The UBC Okanagan Heat take the second-best record in Canada West women’s volleyball into Calgary this weekend to take on the Dinos.
The Heat (8-2) are tied for second in the 12-team conference, while the Dinos are at 4-6.
Steve Manuel’s crew ran its winning streak to four matches with a sweep of the Winnipeg Wesmen last weekend at the UBCO gym.
On Friday night, the Heat women rolled over Winnipeg 3-0 (25-20, 25-18, 25-19).
Player of the Game Katy Klomps was effective on both offense and defense, tallying seven kills and five blocks assists for the Heat. Brianna Beamish added a game-high 13 kills and 13 digs in support, while Megan Festival had 10 kills of her own to balance the Heat attack.
On Saturday, more of the same as UVCO took down the Wesmen 3-0 (25-19, 25-14, 27-25).
Klomps and Katie Wuttunnee were dominant from the middle, combining for 23 kills and 5.5 blocks.
Player of the Game Lenai Schmidt played a solid game from her libero position, collecting 24 of the Heat’s 66 digs.
“Our passing was exceptionally good,” said head coach Steve Manuel after Saturday’s win. “That allowed us to run a varied offense, and attack from a lot of difference places.”
The Heat moved up one slot in the CIS rankings this week, from seventh to sixth.
Heat men
The UBCO men take a 2-8 record into Calgary this weekend to face the Dinos (5-5).
The Heat managed a split last weekend at home to the Winnipeg Wesmen.
On Friday, Greg Poitras’s squad emerged with the win in five sets (25-23, 22-25, 25-20, 23-25, 15-9).
Nate Speijer and Jim Bell combined for 46 kills to lead the Heat to victory, with Speijer leading the charge with 31. As a team, the Heat were fluid on offense for the majority of the match, resulting in a team hitting percentage of .284.
“A total team win (Friday), and a gritty win for sure,” commented Heat head coach Greg Poitras. “We had to make some clutch plays to get this one.”
On Saturday, the Wesmen returned the favour with a 3-2 win (25-18, 14-25, 25-15, 15-25, 15-6) of their own.
Speijer once again led the Heat in kills with 20, while player of the game Kyle Pankratz added 13 kills.
