WINNIPEG – The Manitoba Bisons recorded 14 assisted blocks, and five solos, compared to just two total team blocks for Calgary in a 3-0 win (25-18, 25-14, 25-20) at home on Thursday night. The victory was their first of the season, improving to 1-4 while handing Calgary (2-1) their first loss.
 
Six different Bisons had a block in the game, led by five assisted and one solo for middle Jonah Dueck, and four assisted, and one solo for right side Karil Dadash Adeh. Calgary got seven kills each from Cole Czepuryk and Wil Kay in the loss.
 
Serve-receive played a massive factor all game, as the Bisons forced Calgary out of system, and were able to read the Dinos attack. The visitors often attacked from the outside, and the pressure from the line by Manitoba allowed them to get into position, and make key plays at the net.
 
A Dueck solo block – one of three total blocks in the first for Manitoba's leader on the year (28, second in CanWest) – ended the first set, while Dadash Adeh and Dueck closed down the right side early in the third to help give Manitoba a 6-1 lead.
 
Dadash Adeh added two aces, both in the third, while setter Alex Witt, who also had 25 assists, got in on the fun with a solo.
 
"[Calgary] was running their offence in a very specific way," said Dadash Adeh.
 
"They were running very fast sets, and the ball was always dying inside the court. Our mentality was that we didn't want to put so much risk on our serves, just 75 or 80 percent to take them out of system. We knew where the set would go, and we were there. It's tough to play against Manitoba when you have double blocks and everyone is above 6'7"."
 
Hitting efficiency was also a major story. The Dinos' best set was their third, when they hit .125., while Manitoba hit .474 and .429 in the first and second, respectively.
 
Luke Nodwell and Erik Goodwin stepped up big in the third for Calgary, combining for five kills, with Goodwin doing a solid job passing on serve-receive from the back row. But Manitoba shut down any sort of comeback with their sustained pressure from the line, and in fitting fashion, the Herd closed the game out on the block thanks to middle Jordon Heppner and right and left side Owen Weekes.
 
"We stayed disciplined on the block, and saw what [Calgary] did, and made the right block and the right decision," added Bisons head coach Arnd 'Lupo' Ludwig.
 
"That's what we worked a lot on, was the right technique and I thought we were pretty solid. That's one of our strengths, it's just what it is, our outside blockers can play pretty good, and our middle blockers can adjust to that."
 
Both teams play again tomorrow at 7:45 pm.