEwan would come from then on was within three points, down 21-18. Back-to-back kills for the Heat, courtesy of Alex Swiatlowski and Joshua Harvey, gave UBCO set point at 24-18, and a powerful kill from Lars Bornemann provided the final point as the Heat took the set 25-19 and took a 2-1 lead in the match.

The UBC Okanagan Heat (8-15) and the MacEwan Griffins (4-19) will play again Saturday night, with the annual Seniors Night ceremony to honour graduating student-athletes happening before the match. First serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. in the UBC Okanagan gymnasium.

On Saturday night UBC Okanagan will honour the graduates from both the men’s and women’s volleyball teams as they play their last matches in front of their home town fans. From the women’s team Emily Oxland, Megan Festival, and Kaitlynn Given will be honoured with Alex Swiatlowski, and Grant Sonnenberg from the men’s side.

~ Grayson Leahy, UBC Okanagan

Heat end Griffins’ playoff hopes with five-set victory

The UBC Okanagan Heat women’s volleyball team defeated the MacEwan Griffins 3-2 on Friday night in Kelowna. Set scores were 22-25, 25-23, 21-25, 25-21, and 15-8.

It was a must-win match for the Griffins, as their playoff hopes relied on a pair of wins this weekend coupled with a pair of Mount Royal losses. During the match in Kelowna, though, Mount Royal cemented their spot in the postseason with a 3-0 victory over Winnipeg, locking in the seven Canada West playoff teams with MacEwan on the outside.

In the Friday night contest, the Griffins were the slightly better hitting team, finishing with a .189 hitting percentage while the Heat hit .115. Each team finished with 54 kills. MacEwan had the edge in total blocks (17-8) while UBCO were ahead in digs (100-88), and service aces (11-5).

MacEwan’s Cassidy Kinsella had an outstanding night on the attack, putting away a match-high 25 kills. Behind her for the Griffins were Haley Gilfillan (8) and Kate Rozendaal (7).

For the Heat it was Siobhan Fitzpatrick leading the way with 15 kills, while Megan Festival and Aidan Lea also finished in double digits with 12 and 10 kills respectively. Emily Oxland had a match-high in digs with 22, and Fitzpatrick tied with Kaitlynn Given for match-high in service aces, with three.

MacEwan jumped ahead 3-0 to start the deciding fifth set, before UBCO scored three straight of their own a few points later to pull ahead 6-5. At the technical time-out the Heat were ahead 8-6, in the middle of a five-point run that would put them ahead 11-6. Kills from Aidan Lea and Emily Oxland put the Heat up 13-7, and a Griffins service error brought match point for UBCO. Siobhan Fitzpatrick provided the final point on an exceptional kill, giving the Heat the set and match victory.

The Griffins were able to shut down the Heat’s normally dominant hitting in the first set, holding them to 10 kills on a .024 hitting percentage. The visitors had 14 kills and hit .213 in the opening set which they went on to win 25-22. A three-point run to go up 4-3 and a five-point run to pull ahead 9-4 made the difference for the visitors, as from then on they wouldn’t relinquish the lead. Another run, this time of six points, put MacEwan up 19-12, and despite a seven-point run by the Heat to pull within a point at 22-21 the Albertan side held on to earn the set win after two of their final three points were delivered by Cassidy Kinsella kills.

The second set went to UBC Okanagan, 25-23. The longest scoring run in the frame came early on when the Heat scored four straight to take an 8-4 lead, but the Griffins battled back and strung together six straight points to pull ahead before the technical time-out, 15-14. UBCO were up 16-15 at the break but once again MacEwan took a lead at 19-18, before the Heat took it back again at 22-21. After two more ties, at 22-22 and 23-23, the home side cemented the victory thanks to back-to-back kills from Siobhan Fitzpatrick and Megan Festival.

The Griffins jumped ahead early in the third set, scoring three straight to start it. They were up 15-11 just before the technical time-out, but the Heat scored four straight to tie it at 15-15. MacEwan answered with a four-point run to pull ahead 19-15, and closed out the set 25-21 kills from Kinsella and Haley Gilfillan and a Heat error. The Griffins put away 10 kills and hit .243 in the set, while the Heat had 15 kills but made 12 errors for a hitting percentage of .060.

The Heat had 12 kills and hit .257 in the fourth set, and took the win 25-22. The Griffins had 15 kills and a .220 hitting percentage. There were six ties before either team had scored 10 points in the frame, but a four-point run put the home side up 11-7 for the first significant lead. At the technical time-out the Heat were up 16-14, and the Griffins kept things close by tying it a number of times after the break, at 16-16, 17-17, and 19-19 before taking a late lead at 20-19. Thanks to Aidan Lea’s two kills to close out the set, the Heat were able to take it and force a fifth set.

The UBC Okanagan Heat (14-9) and the MacEwan Griffins (8-15) will play again Saturday night in the UBC Okanagan gym. First serve is scheduled for 5 p.m., and after the match the Heat teams will have their annual Seniors Night ceremony for graduating players.

On Saturday night UBC Okanagan will honour the graduates from both the men’s and women’s volleyball teams as they play their last matches in front of their home town fans. From the women’s team Emily Oxland, Megan Festival, and Kaitlynn Given will be honoured with Alex Swiatlowski, and Grant Sonnenberg from the men’s side.

~ Grayson Leahy, UBC Okanagan